Job summary
Are you a highly skilled and motivated physiotherapist ready to take the next step in your leadership journey?

We are seeking an experienced, dynamic, and forward-thinking Physiotherapy Service Lead to provide strategic and operational leadership for our highly skilled physiotherapy team at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. This is a fantastic opportunity for a motivated leader with strong clinical expertise, proven management skills, and a passion for innovation to help shape the future of our physiotherapy services.

As Physiotherapy Service Lead, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring the delivery of high-quality, patient-centred care. Working within the Professional Support Services Directorate, you will collaborate closely with the Chief Allied Health Professional, Rehabilitation Lead and Physiotherapy Operational Lead, and multidisciplinary teams, influencing decision-making and enhancing physiotherapy pathways across the organisation.

The post holder will provide strategic direction as well as clinical and managerial leadership to the Physiotherapy. Ensuring that high standards of treatment and care are achieved in service delivery whist supporting integration within the division/s. This role will support clinical leadership for their area of speciality; this may be Cardiothoracic Surgery/ Critical Care (Critical Care, Cardiothoracic Surgery and Cardiology services) or Respiratory Medicine (Cystic Fibrosis, Lung Defence, Long term Ventilation, Pulmonary Rehabilitation).

Main duties of the job
The post holder will be responsible for the clinical leadership of the physiotherapy service, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, patient-centred care. You will oversee service performance, clinical governance, workforce planning, and business development, aligning the service with the Trust's strategic priorities, alongside the Physiotherapy Operational Lead.

Clinically, you will manage staffing and service performance, ensuring resources are allocated efficiently while ensuring financial oversight of the budget. You will oversee recruitment, retention, and professional development, creating an environment that fosters learning, career progression, and excellence in practice.

You will also play a crucial role in governance and risk management, ensuring the safe and effective delivery of care. This includes investigating incidents and complaints, implementing lessons learned, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement and open communication.

Additionally, you will champion education, research, and professional development, collaborating with team leads to ensure the physiotherapy team remains at the forefront of specialist practice. You will support the integration of evidence-based approaches into service delivery, enhancing patient outcomes and clinical excellence.

They will hold a clinical caseload in the area of their specialism within RPH.

About us
Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is the UK's leading heart and lung hospital, delivering care to more than 50,000 patients a year in its new state-of-the-art hospital in Cambridge. We perform the most heart and/or lung transplants in the UK and carried out the UK's first successful heart transplant in 1979. It also offers emergency heart attack treatment, sleep centre care and is one of just five centres nationally for those in severe respiratory failure.

Based on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus the largest centre of medical research and health science in Europe the Trust is at the heart of treatments of the future. Royal Papworth became the first hospital trust in the country to be rated outstanding in all five areas assessed by the Care Quality Commission - a rating it still holds today. The Trust holds its values of compassion, excellence & collaboration at its core, and all colleagues joining the team are expected to uphold these in their day-to-day roles & interactions. Royal Papworth is proud of its diverse workforce and encourages people to embrace their individuality.

The Trust values difference and welcomes all applications irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy & maternity, race, religion & belief, sex and sexual orientation. Providing they meet the minimum post criteria, applicants with disabilities will be offered an interview.

Details
Closing date: 31 August 2026
Date posted: 03 August 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 8a
Salary: £57,528 to £64,750 a year
Fixed term contract, backfill for Nexus role, 12m
Contract: Fixed term
Duration: 12 months
Working pattern: Full-time, Flexible working
Reference number: 175-2627-PS1939
Job locations: Royal Papworth Hospital, Papworth Road, Cambridge Bio Medical Campus, Cambridge, CB2 0AY, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities
On this page you will find a Role Profile which provides information about the hospital and full details about the role. We recommend that you review this and refer to it as you complete your application. Please include how you will meet the Trust Values Compassion, Excellence and Collaboration. If you would like more information about the role or working at Royal Papworth Hospital, please get in touch with the contact for this role.

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• BSc/ Pre- Reg MSc/ Grad. Dip. in Physiotherapy.
• MSc or equivalent.
• HCPC registration.
• Actively involved with specialist interest group.

Desirable

• Registered for doctoral studies or willingness to do so.
• CSP member.
• Committee role within specialist interest group.

Experience
Essential

• Clinical pillar
• Demonstrable Band 7 or above advanced/ extended scope knowledge, clinical reasoning and treatment in cardiorespiratory care and physiotherapy management.
• Leadership pillar
• Experience of leading and supporting others in complex situations with advanced management, leadership and communication skills.
• Ability to deal with sensitive and contentious issues in a professional manner.
• Experience including dealing with performance, capability and sickness issues.
• Working knowledge and involvement in NHS and AHP priorities and initiatives at regional level.
• Education pillar
• Engagement in post-graduate education, including attending, presenting and organising relevant courses, study days and conferences.
• A Trust and national advocate for specialist area of cardiorespiratory Physiotherapy.
• Research pillar
• Experience leading departmental and/or Trust audit, service improvement and research projects.
• Evidence of dissemination of best practice/ quality improvement, e.g. abstract submission, presentation, published work.
• Utilisation of current evidence base to influence own and others clinical practice.
• Demonstratable experience of developing others with inclusive leadership across the four pillars of Physiotherapy practice.

Desirable

• Clinical pillar
• Working at advanced clinical or extended scope practitioner level.
• Leadership pillar
• Post-graduate level Management / Leadership qualification or module.
• Education pillar
• Involvement in writing national guidelines and other publications.
• Research pillar
• Research experience as lead investigator.

Additional Criteria
Essential

• Please provide evidence of your commitment to uphold the Trust's values: Compassion, Excellence, Collaboration
• Ability to undertake manual handling tasks.
• Ability to work flexibly in an enhanced seven day service including on-call, and late shifts.

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.

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Chief AHP, Pippa Hales, pippa.hales@nhs.net