East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Palliative Care Specialist Nurse

The closing date is 25 January 2026

Job summary

We are seeking a compassionate and motivated End of Life Clinical Skills Nurse to support the delivery of high-quality end-of-life care across the hospital.

You will play a key role in enhancing the knowledge, skills, and confidence of ward-based staff in caring for patients approaching the end of life. Working alongside multidisciplinary teams, the End of Life Clinical Skills Nurse will provide specialist clinical support, advice, and guidance in areas such as symptom management, recognition of the dying phase, communication with patients and families, and advance care planning.

This role combines direct clinical input with education, mentorship, and service improvement. You will support best practice by contributing to staff training, bedside teaching, and the implementation of end-of-life care policies and pathways. They will also work closely with the Specialist Palliative Care Team and other services to promote coordinated, person-centred care.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced nurse with a passion for end-of-life care to influence practice, improve patient and family experiences, and support staff across the hospital in delivering compassionate, dignified care at the end of life.

Main duties of the job

In conjunction with other members of the Team, participate in the development of specialist palliative care services within the hospital environment.

Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team, providing an advisory, educational and supportive service to all staff caring for patients with an illness that is not responsive to curative treatment.

Be responsible for providing information and support to a caseload of palliative care patients trust-wide.

Accept continuing responsibility for the development of the palliative care nursing service ensuring that it meets national recommendations and in line with Improving Outcomes Guidance as it is published.

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 thatTime Mattersto 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

Details

Date posted

12 January 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£38,682 to £46,580 a year pro rata, per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

432-HR1138-25

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

  • Proven post registration experience
  • Teaching/mentoring experience

Desirable

  • Current knowledge of pain and symptom management usually gained through recent experience in clinical practice
  • Previous experience working in palliative care within a hospital setting

Qualifications

Essential

  • Registered Nurse First Level
  • Relevant post registration qualification up to post graduate diploma level

Desirable

  • Relevant training within palliative care
  • Advanced communication skills

Skills

Essential

  • Ability to deal with complex and difficult emotional situations
  • Computer literacy
  • Excellent interpersonal skills

Desirable

  • Ability to teach
  • Ability to influence at all levels
Person Specification

Experience

Essential

  • Proven post registration experience
  • Teaching/mentoring experience

Desirable

  • Current knowledge of pain and symptom management usually gained through recent experience in clinical practice
  • Previous experience working in palliative care within a hospital setting

Qualifications

Essential

  • Registered Nurse First Level
  • Relevant post registration qualification up to post graduate diploma level

Desirable

  • Relevant training within palliative care
  • Advanced communication skills

Skills

Essential

  • Ability to deal with complex and difficult emotional situations
  • Computer literacy
  • Excellent interpersonal skills

Desirable

  • Ability to teach
  • Ability to influence at all levels

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

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).

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)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Macmillan Palliative & EOL Care Team Lead

Maida Campbell

maida.campbell@esneft.nhs.uk

Details

Date posted

12 January 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£38,682 to £46,580 a year pro rata, per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

432-HR1138-25

Job locations

Ipswich Hospital

Ipswich

IP4 5PD


Supporting documents

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