Job summary
Closing Date: 12.12.25
Shortlisting to take place after closing date: commencing 13.12.25
Interview expected to take place in the week following shortlisting: commencing 29.12.25
We are looking for an enthusiastic, well-motivated individual to join the well-established Switchboard team at the Bradford Royal Infirmary. The department provides a 24/7 service as the first point of contact for the Trust and our associated hospitals.
We are looking for someone with excellent communication skills, a good level of customer experience, and the ability to remain calm under pressure.
The job holder must be flexible in their approach and must be able to work unsociable hours (nights, weekends and public holidays). The successful candidate will be required to work allocated shifts, and therefore must be fully flexible and available.
Main duties of the job
The Switchboard Service provides a critical function to support the Trust's telecommunication and call handling, aiming to provide an outstanding experience for all callers. The service also supports emergency call handling and dispatching emergency response teams within the Trust.
At times, Operators will be required to work unsupervised, and may be required to work as lone workers. The post-holder is required to have a flexible approach to ensure that the service is covered 24/7, working a range of shifts across all day parts (including nights, weekends, and public holidays).
About us
Our People Charter outlines the behavior's we can expect from one another and what you can expect from Bradford Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust:
- We value people
- We are one team
- We care
We're keen to meet people who share these values and are passionate about delivering the highest quality of care to our patients.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- To be the first point of contact for incoming calls from the public, professionals, and from internal colleagues.
- To be able to connect calls quickly and in the most appropriate manner to the person or department they require.
- Provide an efficient, effective, and courteous telecommunications service to the organisation and its stakeholders, working to meet the service key targets (KPIs).
- To be professional and kind at all times, and sympathetic to distressed callers
- Work unsupervised and at times as a lone worker
- To use the telephony software accurately, including the digital switchboard system, the electronic directory, paging system, and other systems or records as required.
- Use Outlook, Microsoft Office, as well as bespoke Switchboard Systems as required.
- Manage on-call rotas and daily key staff information sheets, ensuring information is accurate
- Operate as first point of contact for contacting relevant Trust personnel in emergency situations.
- To respond in strict accordance in line with written procedures, policies and action cards as and when required, also using own initiative to resolve new undefined circumstances.
- Monitor the cardiac arrest, fire and alarm panels and take appropriate action in accordance with departmental procedures.
- To act calmly, quickly, and appropriately to any emergency call (including Cardiac Arrest, Fire, Medical Gas Alarms, as well as emergency situations such as Bomb Threats and Major Incidents)
- To carry out daily testing of hospital crash bleep systems and maintaining records of these as required.
- The post holder must keep themselves up to date on all policy changes, new information, and relevant Switchboard information to ensure that they can provide an effective and accurate serviceProvide a central communication facility for activating the Trust MAJAX Procedure, ensuring clear and precise lines of communication to all relevant parties.
- Support Administration Tasks such as data entry, Filing, photocopying, and sorting of information
- To use clinical systems to obtain basic information (such as locating patients to direct phone calls onward, identifying and arranging appointments, locating and extracting data)
- To undertake training to act as loggists in the event of Major Incident or as and when required
See Job Description for detailed information.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- To be the first point of contact for incoming calls from the public, professionals, and from internal colleagues.
- To be able to connect calls quickly and in the most appropriate manner to the person or department they require.
- Provide an efficient, effective, and courteous telecommunications service to the organisation and its stakeholders, working to meet the service key targets (KPIs).
- To be professional and kind at all times, and sympathetic to distressed callers
- Work unsupervised and at times as a lone worker
- To use the telephony software accurately, including the digital switchboard system, the electronic directory, paging system, and other systems or records as required.
- Use Outlook, Microsoft Office, as well as bespoke Switchboard Systems as required.
- Manage on-call rotas and daily key staff information sheets, ensuring information is accurate
- Operate as first point of contact for contacting relevant Trust personnel in emergency situations.
- To respond in strict accordance in line with written procedures, policies and action cards as and when required, also using own initiative to resolve new undefined circumstances.
- Monitor the cardiac arrest, fire and alarm panels and take appropriate action in accordance with departmental procedures.
- To act calmly, quickly, and appropriately to any emergency call (including Cardiac Arrest, Fire, Medical Gas Alarms, as well as emergency situations such as Bomb Threats and Major Incidents)
- To carry out daily testing of hospital crash bleep systems and maintaining records of these as required.
- The post holder must keep themselves up to date on all policy changes, new information, and relevant Switchboard information to ensure that they can provide an effective and accurate serviceProvide a central communication facility for activating the Trust MAJAX Procedure, ensuring clear and precise lines of communication to all relevant parties.
- Support Administration Tasks such as data entry, Filing, photocopying, and sorting of information
- To use clinical systems to obtain basic information (such as locating patients to direct phone calls onward, identifying and arranging appointments, locating and extracting data)
- To undertake training to act as loggists in the event of Major Incident or as and when required
See Job Description for detailed information.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- General level of education to O-Level/ GCSE or equivalent
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working face to face and/or telephone contact with the general public
- Working experience/knowledge of computers, data input and word processing
Desirable
- Experience of working on a switchboard or other telephone system
Skills
Essential
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Able to deal with fluctuating workload and prioritise work accordingly
- Excellent organisational skills
- Excellent team working skills
Knowledge
Essential
- Understanding of Information Governance and Confidentiality
- Understanding of equality and diversity issues and how this affects patients, visitors and staff
- Understanding of what the NHS Constitution means to you, and your responsibilities to the public, patients and colleagues.
Desirable
- Knowledge of working in a switchboard service.
- Working knowledge of Microsoft applications, including e-mail communication.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- General level of education to O-Level/ GCSE or equivalent
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working face to face and/or telephone contact with the general public
- Working experience/knowledge of computers, data input and word processing
Desirable
- Experience of working on a switchboard or other telephone system
Skills
Essential
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Able to deal with fluctuating workload and prioritise work accordingly
- Excellent organisational skills
- Excellent team working skills
Knowledge
Essential
- Understanding of Information Governance and Confidentiality
- Understanding of equality and diversity issues and how this affects patients, visitors and staff
- Understanding of what the NHS Constitution means to you, and your responsibilities to the public, patients and colleagues.
Desirable
- Knowledge of working in a switchboard service.
- Working knowledge of Microsoft applications, including e-mail communication.
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.
