Assistant Practitioner - BSDU

• PLEASE NOTE THIS IS AN INTERNAL VACANCY ONLY OPEN TO CURRENT NHS SCOTLAND STAFF **
  
  

OUR VALUES IN ACTION

• Care and Compassion
• Quality and Teamwork
• Dignity and Respect
• Openness, honesty and responsibility
  
  

NHS Borders are delighted to invite applicants to join our Acute Mental Health Service. These exciting, potentially lifestyle changing opportunities offer a career in the Scottish Borders and a chance to experience the benefits of rural life with very easy access to major cities such as Edinburgh (37 Miles) Glasgow (75 miles) and Newcastle (75 miles).

Our Borders Specialist Dementia Unit

NHS Borders are delighted to be seeking a Health Care Support Worker to join our newly created Borders Specialist Dementia Unit. A permanent 37 hour position has become available. Applications are invited from interested parties with experience with older adults and in mental health The Borders Specialist Dementia Assessment Unit is a 12 bedded unit supporting people living with dementia who require specialist hospital care and treatment.

We are looking for a motivated and innovative individual who can make a contribution to the care and treatment of patients on the ward. In return we offer a supportive team, with good opportunities for growth and career development.

The role is permanent and 37 hours per week with an expectation to work shifts, including night shift. We can offer some flexibility with the hours to the right candidates if required.

We would love to share the wonderful work that we are doing in the Borders and if you would like to find out more about these potentially career defining roles please contact us using the details below.

For Further Information, Please Contact Yolanda Lambert

Yolanda [email protected]

AI tools like ChatGPT or Copilot can be great for planning and preparing your application—but your answers must be your own.

• Show us the real you: Your application should reflect your skills, experience, and motivations authentically.
• Use AI wisely: It’s fine to use AI for ideas or to check spelling and grammar, but don’t let it write your answers.
• Why this matters: Applications that rely on AI-generated content may be withdrawn. By applying, you confirm your responses are based on your own knowledge and achievements.
  
  

Tip: Think of AI as a helper, not a substitute. We want to understand you—not an AI tool.

As from 1st April 2026 the Agenda for Change full-time working week will be reducing from 37 to 36 hours per week. Part time hours will be reduced pro-rata. However, there will be a corresponding increase in the hourly rate so that pay will not be affected.

Due to legislative changes from 1 April 2025, this post may require a different level of criminal records check done than is currently the case. If the post is assessed as a "regulated role", your appointment will be subject to joining the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme. If there is any change to what is currently required, this will be confirmed by either the Hiring Manager or the Recruitment Team. For more details on these changes please visit: Disclosure Scotland Changes.

To work in the United Kingdom, there is a legal requirement for an individual to demonstrate that they have the relevant permission to work in the country. This permission is, without exception, granted by the UK Visa and Immigrations Service.

As part of the pre-employment checks for a preferred candidate, NHS Scotland Boards will check your entitlement to work in the UK. It can be evidenced through a number of routes including specific types of visa as well as EU settled and pre-settled status. To find out more about these routes of permission, please refer to the GOV.UK website here. 

For specific types of post, if you do not have the necessary eligibility to work in the UK, it might be possible (though not guaranteed) to secure sponsorship via a UK Skilled Worker/Health & Care Worker Visa. However, this is only possible if the employer is a licenced Sponsor, and if the post does not fall below the current minimum salary threshold or ‘going rate’. Further information on these criteria can be found here.

It is ESSENTIAL that you have checked that you either already have an appropriate right to work in the UK or that the post would be eligible to be sponsored BEFORE submitting your application form

• PLEASE NOTE: We cannot accept late applications so please ensure your application is submitted early***
  
  

NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. To this end, NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society.