Senior Theatre Support Worker
Location: Worcester
Band: Band 3
Salary: £25,760 to £27,476 a year
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time, Part-time, Flexible working
Closing date: 19 November 2026

Job summary
Senior Theatre Support Workers (Band 3) Worcestershire Royal Hospital

Worcester Royal Hospital are looking to recruit highly motivated, experienced and dedicated personnel for the position of Senior Theatre Support Worker. Candidates will need to demonstrate 12 months experience in the peri-operative setting and have completed the care certificate course.

We provide a wide range of surgical specialities including Emergency Surgery, Trauma and Orthopaedics, Vascular, ENT, Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Paediatric specialities. Candidates will need to have a flexible attitude to work, have a great team focus and be a positive and supportive role model for new and junior members of staff.

Your role will be to support the theatre teams and providing patient centred care throughout the perioperative journey. You will be experienced in circulating for the scrub team, safely handling specimens, organising, preparing equipment and escorting patients.

Worcester Royal Hospital has 10 theatres, and the department provides a 7-day, 24-hour service. The role requires you work earlys, lates, nights, weekends and on-calls. Part-time and flexible working will be considered dependant on experience.

We have a genuine desire to support staff development and have great opportunities for career progression.

Please note, due to the upcoming immigration law changes taking effect in December and the projected timescales for this recruitment, we will be unable to offer sponsorship for this role.

Main duties of the job

• Support qualified staff in delivering high-quality patient care and maintaining a safe, effective environment, working under their guidance and supervision.
• Guide and support less experienced support workers, students, and newly qualified theatre staff within the scope of the Theatre Support Worker role.
• Complete required documentation, including theatre records, cleaning logs, and specimen records.
• Prepare the operating environment for clinical activities under professional direction.
• Facilitate communication with patients, relatives, colleagues, and visitors.
• Assist with patient transfers, ensuring safety, dignity, and comfort.
• Monitor and report patient conditions to the appropriate team members.
• Support stock rotation, equipment care, and efficient resource use.
• Assist with applying tourniquets, diathermy ground plates, and other equipment.
• Respond promptly to clinical emergencies as directed.
• Support the Scrub Practitioner with swab, sharps and instrument counts.
• Maintain a clean and safe clinical environment, adhering to infection control protocols.
• Dispose of waste following trust policies and report faults to the team leader.
• Greet and direct visitors, answer bleeps, and answer telephone calls professionally.
• Participate in meetings, training, and development activities.
• Report incidents, accidents, or complaints to the manager and via the Datix system.
• Adhere to all trust policies to ensure a safe and effective work environment.

About us
Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust is a large acute and specialised hospital trust that provides a range of local acute services to the residents of Worcestershire and more specialised services to a larger population in Herefordshire and beyond.

The Trust operates hospital-based services from three sites in Kidderminster, Redditch and Worcester.

Our workforce is more than 7,000 strong, and our caring staff are recognised as providing good and outstanding patient-centred care. You could be one of them.

We are committed to recruiting the best people to work with us. Our values, which we ask all staff to demonstrate, underpin our everyday work and remain firmly at the heart of all we do.

• Being open and honest
• Ensuring people feel cared for
• Showing respect to everyone

We are committed to developing a culture of continuous improvement by embedding the principles of our Improvement System.

We are proud to have achieved Timewise accreditation - this means we are committed to embedding flexible working within our organisation as a flex positive employer.

DBS Checks and Costs
Any applicants who are offered posts requiring a DBS check as part of their employment check will have the cost of this check (at the current rate) deducted from their salary. Please see link in Supporting Information section for more details on DBS checks and costs.

Job responsibilities
Job Purpose:
Support qualified staff in delivering high-quality patient care and maintaining a safe, effective environment, working under their guidance and supervision.

Participate as a team member in various clinical and non-clinical tasks within the theatre support worker role.

Guide and support less experienced support workers, students, and newly qualified theatre staff within the scope of the Theatre Support Worker role.

Key Duties:

• Complete required documentation, including theatre records, cleaning logs, and specimen records.
• Prepare the operating environment for clinical activities under professional direction.
• Facilitate communication with patients, relatives, colleagues, and visitors.
• Assist with patient transfers, ensuring safety, dignity, and comfort.
• Monitor and report patient conditions to the appropriate team members.
• Support stock rotation, equipment care, and efficient resource use.
• Assist with applying tourniquets, diathermy ground plates, and other equipment.
• Respond promptly to clinical emergencies as directed.
• Support the Scrub Practitioner with swab, sharps and instrument counts.
• Maintain a clean and safe clinical environment, adhering to infection control protocols.
• Dispose of waste following trust policies and report faults to the team leader.
• Greet and direct visitors, answer bleeps, and answer telephone calls professionally.
• Participate in meetings, training, and development activities.
• Report incidents, accidents, or complaints to the manager and via the Datix system.
• Adhere to all trust policies to ensure a safe and effective work environment.

General duties:

• Follow IT policies regarding email and internet usage.
• Take responsibility for personal health and safety and that of others.
• Participate in appraisals, training, and personal development activities.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of services and team performance.
• Engage in learning from incidents, complaints, and successes to enhance care quality.
• Senior theatre support workers will be expected to take key link roles within the department and ensure that all skills and relevant information are communicated to the theatre team.
• Assist in the care of theatre equipment, table fittings etc. reporting any faults to the team leader.
• To assist with the personal care and comfort of the patients and to maintain the patients safety, dignity and privacy at all times acting as the patients advocate during perioperative care.
• To act always in a manner which promotes positive working relationships and maintains the professional image of the trust.

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• Basic standard of education including Maths and English Grade C GCSE or equivalent or willingness to complete Functional Skills Level 2 on appointment
• Good Mandatory training record e.g BLS and Manual Handling
• Completed National Care Certificate for healthcare workers

Desirable

• Healthcare related qualification

Experience
Essential

• Experience of working within the peri-operative setting

Desirable

• Experience of shift working
• Experience of supporting junior members of staff
• Participating in audit, stock control or quality improvement initiative.

Skills & Knowledge
Essential

• Good verbal, literacy and communication skills
• Ability to maintain accurate and legible records
• Computer literate (use of IT software packages e.g. Word, Email)
• Understanding of manual handling practices and policies
• Awareness of Health and Safety

Desirable

• Ability to anticipate the needs of the perioperative team
• Competence in handling and preparing surgical instruments
• Understanding of instrument sterilisation and de-contamination

Personal Qualities
Essential

• Good interpersonal skills
• Ability to work with a team
• Effective communication skills written and verbal
• Self-confidence with an approachable persona
• Self-awareness in assessing own knowledge, competence and boundaries
• Respectful of diversity and inclusion in care

Desirable

• Ability to identify own personal development needs
• Flexible and adaptable to a change in clinical demands.

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.

Employer details
Employer name: Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
Address: Charles Hastings Way, Worcester, Worcestershire, WR5 1DD, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.worcsacute.nhs.uk/

For questions about the job, contact:
Recruitment and Development Lead, Aimee Armstrong-Sly, aimee.armstrong-sly@nhs.net, 01905760685

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust's privacy notice is available on the Trust website.