About this role
Job summary
St Elizabeth Hospice is an independent charity and hospice, which improves life for people in the East Suffolk, Great Yarmouth and Waveney areas living with a progressive or life-limiting illness. Established in 1989, the hospice has built a reputation for delivering high-level care to patients and the community it serves. Through medicine and therapy, they ease pain; give life purpose and make life liveable. Last year the charity supported over 4,000 patients and their families.
Our most recent Care Quality Commission report rated the hospice as Outstanding
We have an exciting opportunity for a Physiotherapist to work within our Ipswich based multi-disciplinary team (supporting patients in Ipswich and across East Suffolk), to provide physiotherapy assessment, treatment and on-going management to a wide range of patients with a palliative care diagnosis
Main duties of the job
You must be a Registered Physiotherapist with a minimum of 18 months post qualification experience and a strong interest in palliative care and rehabilitation. This post requires the ability to drive to community visits.
Our ideal candidate will have proven abilities to work with patients and families who have changing needs, both on an individual basis and in groups. They must be able to work well within a multi-disciplinary team and be able to demonstrate an understanding of and ability to support individuals and families throughout their illness.
Our work is centred on an individual's needs, which means specialist support, whenever and wherever it is needed. Through an MDT approach we support patients and families to improve quality of life within our local communities. Our team of Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists currently work across our inpatient unit, with outpatients, and in the community. We are proud to have a strong palliative rehabilitation model.
This is a fantastic opportunity to join St Elizabeth Hospice, your local hospice at the heart of the community.
Hours: 22.5 hours per week
Salary: £23,975.40 to £28,870.20 (WTE: £39,959.00 to £48,117.00) band 6
Interview Date: 7th August 2026
About us
St Elizabeth Hospice is committed to safeguarding and protecting the adults and young people that we work with and has a zero-tolerance approach to abuse, neglect and discrimination of any person. As such, all posts are subject to a rigorous safer recruitment process, including the disclosure of criminal records and vetting checks. We have a range of robust safeguarding policies in place which promote safeguarding across the hospice and staff are expected to undertake regular, mandatory safeguarding training to equip them with the knowledge and skills to identify and respond to potential risks.
The hospice offers a generous benefit package, including:
27 days annual leave entitlement
Pension scheme
Life Cover
Cycle to Work Scheme
Car Leasing Scheme
Health Service Discounts
Occupational Sick Pay
Blue Light Card
Employee Assistance Programme
Job description Job responsibilities
Job summary:
To provide high quality palliative physiotherapy assessment, treatment and on-going management to a wide range of patients with a palliative care diagnosis within Ipswich and East Suffolk. To work closely with multi-professional teams, both within the hospice, and within the wider community NHS Integrated Neighbourhood Teams (INT).
Safeguarding responsibilities:
To demonstrate a commitment to keeping adults and young people safe.
To report any disclosure made to you to the appropriate person.
To report any safeguarding concerns in the workplace to the appropriate person.
To maintain an awareness of the hospices policies in relation to safeguarding.
Key Responsibilities
To assess and provide evidence-based goal orientated palliative physiotherapy treatment to hospice patients in various settings including inpatients, outpatient clinics, care homes, and within patient homes.
To liaise as appropriate with GPs, Consultants, and other relevant professionals, working closely with the hospice community Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT), as well as the community MDT within our local Integrated Neighbourhood Team (INT) bases.
To be actively involved in delivery of group work such as exercise classes.
To maintain up to date and comprehensive treatment records.
To maintain safely the equipment within the Hospice, removing and reporting any that is defective.
To work with closely with the whole hospice therapy team, taking a One Team approach to ensure that clinical priorities are met across the service.
To devise a personal development plan in line with hospice objectives and personal needs, participating in education programmes as required and actively contribute to In-Service Training programmes.
To collect and provide statistical information as required by the Hospice.
To participate in the development of clinical standards policies and audit, working within the Clinical Governance framework of the Hospice and actively participating in service development projects.
To be responsible for stock control of medical and surgical items and equipment required for treatment, ensuring that orders are placed in a timely manner.
To provide teaching, instruction and supervision the senior rehab assistant, students and volunteers.
To recognise the value of volunteer contribution and play an active part in their support and development where appropriate.
Responsibilities for all staff:
Act as a positive ambassador for St Elizabeth Hospice
Where the postholder is a member of a professional body, comply to the professional standards set by that body. Ensure registration is current and practice continuous professional development.
Because of the special nature of the hospice and its work, the postholder may on occasion be asked to undertake other duties to help maintain our high standards of care and engagement.
Person Specification
Experience Essential
Evidence of continuing professional development CPD portfolio Ability to assess patient needs that may be complex and subject to change Good clinical decision making in supporting discharge planning Ability to manage a complex caseload in various clinical settings inpatients, outpatients and community Have an understanding of safeguarding principles and be able to apply these within everyday practice and intervention/within your role.
Desirable
Post registration experience in a range of general clinical settings e.g. care of the elderly, neurological rehabilitation, community, orthopaedics, respiratory Post-registration clinical experience specific to working in palliative care rehabilitation Thorough understanding and clinical reasoning skills related to respiratory physiotherapy Member of special interest group, e.g. ACOPOPC, ACPIN Expert knowledge of the evidence base of palliative care
Qualifications Essential
Diploma/Degree in Physiotherapy HCPC Registration Minimum 18 months post-qualification experience
Desirable
Qualification in acupuncture
Specific Skills Essential
Ability to deal with complex, sensitive matters requiring advanced communication skills To be able to work alone or as part of the team To be able to deliver information in a group situation Clear, consistent written and verbal communication Able to organise, prioritise and delegate appropriately Ability to use the computer for email, word documents, presentations and patient documentation, or willingness to undertake training
Desirable
Experience supervising the work of others e.g. junior members of staff, volunteers and students
Personal Qualities Essential
Committed and proactive to personal and team development Efficient time management and organisational skills To be flexible and able to adapt to changing circumstances Able to use own vehicle to travel to various sites and community visits
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 St Elizabeth Hospice
Address 565 Foxhall Road
Ipswich
Suffolk
IP3 8LX
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.stelizabethhospice.org.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)