Job summary
- Main area
- Corporate
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 4
- Contract
- Secondment: 12 months
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (week days with occasional weekends if needed)
- Job ref
- 435-C048-25
- Employer
- East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Royal Blackburn Hospital
- Town
- Blackburn
- Salary
- £26,530 - £29,114 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 27/06/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Armed Forces Veteran Community Support Officer
NHS AfC: Band 4
At East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust our vision is to be widely recognised for providing safe, personal and effective care. We currently provide high quality services and treat over 600,000 people across East Lancashire and the surrounding area. We employ over 9,500 staff, many of whom are internationally renowned and have won awards for their work.
Job overview
The purpose of this post involves having an Armed Forces Community Support Officer to provide additional support and co-ordination with services within the NHS both Acute and Community settings and Armed Forces charities; and make other improvements that would benefit the Armed Forces community to support veterans within East Lancashire to overcome barriers and maintain Safe Personal and Effective care.
The Armed Forces Community Support Officer will support Veterans of all the services through “out of hospital” pathways, from admission avoidance to expediting discharge, ensuring all patients receive safe, personal and effective care throughout their NHS Journey. Although the Armed Forces Community Support officer is primarily based at Royal Blackburn Hospital, they will also support patients across the whole ELHT community area.
Access to a Vehicle will be needed to allow the successful candidate to reach these areas.
Main duties of the job
They will liaise closely with many other multi-disciplinary teams including complex case managers, social services, pharmacy, theatre staff, ward staff, ward managers, matrons and senior management. They will liaise and meet external agencies and charities within the Armed forces community.
Excellent communication is vital to the smooth running of the service. To provide a supporting role around Veterans and Reservists specific issues
The post holder will be an integral part of the Armed Forces Veteran Team, ensuring their experience and skills in administration, support the team of both registered nursing staff and admin and clerical staff. The veterans Community Support Officer will be directly line manager by East Lancashire Hospitals Veteran Team Manager.
Working for our organisation
This is a small team comprising of the Team Leader and Senior Lead. we have a proud commitment to our Armed Forces and wider community. we aim to provide a quality service in line with the Armed Force Covenant Duty and NHS Long Term Plan.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
· To make contact with suitable and appropriate local organisations which represent and support the armed forces and veterans and to establish effective and regular consultation arrangements with those organisations.
· To raise the profile of the Armed Forces Covenant & VPPP along side ELHT.
· Work with veterans that are accessing treatment within the Community setting to form positive working relationships with local and national charities and welfare organisations, especially RBL, SSAFA, DWMS, Veterans UK and other veteran forums and agencies in their geographical areas
· To complement the role of the VCHA & Armed Forces Covenant to ensure that veterans, particularly with Service-related conditions, can access Health Services that they are entitled to.
· To visit autonomously patients not only in community hospital sites but in their homes to advocate on behalf of the Patients within the ELHT trust and wider community on behalf of ex-services personnel
· Engage in a supportive, meaningful, and empathic manner with all Veterans, building trust, developing relationships and to provide effective support to both patients and staff.
· To ensure that the Armed Forces Covenant priorities and campaigns are taken into account when local policies and plans are being developed.
· To ensure correct and up to date feedback using the Armed Forces Portal MPTL and updating patients record with actions taken.
· To advocate on behalf of ex-services personnel.
- In conjunction with the IHSS, CCM, DN, palliative care, safeguarding, Alcohol & homeless team to name a few assist the administrative processes to ensure that the patient’s journey is managed smoothly and in accordance with agreed timescales and escalate to team leader any concerns or complex issues.
- Maintain an accurate and up to date filing system, ensuring safe recording of documentation and maintaining confidentiality.
- Assist the wider services in ensuring that information on electronic bed boards is accurate and up to date with Armed Forces information & assist in training and increased awareness across all staff groups within the Trust
- Assist with liaising with surrounding hospital sites to ensure use of icon and recording of statistics for audits are input.
- Deal with requests, concerns and queries promptly from patients and members of the Trust staff and escalate issues to the Veteran Team Manager
- Record and monitor telephone queries on the appropriate documentation and escalate issues as required to the Veteran Team Manager.
- Undertake general administrative duties which facilitate the smooth running of the service such as photocopying, ordering materials and equipment and managing stock.
- Type and process correspondence, reports and other documents as requested on a daily with packages to include Microsoft Office i.e. Word, Excel Outlook, Access and PowerPoint
- Attend and minute Veteran meetings as required.
- Attend and minute staff meetings as required.
- Assisting with collecting and inputting accurate data into electronic reports Organise electronic and paper diaries as requested.
- Meet deadlines and manage time effectively.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Good general standard of education 5 GCSE at A – C grades or grade 9-4 including GCSE English or equivalent qualifications.
- Evidence of NVQ level 3 , working towards an NVQ level 3 or equivalent experience
- Participation or willingness to participate in continuing development to improve and update knowledge.
- Demonstrable ability to meet the Trust Values
- Understanding the impact of providing Support in the home and social impact on the veteran and family.
Desirable criteria
- IT qualification or relevant experience.
- Mental Health first Aid or equivalent.
Experience
Essential criteria
- Ability to formulate reports
- Customer service and negotiation skills. Exposure to verbal complaints. Exposure to highly confidential sensitive and contentious issues and situations.
- Experience of working across professional boundaries
- A good understanding of the specific and holistic needs of the Armed Forces Community
- Able to communicate sensitive information to a range of different agencies, using persuasive and negotiating skills.
- Knowledge of military terminology
- Have an Understanding and application of Armed Forces Bill 2021 and Armed Forces Covenant & public sector duties.
- Experience of working with Armed Forces Personnel
- Experience of administration in a busy office-based environment & community setting
- Experience Working on own initiative and decision making.
- Willingness to develop new skills relevant to the role.
- Extensive experience of using Microsoft Office including Word and Excel.
Desirable criteria
- An understanding and knowledge of Veterans and the barriers they face
- Lived or learned experience of the armed forces family.
- Previous experience of working with senior management
- Previous experience working with eternal agency’s :- Armed services, Charities, GPs etc.
Knowledge and skills
Essential criteria
- Extensive knowledge of understanding of the health needs of the Armed Forces community.
- Use of Microsoft Office including Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint along with other software packages
- Ability to produce accurately typed documents efficiently and to high standard.
- Ability to work independently and under pressure, prioritising work to meet deadlines
- Ability to deal with non- routine and unpredictable nature of workload and individual patient contact
- Ability to develop effective and appropriate relationships with people their families, carers and colleagues
- Ability to maintain organisational systems
- Ability to work flexibly to meet the needs of the service.
- Problem solving
- Record keeping
- Accepts responsibility for own decisions.
Personal
Essential criteria
- Ability to work as part of a team, communicate well with managers, colleagues and the public particularly in respect of sensitive issues and confidential information
- Ability to adapt to changing environment and changing methods of working using initiative
- Must be able to multitask whilst working in a community environment and dealing with frequent interruptions.
- Motivated and enthusiastic
- Good written and verbal communication skills
- Able to deescalate and have an understanding of situations when dealing with sensitive military related conditions
- Ensure that confidentiality is always maintained.
- Access to a Vehicle for work purposes due to some locations not being accessible via public transport
Communication
Essential criteria
- Able to demonstrate and Communicate with a range of people including external agencies on day-to-day basis
- Provide, receive, and develop routine information which requires tact or persuasive skills where there are barriers to understanding
- Provide and receive complex and or sensitive information
- Able to provide advice, instruction, in difficult situations to others.
- Understand the specific needs of veterans with empathy to their situation.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Shafiq Sadiq
- Job title
- Armed Forces Veteran Team Leader
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07773651201
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