Doctor; Qualified

Overgate Hospice is the Hospice that serves the people of Calderdale and was founded in 1981. It has grown since then to provide specialist palliative care to more inpatients every year and day hospice services both within the hospice and at hubs throughout Calderdale. The Hospice also provides bereavement care and counselling, specialist palliative care social work services, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, complementary therapies, chaplaincy services, diversional therapies and a 24‑hour advice line for professionals.

Our aspirations include development of services to support patients in their own homes, and we have a Specialist Palliative Care Community Educator to support primary care professionals in the palliative care they deliver; this will strengthen our good relationship with local primary care services.

The Hospice is currently at an exciting point in its history, with a newly built bespoke Inpatient Unit due to open in Spring 2026. It will have state of the art hospice facilities, and an outstanding environment for both patients and staff.

We are situated in beautiful grounds between Huddersfield and Halifax and are close to the M62. Parking at the Hospice is free of charge, currently in the cricket club car park just across the road, but on site once the new Inpatient Unit opens soon. The Hospice has a dynamic fundraising team that generates the majority of our income and receives some of its funding from West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board.

Job Summary

The Hospice doctors work closely with the existing enthusiastic, experienced, multi‑professional team to help ensure continuity of high‑level medical care for Hospice patients. This will include inpatients, patients attending the Day Hospice and patients being supported by specialist nurses in the community.

Full registration with the GMC and a licence to practice are essential prior to applying.

As a charity, the Hospice does not provide sponsorship.

As a minimum, completion of Foundation Year 1 & 2 training is essential.

Previous employment as a doctor in the NHS is essential.

Hospice medicine requires excellence in both written and spoken English language.

Overgate Hospice is an independent charity with a mission to ensure that patients and those close to them live with the best possible quality of life. This is enabled by provision of the highest standard of compassionate and evidence‑based specialist palliative and end‑of‑life care for adults in Calderdale who have active, progressive life limiting illness.

However, the current constraints of our ageing facilities are making this more difficult than ever. Our ambitious redevelopment plans will modernise and expand our existing facilities to transform the environment in which we care for our patients, as well as meaning we can care for more people who need us. In April 2024, Overgate Hospice launched a capital appeal, the Big Build Appeal, to raise the funds needed to make these transformational plans become a reality.

Doctor (residing in Elland area)

Fixed Term Contract 6 – 12 months (in some circumstances the Hospice may extend this to 18 months)

Salary £95.48 per 4‑hour daytime session. £95.48 per on‑call session (48 hours at the weekend = 6 sessions).

Hours:

24 hours (daytime work) per week = 6 sessions (i.e. 3 days/week) (Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 8.30am‑5pm) and 1 in 5 weeknights and weekends on‑call. Fixed term contract 6‑12 months. In some circumstances the Hospice may offer to extend this to 18 months total. A contribution towards medical indemnity fees will be made by the Hospice. NHS pensions can be continued but not started in this role.

Annual Leave Entitlement is six weeks (pro‑rata). In addition, there is an entitlement to 10 public and bank holidays (pro‑rata). All employees benefit from an additional 1 day Birthday Leave taken on or close to their birthday.

Employer:

Overgate Hospice (not an NHS employer). Responsible to Dr. Rachel Sheils, Medical Director (Consultant in Palliative Medicine). Accountable to Tracey Wilcocks, Chief Executive. Supervised by Dr. Rhona…