East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Dementia Nurse Specialist / Dementia Specialist Practitioner

The closing date is 05 January 2026

Job summary

We are offering an opportunity for a registered professional with experience and expertise in supporting people with a diagnosis of Dementia. This is a permanent part-time role (week one 22.25hrs (Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday) and week two 15.25hrs Wednesday & Thursday).

You will have the skills & competence to support staff across Ipswich Hospital to provide care for people who experience challenges resulting from symptoms of Dementia.

This support will involve direct interventions with patients & their carers/families and indirect support through staff training, education and consultancy. There will be an expectation for you to undertake assessments where required to inform multi-agency care planning, provide advice & sign-posting to enable people to access appropriate support at times when it is required, co-ordinate patient centred care and safety planning & liaise and collaborate with partner agencies to support good outcomes for patients with this diagnosis.

The post involves delivery of training in both formal and informal forums to support acute hospital staff in developing confidence and skills to deliver care safely & effectively.

You will support the understanding & application of appropriate legal frameworks & ensure that patients' rights are protected when such frameworks are necessitated.

You will also provide direct line management to our dementia specialist support worker who will work closely with you to ensure continuity in the provision of this service.

Main duties of the job

Apply specialist knowledge and expertise to support positive clinical outcomes and compassionate care for patients with dementia
Promote best practice and evidence based approaches to caring for people with dementia
Co-ordinate care and safety planning for people who require additional support or restrictive interventions as a result of symptoms associated with dementia and support clinical teams to follow these and respond to escalation in concerns
Deliver training and education to staff in order to enable higher levels of confidence and competence by staff across the hospital when they work with people with this diagnosis
Encourage, lead and participate in multi-agency working to ensure that people's needs are met holistically and discharge planning is effective.
Provide line management supervision to the specialist dementia support worker

About us

We are ESNEFT and we provide hospital and community health services to almost one million people across east Suffolk and north Essex. Our dedicated staff deliver care from acute hospitals in Colchester and Ipswich, community hospitals, surgeries, community clinics and in patients' own homes.

We are one of the largest NHS organisations in England, employing more than 12,000 staff.

We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options.

Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

Our philosophy is that Time Matters to everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients.

We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what's widely regarded as the world's best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients.

If you are passionate about patient care and want to develop your skills and knowledge, then we want to hear from you.

Find out about living and working here - www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkPu7HphU8A

Date posted

23 December 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 7

Salary

£47,810 to £54,710 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

432-HR1050-25

Job locations

Ipswich Hospital

Ipswich

IP4 5PD

Job description

Job responsibilities

For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.

Job description

Job responsibilities

For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

Significant post-registration clinical experience of working with people with dementia and delirium in different settings
Experience of recent involvement in practice/ service development.
Experience of working with groups and individuals in a variety of roles and settings
Demonstrated experience of working as an autonomous practitioner
Demonstrated ability to lead and manage services
Experience of professional supervision of staff
Experience of audit/ evaluating clinical practice

Desirable

Experience of undertaking staff performance reviews and planned development of staff
Experience of working with patients/ clients to develop practice

Qualifications

Essential

Registered Nurse or Health or Social Care professional
Post registration qualification / training in dementia
Formal knowledge of dementia/ older people acquired through clinical post-graduate education

Knowledge

Essential

Incorporating and demonstrating competencies including person-centred care, therapeutic skills, sharing knowledge, best practice, and critical reflective practice at enhanced specialist level
Ability to use a range of therapeutic skills
Effective role-modelling
Understanding practice and promoting person-centred and relationship-centred care
Collaborative and multi-agency working

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

Significant post-registration clinical experience of working with people with dementia and delirium in different settings
Experience of recent involvement in practice/ service development.
Experience of working with groups and individuals in a variety of roles and settings
Demonstrated experience of working as an autonomous practitioner
Demonstrated ability to lead and manage services
Experience of professional supervision of staff
Experience of audit/ evaluating clinical practice

Desirable

Experience of undertaking staff performance reviews and planned development of staff
Experience of working with patients/ clients to develop practice

Qualifications

Essential

Registered Nurse or Health or Social Care professional
Post registration qualification / training in dementia
Formal knowledge of dementia/ older people acquired through clinical post-graduate education

Knowledge

Essential

Incorporating and demonstrating competencies including person-centred care, therapeutic skills, sharing knowledge, best practice, and critical reflective practice at enhanced specialist level
Ability to use a range of therapeutic skills
Effective role-modelling
Understanding practice and promoting person-centred and relationship-centred care
Collaborative and multi-agency working

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Additional information

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Ipswich Hospital

Ipswich

IP4 5PD

Employer's website

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

Employer details

Employer name

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Ipswich Hospital

Ipswich

IP4 5PD

Employer's website

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