Find nursing shifts across the East of England
Book NHS and care shifts from Cambridge and Norwich to Ipswich, Chelmsford and Luton in a few taps, see your confirmed pay before you accept, and get paid without chasing timesheets. Novello is built for nurses and carers who want steady work close to home.
Quick enquiry
Looking for work in the East of England?
Leave your details and we’ll come back to you with the nursing, care and support shifts we have near you in the East of England — and what they pay. It takes about twenty seconds.
Nursing in the East of England
Why nurses choose Novello in the East of England
Work that fits around your life, across all six counties, with none of the usual agency runaround.
Shifts near you, not across the region
Whether you are in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire or Bedfordshire, you pick the shifts that suit you. The app shows what is available nearby, so you are not driving from one side of the region to the other for a single shift.
Confirmed pay before you say yes
Every shift shows its confirmed rate in the app before you accept, so you see exactly what you will earn before you say yes, and you are paid promptly with no chasing timesheets or waiting weeks to find out where you stand.
Compliance sorted once, then out of your way
We handle your DBS, mandatory training and revalidation checks properly, once, so you can move between an NHS ward in Cambridge, a care home in Norfolk or a secure unit in Suffolk without repeating the same paperwork for every placement.
The region we cover
The healthcare landscape in the East of England
The East of England is a region of around 6.4 million people spread across its six counties, and its hospitals, mental health services and care homes all lean on flexible nursing staff.
Acute care across the region is anchored by some of the best known trusts in the country. Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust runs Addenbrooke’s, the region’s only Major Trauma Centre for adults and children and one of the largest hospitals in the country, alongside the Rosie maternity hospital, and neighbouring Royal Papworth is the UK’s leading heart and lung hospital. Norfolk is served by three acute trusts, led by the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, while East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust runs Colchester and Ipswich hospitals across the Suffolk and Essex border. Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust covers Basildon, Broomfield in Chelmsford and Southend, West Hertfordshire and East and North Hertfordshire trusts run Watford General and Lister in Stevenage, and Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust runs the Luton and Dunstable and Bedford Hospital.
Serious trauma from Hertfordshire, Suffolk and Bedfordshire travels to Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge or into London, with around twelve trauma units feeding the East of England Trauma Network. Mental health and community care are split across a string of trusts, from Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust to Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust and East London NHS Foundation Trust, which holds Bedfordshire’s mental health contract. The region also carries a large prison estate, including the high-security HMP Whitemoor in Cambridgeshire, HMP Norwich and HMP Wayland in Norfolk, and the sizeable HMP Highpoint in Suffolk. On the independent side, Nuffield Health, Spire and Circle hospitals run busy operating theatres from Cambridge and Peterborough to Norwich, Ipswich, Chelmsford and Bedford.
Where we work
Where we cover in the East of England
From the Cambridge teaching hospitals and the Norfolk coast to the Essex estuary and the Bedfordshire towns, we place nurses and carers across every setting.
Hospitals and theatres
We support wards, day units and operating theatres across the region’s acute trusts and its independent hospitals, from Addenbrooke’s and Royal Papworth in Cambridge to the Norfolk and Norwich, Ipswich, Colchester, Basildon and the Luton and Dunstable.
Care homes and community
Nursing and residential homes across all six counties rely on regular agency cover, and we place carers and nurses for community and district rounds too, from rural Norfolk and Suffolk to the towns of Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.
Mental health and secure care
We cover mental health inpatient units and secure and forensic settings across the region, from Hellesdon in Norwich and Fulbourn near Cambridge to Kingsley Green in Hertfordshire, as well as nurse-led healthcare inside prisons such as HMP Whitemoor, HMP Highpoint and HMP Bedford.
That includes Cambridge, Peterborough, Norwich, Ipswich, Chelmsford, Colchester, Southend-on-Sea, Watford, Stevenage, Luton and Bedford, spread across the six counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire.
Bordering areas we also cover include the East Midlands, the South East and London.
On the map
Nursing shifts across the East of England
We cover all six counties, from Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge and the Norfolk coast to the Essex estuary and the towns of Bedfordshire.
Specialisms in the East of England
Specialisms we cover in the East of England
Whatever your ward or setting, there is regular work here, from Addenbrooke’s trauma floor to the region’s mental health and secure units.
- Nursing & care homes
- Mental health
- Prison nursing
- Critical care
- Theatres
Nursing & care homes
The region’s care sector is large and under real pressure. Skills for Care put the Eastern region at around 1,900 organisations across roughly 4,300 care-providing locations in 2022/23, with about 192,000 posts, some 174,000 of them filled. That leaves nursing and residential homes across Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire needing steady, reliable agency cover, and it is some of the most consistent work we offer.
Mental health
Mental health work spans a string of trusts here. Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust covers both counties from Hellesdon in Norwich to the Woodlands Unit in Ipswich, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust runs Fulbourn and the Cavell Centre, Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust covers Essex, Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust runs Kingsley Green near Radlett, and East London NHS Foundation Trust holds Bedfordshire’s contract. We place mental health nurses and support workers into inpatient wards, community teams and secure units.
Prison nursing
The East of England holds one of the larger prison estates in the country. Cambridgeshire has the high-security Category A HMP Whitemoor near March, along with HMP Littlehey and HMP Peterborough, Norfolk has HMP Norwich, HMP Wayland and HMP Bure, and Suffolk holds the large HMP Highpoint at Stradishall as well as Warren Hill and Hollesley Bay. Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire add HMP Chelmsford, HMP The Mount and HMP Bedford. Prison healthcare is nurse-led and always short of hands, and it is some of the most rewarding work going for nurses who want something different from a ward.
Critical care
Critical care in the region centres on the Major Trauma Centre at Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge, the only hospital in the East of England providing the full range of trauma services and the first operational MTC in the UK, backed by intensive care and cardiothoracic work at Royal Papworth, the Essex Cardiothoracic Centre at Basildon, and intensive care units at the Norfolk and Norwich, Ipswich, Lister and the Luton and Dunstable, home to one of only three tertiary neonatal units in the network. We place experienced ITU and HDU nurses where the pressure is highest.
Theatres
Theatre work runs across both sectors. The region’s NHS trusts operate scores of theatres between them, from the new Planned Surgery Centre at the Luton and Dunstable to Ipswich, Colchester and the Cambridge sites, and the independent hospitals, Nuffield Health and Spire in Cambridge, the Fitzwilliam in Peterborough, Spire Norwich, Nuffield Ipswich and Ramsay Springfield in Chelmsford, all run full surgical lists. We place scrub, anaesthetic and recovery nurses across elective and emergency work.
Care & support work in the East of England
Care and support work in the East of England
Most care across the East of England is delivered by care assistants and support workers rather than registered nurses. Skills for Care counts around 192,000 adult social care posts across roughly 4,300 care-providing locations in the Eastern region, spread over Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire, and the work runs from elderly care homes and supported living to specialist neuro-rehabilitation. Whatever your background, there is regular work near you.
- Care assistant
- Support worker
- Dementia care
- Brain injury
Care assistant
North Norfolk has the oldest population of any local authority in England and Wales — more than one in three residents is aged 65 or over, at 33.4% in the 2021 census, against an England average of 18.4%. Demand for older people’s care is heaviest along this stretch of the Norfolk coast, where the share of residents over 65 has risen steadily for decades. Care assistants are the backbone of the county’s care homes, supporting residents with everyday living, personal care and companionship.
Support worker
Essex County Council runs one of the largest adult social care operations in the East of England, and like most upper-tier councils it is steadily shifting support towards tenancy-based supported living. A 2025 housing-needs assessment for the county points to rising demand for accommodation-based support, which means dependable work for support workers who help the people they support live as independently as possible — in their own homes and out in the community, rather than in a care-home setting.
Dementia care
In Norfolk and Waveney alone — home to some of the oldest populations in the region — around 10,800 people were on GP dementia registers by 2019/20, and local health planners expect that figure to reach roughly 21,400 by 2030 as the older population grows. Dementia care is some of the most valued work in the sector, supporting residents to live well day to day.
Brain injury
Suffolk is home to some of the region’s most specialist neuro-rehabilitation. Shaftesbury Icanho in Stowmarket runs a rehabilitation service for adults across the county recovering from brain injury and stroke, covering Ipswich and East Suffolk, West Suffolk and Waveney. Rehabilitation support workers here help the people they support rebuild skills and independence after a brain injury, work closely related to the complex-care roles that involve tracheostomy and other clinical support.
Not sure which fits? See all care & support roles →
The Novello app
Your work life, in one app
Find the East of England shifts, see your confirmed pay and keep your compliance in one place. No more chasing paperwork. Everything you need, on iOS and Android.
For the East of England employers
Need nurses in the East of England?
We help services across all six counties fill shifts fast, with staff who are checked and ready.
Whether you run a nursing home in Norfolk, a ward in Cambridge or Chelmsford, a mental health unit in Hertfordshire or a theatre list in Luton, we can supply compliant nurses and carers at short notice. Tell us what you need and we will match reliable local staff who know the setting.
Reviews
Don't just take our word for it.
Novello are highly professional, making the onboarding process easier. What I like most is the fact I can book shifts on the app at my own convenience!
Sarah Theatre
Very competent staff and a welcoming, supportive team. What I like most is the variety of shifts in the Novello app!
Khadra RGN
Everything is really simple. The whole process of joining, and then finding and booking shifts. It's so simple!
Dan SFA
Frameworks & accreditations
Good to know
East of England nursing agency FAQs
What kind of nursing shifts can I pick up in the East of England?
Plenty. We cover acute wards and theatres across trusts like Cambridge University Hospitals, Norfolk and Norwich, East Suffolk and North Essex and Bedfordshire Hospitals, along with care homes, community rounds, mental health units and prison healthcare, across all six counties.
Which areas of the East of England do you cover?
All six counties: Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, from Cambridge, Peterborough and Norwich to Ipswich, Chelmsford, Colchester, Watford, Stevenage, Luton and Bedford.
How does pay work?
Every shift shows its confirmed rate in the app before you accept, so you always know exactly what you will earn before you say yes. You are paid promptly, with no chasing timesheets or waiting weeks.
Do you place mental health and prison nurses?
Yes. The region has several mental health trusts and a large prison estate including HMP Whitemoor, HMP Highpoint and HMP Bedford, and we place nurses and support workers into secure, forensic and inpatient settings as well as general wards.
I am an employer in the East of England. Can you help us with staffing?
Yes. We supply checked, compliant nurses and carers to hospitals, care homes, mental health units and secure settings across all six counties, often at short notice. Get in touch and we will help you fill your rota.
Ready to work on your terms in the East of England?
Join Novello and start booking NHS and care shifts from Cambridge and Norwich to Ipswich, Chelmsford and Luton today, with confirmed pay up front and real support behind you. Download the app or get in touch to get started.
Call 0333 307 8897 · hello@novellohealthcare.com
