Hospital Play Assistant

Job Summary

A rare opportunity has arisen to join our friendly, professional and supportive Play Team at Colchester General Hospital as a Hospital Play Assistant.

The post within the Children\’s Service offers the opportunity for a qualified & registered play specialist to develop their skills within a supportive environment, however, applicants who do not possess this qualification will be considered.

This is a full time position ( for right candidate we will consider part time hours), working a combination of day time and evening shifts, providing play and recreational activity for individual children/groups of children of any age in the Hospital setting, helping to maintain a safe and child-focussed environment where play occurs naturally.

Main duties of the job

• To meet and greet child/ family attending hospital department, maintaining good communications with children, families and other visitors to the hospital
• To organize, supervise and maintain play activities for individual / groups of children and young people in hospital, according to their individual needs and as part of the overall care plan.
• To plan a programme of daily play activities for the playroom / department in conjunction with Play Specialists
• To use knowledge of child development when selecting play activities, promoting the normal development of children by using play as development aid
• Under the guidance of /as directed by Hospital Play Specialist, to select and apply therapeutic play programmes include preparation for invasive and non-invasive procedures, distraction therapy and post procedural play
• To document play interventions.

About Us

We are ESNEFT and we provide hospital and community health services to almost one million people across east Suffolk and north Essex. Our dedicated staff deliver care from acute hospitals in Colchester and Ipswich, community hospitals, surgeries, community clinics and in patients\’ own homes.

We are one of the largest NHS organisations in England, employing more than 12,000 staff.

We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options.

Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

Our philosophy is that Time Matters to everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients.

We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what\’s widely regarded as the world\’s best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients.

Find out about living and working here – www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkPu7HphU8A

Details

Date posted

12 June 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 3

Salary

£24,625 to £25,674 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

432-HR357-25

Job locations

Colchester Hospital

Turner Road

Colchester

CO4 5JL

Job Description

Job responsibilities

For full details of the duties and responsibilities of this role, please see attached job description & person specification.

Job Description

Job responsibilities

For full details of the duties and responsibilities of this role, please see attached job description & person specification.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Post qualification experience directly working with children /young people

Desirable

• Documented evidence of Continuing Professional Development
• Experience of working as part of a team

Skills

Essential

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Desirable

• IT Skills

Qualifications

Essential

• oUp to secondary school education
• oNNEB or NVQ Level 3 Child Care

Desirable

• oHospital Play Specialist qualification

Person Specification

Essential

• oUp to secondary school education
• oNNEB or NVQ Level 3 Child Care

Desirable

• oHospital Play Specialist qualification

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).

Additional information

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

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Colchester Hospital

Turner Road

Colchester

CO4 5JL

Employer\’s website

https://www.esneft.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Colchester Hospital

Turner Road

Colchester

CO4 5JL

Employer\’s website

https://www.esneft.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab) #J-18808-Ljbffr