Practice Nurse Job Description
Recruit a clinically competent, patient-focused Practice Nurse to deliver vaccinations, long-term condition reviews and preventive care in general practice. Use a clear, focused advert to attract registered nurses experienced in primary care.
What does a Practice Nurse professional do?
A registered nurse (NMC) who provides clinical care in GP practices: immunisations and screenings, chronic disease reviews, wound care, health promotion and clinical governance. Essential: current NMC registration and demonstrable clinical skills; desirable: independent prescribing or primary care experience.
Practice Nurse job description template
Use this employer-ready example as a starting point, then replace the placeholders and adjust the content so it accurately reflects your vacancy.
Practice Nurse
About the role
We are seeking a Practice Nurse to join [PRACTICE NAME] in [LOCATION]. This role involves delivering vaccination and screening programmes, managing long-term conditions, carrying out minor procedures and providing patient education. This is a [FULL-TIME/PART-TIME] position on a [PERMANENT/FIXED-TERM] contract at [BAND/SALARY]. To apply, send your CV and a brief covering note to [APPLICATION CONTACT].
Key responsibilities
- Provide immunisations and maintain accurate vaccination records, including childhood and adult programmes where trained.
- Carry out long-term condition reviews (diabetes, COPD, asthma, cardiovascular disease) and develop personalised care plans.
- Perform clinical procedures such as venepuncture, wound management, dressings and ECGs in line with local protocols.
- Undertake cervical screening and sexual health services where trained and competent.
- Deliver health promotion and lifestyle advice, smoking cessation support and opportunistic prevention.
- Maintain patient records and clinical coding to support audit, QOF targets and clinical governance.
- Participate in clinical audit, medicine management checks and infection control procedures.
- Contribute to multidisciplinary team meetings, safeguarding processes and practice development activities.
Essential skills and experience
- Registered Nurse with a live Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) registration and PIN.
- Current, demonstrable clinical skills such as venepuncture, immunisations and wound care.
- Experience of delivering patient-centred care and working within clinical governance frameworks.
- Ability to use clinical IT systems and maintain accurate electronic patient records.
- Willingness to undergo enhanced DBS check, occupational health screening and provide references.
Desirable
- Previous experience working in primary care, general practice or community nursing.
- Independent prescribing qualification (IP) or working towards it.
- Training in cervical cytology, spirometry, and advanced immunisation competencies.
- Experience with long-term condition clinics, recall systems and QOF management.
- Experience mentoring or supervising less-experienced clinical staff.
What we offer
- Employer pension scheme (placeholder — confirm details with employer)
- Paid annual leave plus bank holidays (placeholder for exact entitlement)
- Support for CPD, protected study leave and NMC revalidation
- Occupational sick pay and employee assistance programme (placeholder)
- Flexible / part-time hours where available (subject to practice needs)
How to apply
Apply with your CV and any additional information requested. Make the interview process, closing date and any assessment stages clear where known.
Use this as a starting point rather than a final advert. The strongest version will reflect the real role, salary, location, systems, responsibilities, benefits and working arrangements.
What is a Practice Nurse role?
A Practice Nurse delivers clinical and preventive healthcare within a general practice or community setting. They administer immunisations and screenings, manage patients with long-term conditions, perform minor clinical procedures and promote health through advice and education. They work closely with GPs, healthcare assistants and other primary care staff to maintain safe, effective patient care and to meet local clinical targets.
Clinical care
Direct patient care including assessments, injections, wound management and diagnostic tests.
Long-term condition management
Structured reviews and individualized care planning for conditions such as diabetes and COPD.
Immunisations & screening
Deliver vaccination programmes and participate in routine screening according to training.
Governance & records
Maintain clinical records, support audits and follow safeguarding and infection control protocols.
Typical Practice Nurse responsibilities
Responsibilities should reflect the real scope of the vacancy rather than every task someone in this profession might ever complete.
Provide immunisations
Provide immunisations and maintain accurate vaccination records, including childhood and adult programmes where trained.
Carry out long-term condition reviews (diabetes
Carry out long-term condition reviews (diabetes, COPD, asthma, cardiovascular disease) and develop personalised care plans.
Perform clinical procedures such as venepuncture
Perform clinical procedures such as venepuncture, wound management, dressings and ECGs in line with local protocols.
Undertake cervical screening
Undertake cervical screening and sexual health services where trained and competent.
Deliver health promotion
Deliver health promotion and lifestyle advice, smoking cessation support and opportunistic prevention.
Maintain patient records
Maintain patient records and clinical coding to support audit, QOF targets and clinical governance.
Participate in clinical audit
Participate in clinical audit, medicine management checks and infection control procedures.
Contribute
Contribute to multidisciplinary team meetings, safeguarding processes and practice development activities.
Practice Nurse skills and experience to look for
Keep the essential list focused on what the person really needs to perform the role. Move useful-but-trainable experience into desirable criteria.
Usually worth prioritising
- Registered Nurse with a live Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) registration and PIN.
- Current, demonstrable clinical skills such as venepuncture, immunisations and wound care.
- Experience of delivering patient-centred care and working within clinical governance frameworks.
- Ability to use clinical IT systems and maintain accurate electronic patient records.
- Willingness to undergo enhanced DBS check, occupational health screening and provide references.
Useful where relevant
- Previous experience working in primary care, general practice or community nursing.
- Independent prescribing qualification (IP) or working towards it.
- Training in cervical cytology, spirometry, and advanced immunisation competencies.
- Experience with long-term condition clinics, recall systems and QOF management.
- Experience mentoring or supervising less-experienced clinical staff.
See our guide to what to include in a job advert before publishing.
How to write a Practice Nurse job advert
Small role-specific details can make the advert much easier for suitable candidates to assess.
Lead with essential credentials
Prominently state that NMC registration is required and whether you expect specific clinical competencies (venepuncture, immunisations).
Be specific about core duties
List the primary clinics and procedures the post-holder will run (e.g. diabetes reviews, vaccinations, wound care) so candidates can self-assess fit.
Clarify hours, banding and flexibility
Specify expected weekly hours, shift pattern, and the pay band or salary range where possible to set realistic expectations.
Highlight development and support
Mention CPD, revalidation assistance and supervision arrangements to attract applicants maintaining professional development.
Practice Nurse salary considerations
Do not quote a single market figure without checking internal grading. Pay for Practice Nurses depends on factors such as whether the role is within the NHS (Agenda for Change banding) or a private GP practice, the required clinical skills and qualifications, local market pressures and the contracted hours.
depending on experience
- Use a genuine range
- Separate variable pay
- Avoid “competitive” alone
- Match salary to seniority
What Practice Nurse candidates will want to know
Practical details can influence whether a suitable candidate applies, even when the title and salary are attractive.
What band or salary will this post be advertised at?
Experienced nurses want clarity on pay banding, whether the role follows Agenda for Change, and any pay enhancements for overtime or weekend work.
Which clinical systems and equipment will I use?
Candidates expect to know the patient record system (for example EMIS or SystmOne), available diagnostic kit and access to clinical templates.
Is independent prescribing required or supported?
Make clear if an IP qualification is essential, desirable, or if the practice will support training for prescribing.
What is the patient list size and demographic?
Provide information about patient population, prevalence of long-term conditions and typical appointment lengths to help nurses assess workload.
What CPD and revalidation support do you offer?
Candidates want to know about protected study leave, funding for courses and support with NMC revalidation requirements.
Are home visits or on-call duties required?
Clarify whether the role includes domiciliary visits, extended hours or occasional cover for urgent care and how these are compensated.
Where to post a Practice Nurse job
Target both broad UK job boards and speciality primary-care channels to reach registered nurses. Include NHS and primary-care specific sites, local health trust vacancy pages, professional nursing networks and regional Facebook or LinkedIn groups for healthcare staff. Consider advertising part-time hours and CPD support prominently to attract nurses seeking flexible or career-developing roles.
Practice Nurse job description FAQs
Is NMC registration essential for a Practice Nurse post?
Yes — a live Nursing and Midwifery Council registration is essential for nursing posts in primary care and should be stated as a requirement in the advert.
Do Practice Nurses have to be independent prescribers?
Not necessarily. Independent prescribing is a valuable qualification and may be specified as desirable or essential depending on the role. If prescribing responsibilities are required, make this explicit.
What pre-employment checks should I complete?
Standard checks include verification of NMC registration, right to work in the UK, enhanced DBS, occupational health clearance and professional references.
How can I assess clinical competence during recruitment?
Use a combination of structured interview questions, clinical scenarios, skills checklists, references from recent clinical managers and, where appropriate, a practical assessment or observed clinic.
Should I advertise banding or salary in the job advert?
Yes — stating the band or salary range and the contracted hours improves application quality and helps set candidate expectations.
Ready to recruit a Practice Nurse?
Use this template to create a concise advert, confirm the banding and key clinical requirements, then distribute across general and primary-care specific channels to attract suitably qualified applicants.
