Maintenance Operative in St Leonards

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We are proud to provide ‘Outstanding’ care and be a great place to work.

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust provides safe, compassionate and high quality hospital and community care to the half a million people living in East Sussex and those who visit our local area.

We are one of the largest organisations in East Sussex with an annual income of £700 million and we are the only integrated provider of acute and community care in Sussex.

Our extensive health services are provided by over 8,000+ dedicated members of staff working from two acute hospitals in Hastings and Eastbourne, three community hospitals in Bexhill, Rye and Uckfield, over 100 community sites across East Sussex, and in people’s own homes.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated us as ‘Good’ overall, and ‘Outstanding’ for being Caring and Effective. The Conquest Hospital in Hastings and our Community Services were rated ‘Outstanding’ and Eastbourne DGH was rated ‘Good’ Our two acute hospitals have Emergency Departments and provide 24 hour a day care, offering a comprehensive range of surgical, medical, outpatient and maternity services, supported by a full range of diagnostic and therapy services.

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join the Estates Team at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust as a Maintenance Operative. Working across our hospital sites, you will play a vital role in helping to maintain a safe, reliable and efficient environment for patients, visitors and staff.

This is a varied, hands‑on role where no two days are the same. You will undertake planned and reactive maintenance across a wide range of engineering services, building fabric and healthcare facilities, supporting the operation of critical hospital infrastructure. Working alongside skilled tradespeople and specialist teams, you will contribute to the upkeep of essential systems that enable high quality patient care.

We are looking for a practical and enthusiastic individual with experience in general maintenance, building or engineering works, who is keen to develop new skills and work as part of a supportive team. A flexible approach, commitment to health and safety, and excellent customer service skills are essential.

In return, ESHT offers a rewarding career within the NHS, comprehensive training and development opportunities, access to a wide range of employee benefits, and the opportunity to make a real difference in an organisation that supports thousands of patients every day. Join us and become part of a team that takes pride in keeping our hospitals running safely and effectively.

Main duties of the job

The Maintenance Operative will carry out planned preventative maintenance, reactive repairs and minor installation works across a wide range of building, mechanical and electrical systems within the Trust's hospital estate. Duties include maintaining plant and equipment, undertaking statutory compliance tasks, carrying out minor building fabric repairs, monitoring critical services, recording maintenance activities using CAFM systems, and supporting the safe operation of healthcare facilities. The postholder will work closely with colleagues, contractors and clinical teams, providing a flexible, customer‑focused service while adhering to health and safety procedures and supporting the delivery of a safe environment for patients, staff and visitors.

• Practical experience in general building, engineering or maintenance work.
• Ability to carry out repairs using a range of hand and power tools.Good understanding of health and safety, risk assessments and safe systems of work.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team. Good communication, customer service and IT skills.
• Flexible and adaptable approach to supporting multiple maintenance disciplines.
• Willingness to undertake training and develop new skills relevant to the role.
• Ability to work in a variety of environments, including plant rooms, confined spaces, working at height and outdoor locations.

Working for our organisation

A wide range of staff benefits are available to our staff including staff development, enrolment in the NHS pension scheme, auto‑enrolment to our Temporary Workforce Service, access to onsite nurseries. staff restaurants and accommodation.

In addition to an internal Occupational Health department, all staff also have access to free psychological support through our confidential Employee Assistance Programme. Onsite parking is available from only £50 a year.

Statement on the Use of AI

We value the individuality that each candidate brings to the application process. While we understand that AI tools are widely available, we strongly discourage applicants from using AI‑generated content when applying for jobs with us. We believe that your application should reflect your true skills, experiences, and motivations, which are best conveyed through your own words and unique perspective.

Using AI for your application may not accurately represent your knowledge, skills, and experience and may result in a disconnect between your qualifications and our assessment of your application.

We encourage applicants to take the time to thoughtfully complete their applications; by doing so, you allow us to better understand your true potential and ensure a fair and transparent evaluation of your application. Over reliance on AI‑generated content may diminish your chance of success.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached Job Description.

For any further questions please do not hesitate to reach out.

Person specification

Experience

• Basic Engineering / Building work in an acceptable, similar environment
• Experience of working in an Acute Hospital environment

Skills / Knowledge / Abilities

• Basic Engineering and Building maintenance skills including use of non‑specialist, hand / power tools and equipment
• Ability to maintain and repair Estates plant and equipment using correct tools and equipment
• Have knowledge of COSHH and how to apply it to the task
• Have transferable practical skills and abilities within the building, plumbing and electrical trades
• Able to give and receive training appropriate to responsibilities and service needs including those outlined within the ‘Desirable’ section of the Person Specification as required under the Knowledge and Skills Framework (KSF)
• Working knowledge and experience of other trades’ skills
• Working knowledge and experience of: Air conditioning and refrigeration MPHW & steam boilers and systems Building Management Systems (BMS) Control Systems Emergency electrical generating and standby plant Sterilisers Piped Medical Gases Natural Gas Systems Pneumatics Low Pressure Hot Water Systems Hydraulic Systems Fire Fighting Systems Sterilising/Decontamination Water Regulations
• Customer care

Other

• Ability to travel across sites in an efficient and timely basis
• Prepared to work overtime as appropriate

Qualifications

• Good level of general education including English and Math
• Willingness to undertake additional training in line with service needs as listed under desirable
• Within one year of recruitment obtain the following: Fire Door Maintenance/ inspections PAT testing Certificate Legionella Awareness Boiler house Awareness Boiler water treatment testing Ladder Inspection certificate COSHH Awareness Emergency Lighting testing IOSH working safely PASMA certification Asbestos Awareness Emergency passenger lift releasee
• May hold licence for Category C vehicles
• Basic Building / Engineering qualifications to NVQ level 2 or 3
• Confined Spaces
• Breathing Apparatus
• European Computer Driving License (ECDL) level Module 7
• HTM 01 Decontamination HTM 02 Medical Gases HTM 03 Heating and Ventilation HTM 04 Water Systems HTM 05 Fire HTM 06 Electrical Systems HTM 07 environment and Sustainability HTM 08 Specialist Services
• IPAF

Patients come first at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust.

Our vision is to be:

• The healthcare provider of first choice for the people of East Sussex.

Our mission is to:

• Deliver better health outcomes and an excellent experience for everyone we provide with healthcare services.

Our strategic objectives are to:

• Improve quality and clinical outcomes by ensuring that safe patient care is our highest priority.
• Play a leading role in local partnerships to meet the needs of our local population and improve and enhance patients’ experiences.
• Use our resources efficiently and effectively for the benefit of our patients and their care to ensure our services clinically, operationally and financially sustainable.

Our aims are that all services delivered by the Trust are:

• Safe
• Effective
• Caring
• Responsive and
• Well led

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.

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