How to write an NHS supporting statement

NHS shortlisting is done against the person specification. Your supporting statement is where you show, criterion by criterion, that you meet it.

4 minute read

1. Open the person specification

Every NHS advert on NHS Jobs or Trac comes with a job description and a person specification. The person specification lists the essential and desirable criteria, and often says how each is assessed. Anything assessed by "application form" must be clear in your supporting statement.

2. Follow its order

Write about each criterion in the order it appears, under its own short heading if you can. Shortlisters often score one criterion at a time, so make each one easy to find.

3. Give a real example for each

Saying you have a skill is not enough. Show a time you used it: what was happening, what you did and what changed. Experience from caring, volunteering, study or work outside the NHS all counts.

4. Show the trust's values

Most trusts publish their values, and many build on the NHS values, such as compassion, respect and dignity, and working together for patients. Find them on the trust's website and show them through your examples, rather than just naming them.

5. Say why this role and this trust

End with a short paragraph on why you want this job and what you would bring. Mention something real about the service or the trust.

Before you send it

• Every essential criterion has an example
• You used the person specification's words
• The trust's values come through in your examples
• You stayed within the space allowed

In Submiti: write your supporting statement in the statement editor, criterion by criterion, from your own examples, then check it against the person specification.