Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
Allocations Assistant
Closing date: 25 May 2026
The Allocations Assistant will assist the Allocations Officer to ensure that all pre‑registration nursing and TNA activity is mapped and recorded accurately so as to maximise available capacity utilisation in the organisation. The role will work closely with the Trust Allocations Officer, Clinical Placement Facilitators (CPF's) to ensure any capacity issues or student concerns are acted upon appropriately and in a timely manner.
The Allocations Assistant will ensure that all nursing learners on placement with the Trust have appropriate IT access/Smart Card access to allow them to maximise their experience, skills and knowledge acquisition.
The post holder will ensure all data collection grids are maintained accurately and that data relating to nursing learner activity is collated in line with NHSE reporting schedules and works with the Allocations Officer, Clinical Placement Quality Lead (CPQL) and Associate Chief Nurse (Education) to ensure this data is checked and confirmed in a timely manner.
The role will contribute to ensuring that the Trust placement capacity is matched to the demand of trainees which are needed to ensure a supply of high quality staff in different roles to deliver the highest quality care for our patients.
Main duties of the job
* Liaising with HEIs to obtain student placement activity requests
* Assist with mapping pre‑registration & TNA placement activity in MPFT against available capacity
* Notify clinical areas of clinical placement activity in a timely manner
* Liaise with Allocations Officer and Clinical Placement Facilitators to overcome any issues or capacity challenges
* Oversee and deliver Smart Card and IT access processes for all pre‑registration nursing students on placement within MPFT
* Assist with collating student placement data in line with HEE/NHSE reporting periods in preparation for confirmation process
* Assist the Allocations Officer to co‑ordinate and arrange meetings to confirm student placement activity on the HEE/NHSE portal
Job responsibilities
* Support the Allocations Officer to actively work with HEIs in relation to student placement activity.
* Assist the Allocations Officer with the mapping of student placements throughout the Trust and maintaining the student placement database as per the capacity requirements of teams/services.
* Work with the Allocations Officer, CPQL and CPF team on placement capacity and quality, ensuring requests for placements can be accommodated appropriately.
* Work with the Allocations Officer and Clinical Placement Team to ensure clinical areas are suitable and safe for student placement as part of the wider placement quality assurance processes.
* Work with the Allocations Officer and Clinical Placement Team to expand placement capacity and learning opportunities within MPFT.
* Support the development of new and innovative processes to streamline and enhance data collection and reporting.
* Support the Allocations Officer by developing and implementing systems to ensure the timely and accurate collection of student details prior to placement so as to facilitate IT and Smartcard access.
* Liaise with internal IM&T services for the provision of Smart Cards and appropriate IT access for learners on placement.
* Support the Trust education governance requirements attending and participating in relevant meetings.
* Using effective problem‑solving skills contribute to the resolution of any concerns raised by students and or placement leads / supervisors/assessors as agreed with the Deputy Director of Nursing, Associate Chief Nurse (Education) and HEIs to identify innovative solutions. Working within own professional boundaries and know when to elevate as appropriate / necessary.
* Contribute, alongside the Allocations Officer, CPQL and Associate Chief Nurse (Education), to determine MPFT placement capacity.
* Support the Allocations Officer with internal and external meetings relating to student placement and capacity.
* In the absence of the Allocations Officer at HEI Meetings take responsibility for agreeing student placements.
* Assist with creating reports to a high standard for both internal and external meetings relating to student placement and capacity.
* Develop and maintain own competence, knowledge and skills.
* Manage and prioritise own workload acting independently and referring to line manager as required.
* Support the Allocations Officer and Clinical Placement Team with placement provision for Return to Practice students.
* To promote educational excellence for nurses and support workers through role modelling
* Assist in the development of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in relation to the allocation of learners and data collection processes.
* Works within existing policies and procedures but may propose changes and comment on policies and procedures in order to improve service delivery.
* May occasionally be required to contribute to internal and external audits and surveys.
Person Specification
Qualifications and training
* NVQ level 3 in Business Administration or equivalent
* Knowledge of a wide range of administrative procedures and systems to assist with dealing with non‑routine issues such as resolving complaints and/ developing procedures
* Evidence of continuing professional development
* NVQ level 4 in Business Administration or equivalent qualification
* Trained on the use of HEI platforms
* Training or experience in project management or supporting change management
Experience
* Significant experience of managing complex data
* Experience of working in administration
* Advanced keyboard skills, excellent use of all Microsoft applications.
* Experience in managing multiple projects/work streams
* Experience of working to deadlines and delivering targets
* Experience within a variety of practice settings including experience in education
* Experience of working with senior Higher Education Institute (HEI) colleagues
* Experience of working in Higher Education Institute settings
* Experience of delivering service improvement projects
* Experience of working within the NHS or a large complex public sector organisation
Skills, knowledge and abilities
* Comprehensive knowledge and evidence of proficiency with the MS Office suite, particularly Word, PowerPoint and Excel
* Ability to develop and maintain complex spreadsheets including the use of formulae
* Ability to analyse information and convey key messages effectively in meetings
* Ability to develop systems and processes to support service delivery and demonstrate effective outcomes
* Comprehensive planning and organisational skills
* Strong communication skills, including, excellent writing to produce documents
* Ability to build relationships and work collaboratively with staff inside and outside the organisation
* Ability to manage a busy and complex workload, with a mixture of short deadlines and longer‑term objectives
* Ability to work to short deadlines, while maintaining quality of work
* Ability to prioritise and organise own work
* Have effective problem solving skills and be able to address issues where innovative solutions may need to be found
* Knowledge of health care education landscape
* Understanding of clinical care settings and operational pressures and practices within the NHS
Personal Attributes
* Resilient, with good knowledge of self, who is keen to learn and develop
* Ability to work flexibly, meeting changing priorities and demands within the role in a timely way
* Ability to travel across Trust sites, surrounding areas and to external meetings
* Open, consultative and supportive style
* Acts as a role model aligning behaviour to Trust vision and values and behaviour framework, to demonstrate the highest professional standards and support the development of education and training expertise
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 name
Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
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