Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust
Associate Practitioner
The closing date is 24 November 2026

Job summary
The Northern Care Alliance Microbiology service is currently delivered from two main laboratories situated at Salford Royal and Royal Oldham hospital sites; the laboratory at Salford Royal also provides Microbiology services for The Christie under a Service Level Agreement and Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust as part of a joint venture (Pathology at Wigan and Salford - PAWS). The formation of the Northern Care Alliance has led to us transforming service delivery for our patients and Microbiology is actively working towards planning a single service model.

As an integral part of the scientific team, you will receive and prepare samples for analysis, enter relevant data on the laboratory computer system, carry out technical investigations, be responsible for running analysers, running Quality Control and troubleshooting, all following established protocols and procedures. This work covers a wide range of sample types and investigations and is essential in the process of diagnosing infections in our patients.

As part of this transformation exciting opportunities have arisen to appoint motivated and dynamic individuals to work as Associate Practitioners; there are vacancies on both our sites and we are looking for enthusiastic, friendly, and well-motivated individuals with excellent interpersonal skills to apply for these posts; interested individuals are encouraged to contact both site teams for an informal discussion.

Main duties of the job
If you can show that you are able to work accurately and communicate well, have excellent time management skills, basic IT skills and have a strong commitment to the provision of high-quality services to support the diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of infectious diseases and to continuously improve the services we provide to patient care, we really want to hear from you.

You must have a minimum of a Foundation Degree (or equivalent) in a science related subject and preferably have experience of basic Microbiology skills such as the preparation of samples for culture and processing of samples using automated instruments (although all in-house training will be provided).

There are slight variations in the operating hours across the sites, due to current service arrangements, therefore some flexibility in approach to working patterns is important. An extended day service is operational on both sites, with services delivered 7 days a week; however, as the Trust and the NHS move towards providing 24/7 services to support healthcare delivery, there is an expectation that there will be a future requirement to provide round the clock services in Microbiology.

About us
The Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust (NCA) provides hospital and integrated health and social care services to over one million people living across Greater Manchester. Our 20,000 colleagues care for people in hospital and in the community, working across Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, and Salford, to save and improve lives.As a large NHS trust we are committed to enhancing the health of our local population by delivering consistently high standards of care and collaborating closely with local authorities and key partners. We believe in our power and potential to make a difference and we are always looking for people who demonstrate our three core values - care, appreciate and inspire - to join our team.In return, we can offer you a job role with purpose and flexibility. The size and scale of the NCA means we can provide more challenge and opportunities so your career can always be moving in the right direction. By joining us you can also access a competitive benefits package, including, a fantastic annual leave allowance, flexible working opportunities and protected hours for health and wellbeing activities, helping you to achieve more personal downtime and a better work-life balance.

Details
Date posted: 11 November 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 4
Salary: £28,392 to £31,157 a year
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 236-CSS-PS85-26
Job locations: Salford Royal Hospital, Stott Lane, Salford, Greater Manchester, M6 8HD, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities
To read more information about the advertised role, and the main job duties/responsibilities please open the Job Description and Person Specification located under the supporting documents heading. You can also read more information about working at the Northern Care Alliance within the attached Candidate Information Pack or by visiting our careers website: www.careers.northerncarealliance.nhs.uk We reserve the right to close the online vacancy when we are in receipt of sufficient applications. Should you wish to apply for this post you are advised to complete and return your application form as soon as possible.

Person Specification
Qualifications & Training
Essential

• Foundation degree in science based subject or IBMS Certificate of Achievement Part II

Knowledge, Skills & Experience
Essential

• Experience of working within a team.
• Requires knowledge of specimen types and understanding of information on request forms.
• Evidence of ability to work accurately and to deadlines.
• Theoretical knowledge to enable processing of patient samples under basic analytical processes.
• Evidence of ability to work with clinical specimens.
• Knowledge of medical terminology.
• Good communication skills.
• Basic IT skills.
• Ability to work late nights and weekend/public holiday rotas.

Desirable

• Good organisational skills.
• Commitment to undertaking continuous professional development (CPD)

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.

Employer details
Employer name: Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Salford Royal Hospital, Stott Lane, Salford, Greater Manchester, M6 8HD, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.northerncarealliance.nhs.uk/

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Operational Manager, Sam Fish, samantha.fish@nca.nhs.uk, 01612065031

Supporting documents
Privacy notice
Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)