About this role
Job summary As a Family Support Assistant Practitioner, you will work as part of our specialist Family Support Team to provide compassionate support and guidance to patients, families and carers.
Main duties of the job As a Family Support Assistant Practitioner at Dorothy House Hospice Care, you'll play a key role within our Family Support Team, providing emotional and psychosocial support to people affected by life-limiting illness, grief and bereavement. You'll be the first point of contact for many individuals accessing our service, helping to identify their needs and ensure they receive the right support at the right time.
About us Here at Dorothy House we provide compassionate care and support for people in our community with a life-limiting illness. Our focus is on quality of life, helping patients to live well and die well.
Job description Job responsibilities
FAMILY SUPPORT ASSISTANT PRACTITIONER | Band 4 | £28,392 - £31,157
Full Time - working 35 hours over 5 days per week (a job share would also be considered)
Location: Winsley, Wiltshire (with hybrid working agreed)
WHY THIS ROLE?
Are you passionate about supporting people through some of life's most difficult experiences? Do you have the compassion, emotional resilience and interpersonal skills to help patients, families, carers and bereaved individuals feel heard, supported and understood?
This rewarding role combines emotional support, care coordination, bereavement support and community engagement. Working alongside experienced professionals, you'll manage a small caseload, facilitate wellbeing and bereavement groups, support families throughout their hospice journey and help people build resilience during challenging times.
ABOUT THE BENEFITS
Dorothy House is an incredible place to work. Some of our benefits include:
27 days plus bank holidays, increasing to 29 days and then 33 days with length of serviceExcellent industry leading training with a focus on career development!Pension with Life Assurance.Colleague discount across our 30 retail stores.45p per mile for work travel.Mindful Employer Plus Charter - supporting our colleagues with access to impartial, confidential advice when you need it most.
WHAT WILL THE ROLE INVOLVE?
As a Family Support Assistant Practitioner, you will work as part of our specialist Family Support Team to provide compassionate support and guidance to patients, families and carers. Your responsibilities will include:
Acting as the first point of contact for referrals into the Family Support Team, undertaking triage and information-gathering conversations to identify support needsProviding person-centred emotional and bereavement support to patients, relatives, carers and bereaved individualsManaging a small caseload of individuals requiring low-level, time-limited emotional and psychosocial supportSupporting people to access practical advice, resources and appropriate support services within the communityFacilitating bereavement groups, wellbeing activities and family support initiativesWorking collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams, volunteers and external organisations to coordinate supportUndertaking hospice, community and home visits to assess needs and provide ongoing supportMaintaining accurate records and ensuring appropriate safeguarding, risk management and escalation processes are followedContributing to service development, awareness raising and the continuous improvement of family support services
See our full detailed Job Description on our website for more information.
ABOUT YOU
If you are a compassionate individual who enjoys supporting others and building meaningful relationships, you'll find this role incredibly rewarding both professionally and personally.
If this sounds like your ideal job, then we'd love to see your application. Please note that our vacancies can close at any time once sufficient applications have been received. We therefore encourage early submission of your application.
INTERVIEWS
Interviews for this role will be held at the beginning of September 2026.
Person Specification
Qualifications Essential
* Relevant qualification or equivalent experience in health, social care, counselling, mental health or a related field
Desirable
* Experience providing person-centred support to patients, families, carers or vulnerable individuals * Experience undertaking assessments, triage, referrals or identifying support needs * Ability to identify, manage and appropriately escalate safeguarding, wellbeing or risk concerns * Able to work independently, maintain accurate records and collaborate effectively within multidisciplinary teams
Experience Essential
* Experience within hospice, palliative care, bereavement, family support or mental health services * Training or experience in counselling skills, bereavement support, group facilitation or trauma-informed practice
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 Dorothy House Hospice
Address Winsley, Bradford-on-Avon BA15 2LE
Winsley
BA15 2LE
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.dorothyhouse.org.uk (Opens in a new tab)