Body Store Supervisor

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW)

The closing date is 14 May 2025

Job summary

An exciting job opportunity has arisen at the Mortuary at Bristol Royal Infirmary. We are looking for a member of the team to take the position of Body Stores Supervisor in our busy city centre Hospital.

The post holder will supervise a small team within the body storage facility and be responsible for the organisation of daily activities and running of the storage facility. They will be expected to provide a safe, secure, effective and comprehensive service to meet the needs of the hospital and ensure that deceased patients and their families are treated with dignity and respect at all times.

This post will be based at Bristol Royal Infirmary but could be expected to work cross site (Weston) when and if needed, to receive and release deceased patients, prepare deceased patients for viewing, as well as completing general disinfection and cleaning of all the areas. Other duties will include liaising with and assisting funeral directors, medical examiners, bereavement officers, coroner's personnel, police officers, doctors and multidisciplinary Trust teams as well as relatives and friends of the deceased patients.The postholder will be required to participate in a 24/7 oncall rota.

This job advert may close early if a sufficient number of suitable applications have been submitted.

Main duties of the job

Organise the day to day running of the department under the supervision of the Mortuary Manager and complete all work to a high standard and within expected time frames to meet service demands.
Provide a safe, secure, effective and comprehensive service to meet the needs of the hospital and ensure that deceased patients and their families are treated with dignity and respect at all times.
Ensure security and confidentiality at all times including the monitoring of all activities by internal and external staff.
Supervise the daily activities of Body Store Attendants to include the creation of rotas.
Report regularly to senior staff regarding the operational status of the department, including any issues or information relevant to the running of the department which can be used in Clinical Governance meetings.
Attend departmental clinical governance meetings and actively participate to improve standards and services.
Assist the Mortuary Manager in working towards improving departmental procedures to Human Tissue Authority regulatory standards.
Be able to multitask and prioritise when there are competing demands; evaluate and act upon anomalous situations when dealing with emotional families at viewings or over the telephone; give guidance, support and comfort to bereaved relatives and friends.

A successful candidate must have the emotional strength to deal with all duties whilst maintaining calm, mature and compassionate disposition.

About us

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, bringing together a combined workforce of over 13,000 staff and over 100 different clinical services across 10 different sites, serving a core population of more than 500,000 people across South West England. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as 'Good' overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to the people of Bristol, Weston and beyond. As a forward-thinking multi-award winning Trust and a digital exemplar committed to improving patient care, our world-leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone's throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer. UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we're meeting our pledge.

Date posted

30 April 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£26,530 to £29,114 a year pa pro rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

387-DT7822-IB

Job locations

Bristol Royal Infirmary

Marlborough Street

Bristol

BS2 8HW

Job description

Job responsibilities

For a more detailed job description and main responsibilities, please refer to the job description attached to this vacancy.

Job description

Job responsibilities

For a more detailed job description and main responsibilities, please refer to the job description attached to this vacancy.

Person Specification

Qualifications and Training

Essential

Good basic general education 4 x GCSE grade C or above - to include English & Maths)

Desirable

Working towards Level 2 Certificate in Mortuary Support
Health and Safety Training

Knowledge and Experience

Essential

Knowledge of Trust IT systems
Experience of the Hospital environment

Desirable

Previous experience of supervising
Experience with the deceased
Knowledge of Mortuary practices including Health and safety and Human Tissue Authority standards and regulations
Understanding of the Coronial and Medical Examiners systems
Understanding of infection control procedures
Mortuary Experience
Experience of organising and leading training of junior staff and other clinical staff

Skills and Abilities

Essential

Good IT Skills specially the use of Microsoft Excel, Word etc
Excellent communication and organisational skills
Ability to interact sensitively with the public
Understanding of Confidentiality
Excellent attention to detail and accuracy in record keeping
Ability to work alone or as a team member
High level of literacy and numeracy skills

Desirable

Ability to work methodically
Ability to multitask
Physically able to manoeuvre heavy loads

Person Specification

Qualifications and Training

Essential

Good basic general education 4 x GCSE grade C or above - to include English & Maths)

Desirable

Working towards Level 2 Certificate in Mortuary Support
Health and Safety Training

Knowledge and Experience

Essential

Knowledge of Trust IT systems
Experience of the Hospital environment

Desirable

Previous experience of supervising
Experience with the deceased
Knowledge of Mortuary practices including Health and safety and Human Tissue Authority standards and regulations
Understanding of the Coronial and Medical Examiners systems
Understanding of infection control procedures
Mortuary Experience
Experience of organising and leading training of junior staff and other clinical staff

Skills and Abilities

Essential

Good IT Skills specially the use of Microsoft Excel, Word etc
Excellent communication and organisational skills
Ability to interact sensitively with the public
Understanding of Confidentiality
Excellent attention to detail and accuracy in record keeping
Ability to work alone or as a team member
High level of literacy and numeracy skills

Desirable

Ability to work methodically
Ability to multitask
Physically able to manoeuvre heavy loads

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Additional information