Job Summary

The UCR Service provides urgent support, seven-days a week, to help prevent unnecessary hospital admissions. This is achieved by providing a two-hour crisis response delivered by a multi-skilled team of professionals. Support is provided at home or where they usually reside for people who are concerned their health or mobility is declining and are therefore at risk of admission to hospital. Our teams work closely with our local ambulance service to pull category 3 & 4 patients off the ambulance stack, supporting patients in receiving a rapid response in the community by teams with the skills to support them to remain at home.

The UCR service also provides a general virtual ward service, supported by digital technology and remote monitoring. Our multidisciplinary teams ensure that patients receive hospital-level care at home safely and in familiar surroundings, helping speed up their recovery while freeing up hospital beds for patients that need them most. As well as home visits, digital remote monitoring is utilised.

Teams are made up of GPs, Nurses, Paramedics, Pharmacists, Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, and Health & Therapy Assistants who work together to reduce hospital admissions. Patients are reviewed daily by a clinical team and the 'ward round' may involve a home visit or take place through video technology.

Our multidisciplinary teams work flexibly to provide a 7-day service, 365 days a year, between 8am and 8pm.

Main Duties of the Job

The Urgent Community Response (UCR) Service provides clinical interventions (including intravenous therapy) as part of a multidisciplinary team comprising of Medics, Nurses, Paramedics, Physio and Occupational Therapists for admission avoidance pathways (2-hour response and general virtual wards), in line with the national specification for UCR and general virtual wards.

Operating 365 days per year, the service receives referrals from a range of health and care professionals and triages, assesses, and delivers care to the patient over several days to ensure the patient can remain safely at home.

The postholder will be able to deliver high quality care in the community, working with patients towards rehabilitation, self-management and independence throughout the continuum of care. They will participate in a team of colleagues supporting evidence-based care, facilitating staff learning and development. This post is an ideal opportunity for an experienced Nurse or paramedic who is keen to develop both their holistic assessment skills and knowledge of urgent community nursing.

About Us

We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex, with 6,000 staff serving 1.3 million people. We deliver essential care to adults and children, helping them manage their health, avoid hospital admissions, and reduce hospital stays.

Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community. We offer opportunities across medical, clinical, support, and corporate services.

Why work for us?

• Positive 2024 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeing
• Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussex
• Flexible working options: part-time, flexi-time, annualised hours, and flexi-retirement
• Excellent training, development, and research opportunities
• Accredited Living Wage Employer, we ensure fair pay for all our staff
• Cost-effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brighton
• Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networks
• Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust

Our values -- Compassionate Care, Working Together, Achieving Ambitions, Delivering Excellence -- guide everything we do. We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment.

This post may close early if sufficient applications are received.

Details

• Date posted: 05 May 2026
• Pay scheme: Agenda for change
• Band: Band 5
• Salary: £32,073 to £39,043 a year per annum pro rata
• Contract: Permanent
• Working pattern: Full-time, Part-time
• Reference number: 150-SK2569-UPC-A
• Job locations: Sackville House, Brooks Close, Lewes, BN7 2FZ

Job Responsibilities

• Holistic assessment and care planning.
• Individualised care and the promotion of self-care.
• Safe and effective review and referral to the appropriate member of the multidisciplinary team.
• Effective delegation and prioritisation of workload.
• Professional development as required to maintain area of practice, and as negotiated in supervision.
• An awareness of health, safety and security risks.
• Engagement in service provision and change.
• Acts as a practice supervisor for junior staff and students.

You will need to able to drive with a full UK licence and access to a vehicle due to the large geographic area covered by the team.

Further information is available in the attached job description and person specification. If you would like to discuss this role or find out more, you can contact our Operational Team Leads - Jacqui Hilder or our Clinical Nurse Leads - Kirsty Spooner & Rebecca Holland.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential: Experience of dealing with a wide range of people at all levels, including clients, carers, therapists, health and social care colleagues and other professionals.

Desirable: Demonstrates commitment to and recent evidence of further education and professional development; Experienced in a variety of clinical settings; Experience of working within the Community; Experience of working with the ageing population; Experience of EOL patients and EOL care.

Qualifications

Essential: NMC registered qualification.

Desirable: Mentorship Qualification or work towards.

Skills and Knowledge

Essential: Knowledge of Clinical Governance, clinical audit and clinical supervision, Professional codes of Conduct; Demonstrates competency in a range of clinical skills e.g. wound management, catheterisation skills, medicines management and administration, palliative and end of life care including management of syringe drivers; Knowledge of current local policies informing community health and social care services; A clear understanding of the role of the Community Staff Nurse; Is able to demonstrate the application of research based practice; Promote independence and choice in undertaking patient care; IT literate or willing to achieve within an agreed period; Ability to demonstrate knowledge/ understanding of boundaries of role; Ability to work as an effective member of the multidisciplinary team; Good numeracy and literacy skills.

Desirable: Practice supervisor.

Other Requirements

Essential: Car driver (Valid Driving License for use in the UK); Access to a vehicle for work purposes; Willingness to undertake training to develop within the role; Demonstrate ability to reflect and learn from situations; Identifies difficulties as challenges and works with others to identify solutions; Demonstrate a high level of understanding of self, able to identify personal limitations and shows openness to address them.

Additional Information

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship: Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here.

UK Registration: Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer Details

[Employer hidden — sign up to reveal]
Address: Sackville House, Brooks Close, Lewes, BN7 2FZ
Employer's website: https://www.sussexcommunity.nhs.uk/work-with-us/

Employer Contact Details

For questions about the job, contact: Operational Team Lead Nurse, Jacqui Hilder - [contact hidden] - [contact hidden]