Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Health Care Assistant - Ward 3F

The closing date is 20 April 2026

Job summary

Full Time and Part Time post available

Band 3 HCA

The post holder supports the team of health professionals to enable them to provide an effective, caring, seamless service to babies and their families by carrying out assigned tasks and by being involved in direct care under the supervision of a qualified nurse

Due to current service demands, we are only able to consider applicants who have relevant UK experience. Candidates must also be available to commence employment immediately or within a very short timeframe. We regret that we cannot progress applications that do not meet these essential requirements.

Main duties of the job

To work as part of the Nursing Team undertaking household support tasks and direct care tasks as delegated by the Nurse in Charge.

To support the qualified Nursing Staff in the maintenance of high standards of nursing care to patients.

To assist in providing an environment within the ward that is conductive to patient recovery and pleasant for patients and their families.

To accept responsibility for specifically delegated functions within the ward which the Nurse in Charge feels are appropriate for untrained staff to undertake.

To ensure where entries are made in nursing documentation, that these are correct, legible, and comprehensive and countersigned by a registered nurse.

To ensure the Health and Safety of patients, relatives and other staff is considered and not prejudiced by the post-holder at any time.

To be able to work autonomously as required and to receive close supervision and instruction as necessary.

To ensure that privacy and dignity of patients is paramount and is not compromised.

To ensure that all patient information is confidential and is not disclosed to a third party except with permission of the Nurse in Charge.

To ensure that all patient care is delivered with the highest degree of professionalism.

About us

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 9000 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.

We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to Five Star Patient Care.

Our services:

Acute Care

Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.

Primary Care

Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.

Community Services

Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation, freeing up space for more unwell patients. We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.

Specialist Regional Services

We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.

Achievements:

Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme

Date posted

14 April 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 3

Salary

£25,760 to £27,476 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Part-time

Reference number

409-7586798

Job locations

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Prescot

L355DR

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see Job Description and Person Specification attached.

Advertising Date: 14th April 2026

Closing Date: 20th April 2026

Shortlisting Date: 21st April 2026

Proposed Interview date: 28th April 2026

Please note this vacancy may close early if a high number of applications is reached.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see Job Description and Person Specification attached.

Advertising Date: 14th April 2026

Closing Date: 20th April 2026

Shortlisting Date: 21st April 2026

Proposed Interview date: 28th April 2026

Please note this vacancy may close early if a high number of applications is reached.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

NVQ level 3 Health and Social Care or equivalent experience
Care Certificate (equivalent to level 1)
Literacy and numeracy functional skills level 2 or equivalent

Knowledge

Essential

Knowledge of personal care and related procedures
Demonstrable experience of working in a patient care/health related role
Knowledge of relevant legislation related to healthcare
Experience of working in a team

Skills

Essential

Ability to communicate effectively in both verbal and written formats
Good interpersonal skills
Able to work within a team
Experience of supporting junior staff and learners
Able to accept direction and guidance
Aware of own limitations
Flexible in working hours
Able to prioritise own workload and manage time effectively
Flexible, adaptable and responsive to change
Reliable and professional
Ability to cope in stressful and challenging situations
Inclusive and non-judgmental
Punctual, motivated and committed
Effective role model demonstrating Trust values
Basic IT skills

Oth

Essential

Frequent moderate effort for several long periods during the shift such as manual handling patients to supporting patient's personal care.
Concentration, focus and frequent record keeping requirements. Carrying out time critical tasks.
Aware that developing resilience to distressing situations is necessary without losing the ability to care compassionately.
Aware of the process for accessing staff health and well being support
Daily exposure to distressing situations which may include challenging behaviour, care of chronic health conditions, patient end of life care/care after death.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

NVQ level 3 Health and Social Care or equivalent experience
Care Certificate (equivalent to level 1)
Literacy and numeracy functional skills level 2 or equivalent

Knowledge

Essential

Knowledge of personal care and related procedures
Demonstrable experience of working in a patient care/health related role
Knowledge of relevant legislation related to healthcare
Experience of working in a team

Skills

Essential

Ability to communicate effectively in both verbal and written formats
Good interpersonal skills
Able to work within a team
Experience of supporting junior staff and learners
Able to accept direction and guidance
Aware of own limitations
Flexible in working hours
Able to prioritise own workload and manage time effectively
Flexible, adaptable and responsive to change
Reliable and professional
Ability to cope in stressful and challenging situations
Inclusive and non-judgmental
Punctual, motivated and committed
Effective role model demonstrating Trust values
Basic IT skills

Oth

Essential

Frequent moderate effort for several long periods during the shift such as manual handling patients to supporting patient's personal care.
Concentration, focus and frequent record keeping requirements. Carrying out time critical tasks.
Aware that developing resilience to distressing situations is necessary without losing the ability to care compassionately.
Aware of the process for accessing staff health and well being support
Daily exposure to distressing situations which may include challenging behaviour, care of chronic health conditions, patient end of life care/care after death.

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.

Employer details

Employer name

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Prescot

L355DR

Employer's website

https://www.merseywestlancs.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Prescot

L355DR

Employer's website

https://www.merseywestlancs.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)