Health Care Assistant

Main area Offender Healthcare Grade Band 3 Contract Fixed term: 12 months (n/a) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Expected to work nights and weekends) Job  
-WANDS-A

Site HMP Wandsworth Town London Salary £31,554 - £33,270 pa inc Salary period Yearly Closing 12/10/2026 23:59

The Addison Unit is a 12 bedded Unit located at Health care wing at HMP Wandsworth.

The Addison team is a multidisciplinary team (MDT) that provides an assessment and treatment service to patients who present to the acute hospital with mental health difficulties. Referrals are received from various department within the prison and triaged by the in-reach team MDT and placed on a waiting list pending vacancy at Addison Unit. The main responsibilities of the HCA is to support the qualified staff in any way required, to deliver this service.

The HCA has a key role in gathering and recording data, carrying out therapeutic engagement with the patient, and recording any interactions about and with patients on the System one as well as initiating an ACCT and managing presenting risk to safeguard patient. HCA’s are also required to support patients in crisis, with personal care and to escort patients who are being transferred to a psychiatric facility or hospital.

• Carry out delegated tasks for patients in mental health crisis or admitted to Addison Ward under the direction of qualified nursing staff.
• Support admissions by recording clinical information and completing physical observations (vital signs), including within the first 72 hours of admission.
• Undertake routine physical monitoring (e.g. NEWS2, ECGs, phlebotomy, blood glucose, BMI) and report any abnormalities promptly.
• Conduct and document daily mental state observations, escalating any deterioration or risk concerns without delay.
• Deliver and support prescribed observation levels (general, intermittent, constant/1:1), ensuring accurate documentation.
• Engage therapeutically with patients, offering emotional support and promoting recovery-focused care.
• Support patients with activities of daily living, maintaining dignity, respect, and independence.
• Assist patients to identify triggers for crisis and develop coping strategies under supervision.
• Accompany and support patients during transfers to psychiatric units or other services as required.
• Identify, monitor, and elevate clinical and environmental risks, including self-harm and suicide risk.
• Initiate and support ACCT processes as required in line with safer custody procedures.
• Complete incident reports (Datix) and ensure timely reporting of incidents, complaints, and near misses.
• Work in accordance with Trust policies, procedures, and relevant legislation (Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act).

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives.

Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.
We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We…