Specialist Palliative Care Nurse

Job responsibilities

Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust plan to integrate and form a new organisation on the 1st April 2026. As such, if your start date is on or after 1st April 2026, you will be employed by the newly formed organisation. Should you join Bridgewater prior to this date, your employment will automatically transfer into the new organisation. We are confident that this transition will provide new opportunities and a continued commitment to excellence in patient care.

Job Purpose:

To provide evidence-based advice and support to patients with a life-threatening illness and their carers, working collaboratively with multi-professionals across primary and secondary care.

To provide specialist advice, education, and training to all members of the multi-disciplinary team across all care settings.

To work in conjunction with the Clinical Manager and the Palliative Care Team in the development of cancer and end of life services across Bridgewater Community Healthcare Trust.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Carry out clinical practice that is complimentary to the Primary Healthcare team that will contribute to an improvement in the quality of life for patients.
• Use high level analytical and decision-making skills to deliver appropriate clinical care, using advanced clinical skills in assessment and/or diagnosis.
• Provide clinical and specialist advice across professional and organisational boundaries.
• Liaise closely with the multi-disciplinary team in planning care for the person with palliative care needs.
• Work closely with managerial colleagues to promote service quality within palliative care.
• Support managers and cancer leads to achieve appropriate targets for palliative care and cancer strategies, to develop locally sensitive services and support access initiatives in cancer care based on the Cancer Plan/Supportive and Palliative Care Guidance (NICE).
• Support and advise on the development of palliative care services throughout organisations advising on quality and standards of service delivery.
• Manage an active workload, utilising skills to prioritise and assess care.
• Prepare and produce appropriate reports for primary care organisations and other appropriate organisations.
• Participate in the production of reports for Macmillan Cancer Support and maintain links with them both locally and nationally.
• Provide information for the minimum data set.
• Evaluate service delivery; identify areas for improvement and initiate change.
• Ensure the effective and efficient use of physical and financial resources, making recommendations regarding supplies and equipment.
• Participate in peer and clinical supervision

• Contribute to the work of the Integrated Cancer Network and ensure the community nursing perspective is communicated to ICN members.
• Participate in the developments of nursing and other strategies promoting the key role for nurses and other strategies.
• Support the case management of identified patients.
• At all times, function as a role model for other nurses using developmental processes to succession plan for future posts.
• Supporting and advising colleagues on ethical decision-making issues in relation to end of life issues.
• Provide emotional and psychological support to the patient, family, and carers through the period of illness, in specific complex cases.
• Perform communication skills to support patients palliative/terminal care needs including complex issues such as breaking bad news and care of the dying.
• Provide high levels of communication support with the patient, carers, and colleagues to enable service provision, delivery and quality.
• Provide advice and signposting to bereavement support to known carers.
• Regularly update own knowledge and expertise in all aspects of palliative care and take responsibility for own professional development.
• Assess current skills and knowledge and provide advice, support, education and information to nurses and other colleagues in Primary Care, enabling them to offer up-to-date care by continually extending their knowledge and skills.
• Develop and participate in the delivery and provision of generalist and specialist education programmes.
• Identify essential educational requirements and work to deliver educational programmes against these including specific health targets e.g. NICE, NSF related to own area of practice.
• Support learners in the workplace.
• Ensure all colleagues are kept up to date with available research on pain relief and symptom control via educational programmes and act as a resource for this information.
• Use influencing, negotiation, and clinical skills to assist in the formulation of evidence-based quality standards and participate in regular clinical audit to monitor outcomes.
• Undertake appropriate evaluation/audit/research programmes to promote the development of the service.
• Disseminate research and audit findings through presentation to professional groups and publication.
• Responsible for the development and implementation of policies, procedures and guidelines relevant to own area of work.

Please see Full Job Description attached.

Sponsorship

Essential

• Do you have the right to stay and work in the UK without sponsorship (share-codes will be checked if applicable).

Relationships

Essential

• If you are related to a director or have a relationship with a director or employee of an appointing organisation, please state the relationship.

Skills and Knowledge

Essential

• Demonstrate knowledge of CNS role.
• Evidence of high-level communication skills both written and verbal
• Clinical and analytical skills
• Ability to self-manage and work autonomously.
• Ability to reflect on own and others practice.

Desirable

• Service development and change management.
• Conflict resolution
• Risk Assessment and management
• IT skills

Experience

Essential

• Broad range of clinical experience within cancer/palliative care.
• Experience of caseload management.
• Experience of multi-professional working.

Desirable

• Community Experience
• Audit Experience

Qualifications

Essential

• Degree or willing to work towards
• Registered general nurse or relevant professional qualification.
• Post registration experience.
• Advanced Communication skills training and/or education
• Post registration qualification in oncology/palliative care.
• Evidence of continuing professional development

Desirable

• Educational qualification e.g. C&G 7307/ENB 998.

Job Specific Requirements

Essential

• Ability to work in an emotive environment.
• The ability to travel independently across the Trust
• The ability to work flexibly in accordance with service needs

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).

UK Registration

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