Job summary
Do you enjoy working with children and families? Are you interested in nutrition and health? Are you passionate about food and cooking?
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and motivated Band 3 Dietetic Support Worker to join our dietetic team at Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust. You will work predominantly with the Ketogenic Diet Therapy and Allergy teams, supporting children and their families with specialist diet therapies.
We are looking for applicants with good organisation and IT skills, who are interested in food, recipe finding and meal planning. You will need excellent spoken and written communication skills.
We will offer a supportive working environment with in-house training and supervision to help you develop the relevant skills and knowledge required for this post.
Main duties of the job
You will work at Sheffield Children's Hospital and Ryegate Children's centre, along with other locations on an ad-hoc basis.
You will work independently, under direction from the lead dietitians, to:
- Undertake reviews with inpatients and outpatients, gathering clinical information such as weights and blood results, undertake assessments of specific nutrients and using nutritional analysis packages.
- Support children and families with their specialist diets by finding food products, recipes and altering recipes using web-based calculators.
- Support families with prescription products and equipment, troubleshooting and liaising with GPs, pharmacies and special feed companies.
- Support families with preparing for hospital admissions and ordering special diets, and providing feed and independently for discharge home.
- Prepare for and attend clinics and diet training sessions, and complete post-session administrative duties.
- Provide education sessions for children, families, health and education workers.
- Communicating effectively with children, families, health care professionals and staff in educational and respite settings.
- Document your work clearly in patient records and collect data using Microsoft Office and other specialist software.
- Work closely with the lead dietitians, feeding back on all completed work.
About us
At Sheffield Children's, our purpose is clear: to provide healthier futures for children and young people. Our three strategic aims are:
- Outstanding Patient Care
- Brilliant Place to work
- Leaders in Children's Health
We work successfully with local, regional, and national partners to provide physical and mental healthcare across acute and community settings. Many of our clinicians are amongst the best in their field, recognised nationally and internationally for their expertise.
As well as having enormous pride in what we do, we are a friendly, welcoming, and motivated NHS Trust who are guided by our CARE values: Compassion, Accountability, Respect, and Excellence. Our nearly 4000 colleagues live these values, ensuring kind and compassionate care that makes patients and their families feel safe and at home.
As we approach our 150th anniversary in 2026, we remain committed to enhancing our reputation in children's health leadership, improving the experiences of both patient and colleagues, and focusing on our communities and population health.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please see job description and person specification for full details of the role
Inclusive Recruitment & Selection
We are committed to being an inclusive employer and accurate data capture is an important part of that to ensure we are supportive and representative. Our aim is to ensure that all applicants can see themselves in the available categories on our application form, but we recognise that some of our data capture fields are not inclusive. We have flagged this with our system provider to ask for change.
We offer encouragement and active support to applicants with additional needs, including those from ethnic minorities, with disabilities and members of the LGBTQ+ community. If you wish to adjust any aspect of the recruitment process or wish to find out more about our recruitment & selection processes, please get in touch with our Recruitment Manager: Catherine.Gilbert7@nhs.net
We are continually reviewing our recruitment & selection process to support the long-term aim of Sheffield Childrens being a champion of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion. If you have any ideas for improvement, please get in touch with Catherine Gilbert at Catherine.Gilbert7@nhs.net
Trust Values
The Trust is committed to providing great quality patient care and keep children, young people and families at the heart of what we do by following our CARE values:
- Compassion leading by kindness and showing empathy, understanding and respect
- Accountability striving to do the right thing and owning responsibility
- Respect value differences, tackling inequality and fostering a culture of inclusion
- Excellence delivering a high-quality standard of care
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please see job description and person specification for full details of the role
Inclusive Recruitment & Selection
We are committed to being an inclusive employer and accurate data capture is an important part of that to ensure we are supportive and representative. Our aim is to ensure that all applicants can see themselves in the available categories on our application form, but we recognise that some of our data capture fields are not inclusive. We have flagged this with our system provider to ask for change.
We offer encouragement and active support to applicants with additional needs, including those from ethnic minorities, with disabilities and members of the LGBTQ+ community. If you wish to adjust any aspect of the recruitment process or wish to find out more about our recruitment & selection processes, please get in touch with our Recruitment Manager: Catherine.Gilbert7@nhs.net
We are continually reviewing our recruitment & selection process to support the long-term aim of Sheffield Childrens being a champion of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion. If you have any ideas for improvement, please get in touch with Catherine Gilbert at Catherine.Gilbert7@nhs.net
Trust Values
The Trust is committed to providing great quality patient care and keep children, young people and families at the heart of what we do by following our CARE values:
- Compassion leading by kindness and showing empathy, understanding and respect
- Accountability striving to do the right thing and owning responsibility
- Respect value differences, tackling inequality and fostering a culture of inclusion
- Excellence delivering a high-quality standard of care
Person Specification
Qualifications / Training
Essential
- 5 GCSEs including Maths and English Language (4-9 or A-C), Functional Skills (Level 2) or equivalent.
Desirable
- Food, nutrition or catering related qualifications
- Health and Science related A-Levels or T-Level or equivalent Level 3 qualification(s).
- Level 3 Apprenticeship, such as Senior Healthcare Support Worker Apprenticeship (or other level 3 qualification pathway).
Experience
Essential
- Experience of using different software packages, including Microsoft Office.
- Experience in a person facing or health and/or social care setting such as employment, work experience, volunteering or placement.
Desirable
- Experience of working with children and young people.
- Experience of working with vulnerable groups.
- Experience of working in a healthcare setting.
- Experience of recipe development and meal planning.
- Previous experience of working as a dietetic assistant.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Interest and knowledge around food and cooking
- IT skills which include competency at using Word, Excel and email, and commitment to learning advanced IT skills.
- Ability to motivate and engage with patients particularly where there are barriers to understanding
- Ability to empathise and understand to respond to patients needs and emotions.
- Ability to work well within a team, contributing to team meetings and care plan development.
- Ability to organise workload and respond quickly to changing situations.
- Ability to maintain documentation and collect data for audit or service development.
Desirable
- Ability to use dietary analysis packages.
- Understanding of the relationship between health and nutrition.
Personal Attributes
Essential
- Flexibility to handle various tasks and adapt to changing situations within the clinical environment.
- Attention to detail as well as meticulousness in infection control.
- Ability to identify areas for improvement and propose solutions.
- Commitment to continuing learning and personal development.
- Willingness to work flexibly in approach and working hours/pattern.
Desirable
- Able to undertake light physical tasks e.g. carry small pieces of equipment/supplies.
Person Specification
Qualifications / Training
Essential
- 5 GCSEs including Maths and English Language (4-9 or A-C), Functional Skills (Level 2) or equivalent.
Desirable
- Food, nutrition or catering related qualifications
- Health and Science related A-Levels or T-Level or equivalent Level 3 qualification(s).
- Level 3 Apprenticeship, such as Senior Healthcare Support Worker Apprenticeship (or other level 3 qualification pathway).
Experience
Essential
- Experience of using different software packages, including Microsoft Office.
- Experience in a person facing or health and/or social care setting such as employment, work experience, volunteering or placement.
Desirable
- Experience of working with children and young people.
- Experience of working with vulnerable groups.
- Experience of working in a healthcare setting.
- Experience of recipe development and meal planning.
- Previous experience of working as a dietetic assistant.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Interest and knowledge around food and cooking
- IT skills which include competency at using Word, Excel and email, and commitment to learning advanced IT skills.
- Ability to motivate and engage with patients particularly where there are barriers to understanding
- Ability to empathise and understand to respond to patients needs and emotions.
- Ability to work well within a team, contributing to team meetings and care plan development.
- Ability to organise workload and respond quickly to changing situations.
- Ability to maintain documentation and collect data for audit or service development.
Desirable
- Ability to use dietary analysis packages.
- Understanding of the relationship between health and nutrition.
Personal Attributes
Essential
- Flexibility to handle various tasks and adapt to changing situations within the clinical environment.
- Attention to detail as well as meticulousness in infection control.
- Ability to identify areas for improvement and propose solutions.
- Commitment to continuing learning and personal development.
- Willingness to work flexibly in approach and working hours/pattern.
Desirable
- Able to undertake light physical tasks e.g. carry small pieces of equipment/supplies.
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
