Are you a caring and compassionate person looking to make a real difference to patients at the end of life when they need it most? Do you want to work for a highly-respected local charity that supports the York community?

St Leonard’s Hospice is recruiting skilled and empathetic individuals to join the IPU team as Health Care Assistants to make a difference both personally and professionally to patients who require palliative and end of life care. This is a great opportunity to consider a career move into palliative care, as you don’t need to have any previous care experience. There is time at the Hospice to provide the best standards of care and to build relationships with patients and their families which makes us different to other care settings.

Under the guidance of Registered Nurses, our Health Care Assistants play a pivotal role by:

Delivering high standards of holistic care which is tailored to individual patients
Provide emotional support to patient’s loved ones
Providing excellent communication to patients and their families and members
Maintaining accurate records of care
Working with a dedicated team of professionals, ensuring the needs of the patients and families are met with compassion and excellence
Create a positive and safe environment for patients

Our ideal candidates will:

Be committed to delivering exceptional care
Have excellent interpersonal skills
Have the ability to respond appropriately to emotionally challenging situations
Be willing and flexible to working unsocial hours including nights, weekends and bank holidays

What we can offer you:

Salaries above the NHS pay scales (£25,082 - £26,753 per annum)
Plus shift enhancements for working unsociable hours
£17.11 to £18.24 per hour for working Saturdays or nights (Monday to Friday)
£21.38 to £22.80 per hour for working Sundays or bank holidays
Golden Hello of £250 (after tax) as a special thank you and welcome to our team
Up to 41 days of annual leave
Continuation of NHS pension and annual leave entitlement (T&Cs apply)
Attractive pension scheme for non-NHS staff
Extensive employee discounts on shops, holidays and lifestyle choices and Blue Light Card discounts
A supportive induction and tailored development plan to provide you with confidence and the specialist skills required
Free on-site car parking
A supportive and friendly working environment

We are ideally recruiting full time positions which work 37.5 hours per week however we are happy to accept applications from candidates who are looking to work 30+ hours per week.The clinical teams operate on a rotational shift pattern which includes earlys, lates and long days over weekends and bank holidays. Shifts are allocated well in advance so our team can have a great work/ life balance.

To apply for this role, please complete our online application form. The closing date for this role is 2nd November 2025, however we reserve the right to extend or close this post earlier.

For an informal discussion, please contact the Hospice’s HR Team at hr@stleonardshospice.org.uk or on 01904 777742.

We do not have sponsorship status and therefore all our offers are made conditional upon our candidates submitting evidence of their right to work in the UK in conjunction with our other pre-employment checks.

Previous applicants need not apply.

ST LEONARDS HOSPICE jobs

Health Care Assistant