Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust recruitment drive

Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust is on a recruitment drive to attract more mental health nurses to work across Leicester, Leicestershire & Rutland

Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (LPT), which provides mental health, learning disability and community health services for one million people living in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland is looking to recruit more mental health nurses.

According to statistics from the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the number of mental health nurses fell from 90,693 to 88,821 between 2014 and 2018[i].

LPT is addressing the shortage across Leicestershire by promoting the region as a leading career destination for mental health nurses, highlighting the many opportunities available. There are vacancies for experienced mental health nurses, including Bank Community Psychiatric Nurse-Band 6 positions which involve working as part of the secondary care services team, providing assessments and treatment packages for a range of service users aged 16-65 years with complex mental health needs.

Other opportunities include Band 5 Bank Mental Health/Learning Disabilities staff nurses, ideal for mental health nurses looking for a change of area or more flexibility to better manage their work life balance and a Band 6 Mental Health Practitioner to join the Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Team at the Bradgate Mental Health Unit at Glenfield Hospital.

Joanne Lock is a Ward Matron at the Bradgate Mental Health Unit, part of Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust. She works on an acute ward for women aged 18-65 years and is responsible for the operational and clinical running of the ward and manages a team of 30 staff. The ward is a short-term acute ward, where women with conditions such as paranoid schizophrenia, bipolar and severe depression or severe anxiety will be admitted for around 30 days.

Joanne has been a mental health nurse for 16 years and loves her job. She says, “My role is hugely varied, no two days are the same. I love the patient contact and building up a relationship with them and their families to support them to get better. We work with some of the most vulnerable people in Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust recruitment drive society and one of the most rewarding things for me is seeing patients progress and go home.

Joanne highlights there are great opportunities for career development and training at the Trust. She says, “The Trust invests a lot into training. As well as mandatory courses, staff can choose courses to progress their careers. I’ve been on several leadership courses, and we’re currently supporting a member of staff to do her degree. We have good links with the universities, so this is a good place to start your career.”

“We are currently in the second year of a five year all-age transformation of mental health and learning disability services, working with staff, service users and carers to improve experience within all our care pathways, including innovative new developments such as social prescribing to peer supporters. It is a great time to join and be a part of shaping our future.”

The Trust also supports the health and wellbeing of staff. Joanne says, “Mental health nursing is a highly pressurised and challenging role, but the Trust promotes health and wellbeing. There are part-time and flexible roles and the Trust is a strong advocate of achieving a good work life balance, which helps with recruitment and retention. There are yoga session and Zumba classes available and health and wellbeing baskets are sent to staff regularly, which include snacks and drinks such as popcorn, health bars and healthy tea. This is a nice touch and makes staff feel valued.”

Joanne is originally from Nottingham and trained there but has been in Leicester for 13 years now. She says, “I love living in Leicester. It’s a wonderfully vibrant and culturally diverse area, with easy access to the rest of the UK. It’s also the tenth largest city in the UK. Housing is affordable, which enables nurses to get on the housing ladder, plus it’s surrounded by beautiful countryside. Leicester City is also renowned now for its sporting achievements, especially winning the football League in 2015/16, which was an amazing time to be in the city”.

LPT is part of a recently launched recruitment campaign Y/Our Future that unites five major health and social care employers - University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, LOROS Hospice, Rutland County Council and Leicester City Council - to recruit doctors, nurses and health and social care workers to work in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.

Y/Our Future aims to promote Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland as a leading career destination for health and social care professionals, with great career and lifestyle opportunities.