NHS Healthcare Support Worker interview guide
How NHS values-based interviews work for healthcare support worker roles, the six NHS values, and how to prepare.
How NHS recruitment works
NHS employers recruit healthcare support workers on values. NHS England's guidance puts it plainly: "Your success as a HCSW will be linked to who you are as a person, not your qualifications or experience."1 Each NHS organisation runs its own recruitment, so check the job advert and the organisation's own values too.
The process
As NHS England's guidance describes it.1
- Research
Learn about the role and the organisation, and work out which of your skills transfer.
- Written application
Answer using the job description's headings, draft it in a document first, and proofread.
- Values-based interview
Situational questions that draw out your values, such as "Can you give an example of a time when you helped someone in need?"
The six NHS values
- Working together for patients. Patients come first in everything.
- Respect and dignity. Valuing every person as an individual.
- Commitment to quality of care. Earning trust by insisting on quality.
- Compassion. At the centre of the care provided.
- Improving lives. Better health, wellbeing and experiences.
- Everyone counts. Using resources for the whole community.2
Questions to expect
The first question is NHS England's own example. The rest are based on the six NHS values.
Values-based interview
Can you give an example of a time when you helped someone in need?
How would you make sure a patient keeps their dignity while you help them?
Tell me about a time you worked as part of a team to look after someone.
What would you do if you saw a colleague being unkind to a patient?
How to prepare
- Learn the organisation's values and match your own to them.
- Use the STAR technique to structure your answers.
- Use everyday experience. Caring for family, volunteering and customer service all show your values.
- Keep it simple. Plain language and real examples.1
Quick answers
Do I need experience to be an NHS healthcare support worker?
Not necessarily. NHS England's guidance says success is linked to who you are as a person, not your qualifications or experience.
What is a values-based interview?
Questions that draw out your personal values, such as asking for a time you helped someone in need.
What are the NHS values?
Working together for patients; respect and dignity; commitment to quality of care; compassion; improving lives; and everyone counts.1, 2
Sources
- Top tips for applying for a healthcare support worker role in the NHSNHS England · 2022
- The NHS Constitution for EnglandGOV.UK · Updated 17 Aug 2023
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