Job Summary
The Technical Head of Microbiology is a one year secondment role established to maintain service delivery and quality standards.

Main Duties of the Job
The postholder will be responsible for the effective leadership, management, and delivery of Microbiology, ensuring a high-quality, safe, and efficient diagnostic service in line with ISO standards and organisational objectives.
The successful candidate will ensure the highest scientific and technical standards are maintained, actively contributing to improvement of laboratory practice and service delivery. A key aspect will be ensuring maintenance of UKAS accreditation and ensuring the department's participation in all relevant EQA Schemes. The postholder will ensure the department maintains full engagement with Clinical Governance processes, including audit, risk management, and quality improvement activities.
The role oversees the quality management system in place, works closely with the Consultant Clinical Lead and other stakeholders to ensure procedures remain current, effective, and compliant. There is responsibility for ensuring authorised laboratory results are accurately released, with appropriate verification of data entry and, where necessary, consultation with clinical colleagues.
The postholder will support staff development, mandatory and role-specific training compliance and promoting a culture of continual professional development (CPD).

About Us
We hold a unique position in the Stockport community as the provider of healthcare and we are one of its largest employers.
We believe that the best organisations are those that reflect the communities they serve. We are therefore seeking to improve the diversity of our workforce to make it truly representative of our local population.
We actively encourage applications irrespective of race, age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage & civil partnership, or pregnancy or maternity. Recognising those communities that are underrepresented within our workforce, we would particularly welcome applications from you.
If you require support with your application please contact a member of the recruitment team, who can discuss alternative application methods.
We recognise that flexible working is important. We take requests for flexible working seriously, consider any request we receive and try to work with you, so we can explore if your request may fit with the needs of the service.
Benefits we offer to you:

• Between 27-33 days of annual leave plus bank holidays
• NHS pension scheme membership
• Salary sacrifice schemes for lease cars, home electronics and more, to make your salary go further
• NHS Staff discounts
• Cycle to work scheme
• Salary finance - for loans, savings, budget planning and tips on managing debt
• Stockport Credit Union- for local financial advice

Job Responsibilities

• Responsibility for the delivery of the Microbiology service within SNHSFT
• To ensure the highest scientific standards are maintained and to contribute to the improvement of technical and scientific standards within the department.
• To ensure the department meets the national standards required by UKAS - retaining accreditation status.
• To undertake Continual Professional Development (CPD) and to encourage the staff to do likewise.
• To co-ordinate the setting-up, monitoring and maintenance of quality control procedures
• To be responsible for the departments full compliance with National Assurance Schemes
• To co-ordinate the formulation of operational policies and to assess the need for additional resources and new developments
• To maintain set targets for staff mandatory and role specific training
• To co-ordinate the department standard protocols in conjunction with Consultant Clinical Lead and other relevant parties
• To be responsible for the departments full participation in Clinical Governance e.g. Audit, Risk Management, Quality etc
• To supervise investigations of varying complexity, this includes both routine and specialist work.

Person Specification
Education and Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or equivalent - degree acceptable to HCPC.
• HCPC registration in a relevant discipline
• MSc/Higher Specialist Certificate or training/experience to Masters level equivalent
• Management qualification or relevant experience

Knowledge

• Laboratory UKAS standards
• Staff management
• Budgetary management
• Knowledge of current methodology and developments in Microbiology
• Governance and risk management

Experience

• Senior operational / service management experience in an NHS environment
• Experience of significant people management including multi-professional staff
• Business planning and change management
• NHS Policy Implementation

Skills and Abilities

• Effective written communication skills including analysis and presentation of reports.
• Able to build and maintain working relationships with others
• Ability to critically analyse complex data and identify key trends
• Ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines.

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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants.
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.