Specialist Palliative Care Nurse
The closing date is 24 March 2026
This is an internal only vacancy for staff employed at Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
We are seeking a compassionate and motivated Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialist to join our community‑based Specialist Palliative Care Team. In this rewarding role, you will provide expert clinical support to patients with life‑limiting illnesses, ensuring they receive high quality, holistic and person‑centred care. You will support patients and their families by offering skilled symptom management, emotional and social support, and sensitive guidance during some of the most important moments in their lives.
You will work collaboratively with a small but highly experienced multidisciplinary team, including a Consultant in Palliative Medicine, a Specialty Doctor, Palliative Care Nurse Specialists and a Palliative Care Healthcare Assistant. The role also involves close partnership working with Community Nursing teams, GP practices, Community Matrons, allied health professionals and local hospices to deliver a fully integrated service across the area.
This position offers an excellent opportunity to develop your specialist expertise while making a meaningful difference to patients, families and the wider community.
Main duties of the job
In this role, you will provide specialist palliative care advice, assessment and support to patients, families and carers across community settings. You will manage a defined caseload, applying advanced clinical skills to deliver holistic assessment, symptom control and personalised care planning. You will contribute to safe and effective care delivery by working closely with colleagues across primary care, community teams and hospice services.
You will act as a resource for healthcare professionals, offering guidance, education and clinical leadership to support high standards of palliative and end‑of‑life care. The role requires excellent communication skills, the ability to work autonomously and collaboratively, and a commitment to promoting dignity, choice and person‑centred care. You will also contribute to service development, quality improvement and the ongoing enhancement of palliative care provision.
About us
Flexible working will be considered for all roles. Unfortunately, we do not hold a sponsor licence for working Visas. At Bridgewater, our PEOPLE values shape how we deliver our NHS services in your local community. They help us deliver our mission to improve local health and promote wellbeing in the communities we serve. After all, values are about people and they were created in partnership with our staff to reflect what they felt was important to them. Here at Bridgewater our shared values flow through the organisation.
P – Person‑centred – We are passionate about individual needs and promote independence in the healthcare we provide.
E – Empowered – We empower our people and encourage new ideas to deliver and create improvements in community care.
O – Open and Honest – We behave in a way that develops relationships based on trust, openness, honesty and respect.
P – Professional – We support our people, so everyone has the right skills and training to deliver outstanding patient care.
L – Locally Lead – We are always learning about our communities and show great pride in being a local provider of health and care.
E – Efficient – We use our resources wisely to provide sustainable and value‑for‑money healthcare for our patients.
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 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 multiprofessionals across primary and secondary care.
To provide specialist advice, education, and training to all members of the multidisciplinary 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.
Person Specification
Experience
* Broad range of clinical experience with in cancer/palliative care.
* Experience of caseload management.
* Experience of multi‑professional working.
* Community Experience
* Audit Experience
Job Specific Requirements
* Ability to work in an emotive environment.
Sponsorship / Relationships
* Do you have the right to stay and work in the UK without sponsorship (share‑codes will be checked if applicable).
* If you are related to a director or have a relationship with a director or employee of an appointing organisation, please state the relationship.
Qualifications
* Degree or willing to work towards.
* Registered general nurse or relevant professional qualification.
* Advanced Communication skills training and/or education.
* Evidence of own continuing professional development.
Employment Restrictions
* This is an internal only vacancy for staff employed at Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, please confirm that you are currently employed by one of these Trusts.
Skills and Knowledge
* 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.
* Service development and change management.
* Risk Assessment and management.
Other
* 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.
Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
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