Advanced Clinical Podiatrist and Musculoskeletal Lead

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust; London; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust is seeking a senior podiatrist to fill the role of Advanced Clinical Podiatrist and Musculoskeletal Lead. This full-time position includes managing the MSK service, leading staff, and providing expert care. The ideal candidate will possess strong leadership skills and a passion for podiatry, contributing to high-quality patient care across the community.

Benefits

Flexible working options

Ongoing professional development

Supportive team environment

Qualifications

• Significant NHS experience at band 6 level or above.
• Experience in advanced biomechanical assessments and injection therapy.
• Demonstrable ability to lead and mentor clinical staff.

Responsibilities

• Manage biomechanics and MSK services within Lewisham Foot Health.
• Lead and supervise Band 5 and 6 podiatry staff.
• Conduct advanced assessments and treatments for complex lower limb conditions.

Skills

Leadership

Clinical reasoning

Communication

Problem-solving

Education

BsC (Hons) Degree in Podiatry

Masters level in MSK/biomechanics

Prescription only Medicines Certificate

IRMER Certificate

Local Anaesthetic Certificate

Job description

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, (LGT), is a community-focused provider of local and acute care, delivering high-quality services to over one million people living across the London boroughs of Lewisham, Greenwich, and Bexley. We provide whole-life care and are here to support our communities to live healthier lives as well as taking care of them when they need us the most.

Employing almost 7,500 colleagues, affectionately known as Team LGT, we provide services at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, University Hospital Lewisham, and at over a dozen community settings in Lewisham. We also provide some services at Queen Mary's Hospital in Sidcup.

We have recently launched our new vision and values to mark the LGT10 - the tenth anniversary of our Trust forming in 2013. Our trust vision is to be exceptional. In the quality of our patient care; our support for colleagues; and in the difference we make through our partnerships and in our communities.

To achieve this we value Respect, Compassion, and Inclusion; Being accountable over staying comfortable; Listening over always knowing best; and Succeeding together over achieving alone. You can read more about our visions and values here

Our hospitals and community sites provide a wide range of inpatient and outpatient services, as well as emergency and planned care. The Trust is rated as "good" or "outstanding" in over three-quarters of the services inspected by the Care Quality Commission.

Every year our work includes performing 10,000 procedures in our theatres; bringing seven and a half thousand new lives into the world; carrying out 570,000 visits to patients in their homes or communities and providing emergency care for more than 300,000 patients arriving in our busy Urgent and Emergency Departments.

LGT is a centre for the education and training of medical students enrolled with King's College London's GKT School of Medical Education. We are a training centre for nurses, midwives and allied health professionals. We are pioneering new roles that will support the changing needs of our patients and are one of the largest employers of physician associates in the country.

We are committed to working with our partners to deliver the best outcomes for our local communities. This means playing an active role in the South East London Integrated Care System (ICS), and in formal partnerships including the South East London Acute Provider Collaborative, provider partnerships with our local mental health trusts and borough-based boards of the ICS in Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham.

Job overview

Advert Band 7 Advanced Clinical Podiatrist and Musculoskeletal Lead

Full Time, flexible working considered

An opportunity has arisen for a senior experienced podiatrist with proven leadership skills, to join our team at Lewisham and Greenwich Trust. We are looking to recruit an Advanced Clinical Podiatrist and Musculoskeletal Lead to be responsible for the management and organisation of the biomechanics / Musculoskeletal (MSK) services In Lewisham Foot Health services.

The successful candidate will be responsible for leading and managing the biomechanics, musculoskeletal (MSK) and physical therapies service within Lewisham Foot Health. You will assess, diagnose and treat complex lower limb MSK conditions, providing advanced biomechanical care and specialist advice to the wider Community Podiatry Team, including input into acute and preventative wound care.

Main duties of the job

You will also act as team leader and line manager for Band 5 and 6 staff, offering support, supervision and professional guidance. In addition, you will drive service improvements in line with best practice and clinical governance and ensure resources, including the £10,000 insole budget, are managed efficiently and effectively.

The Podiatry team at LGT is friendly, supportive and motivated to deliver expert patient care across a broad range of specialties. We welcome applications from Podiatrists who are passionate about their profession, and able to communicate effectively across professional boundaries and in different care settings. Excellent leadership skills, drive and an innovative approach will be key attributes for the successful candidate.

Interview date will be 18th July 2025

Working for our organisation

Our people are our greatest asset. When we feel supported and happy at work, this positivity reaches those very people we are here for, the patients. Engaged employees perform at their best and our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) initiatives contribute to cultivate a culture of engagement. We have four staff networks, a corporate EDI Team and a suite of programmes and events which aim to insert the 5 aspirations:

1. Improving representation at senior levels of staff with disabilities, from black, Asian, and ethnic minorities background, identify as LGBTQ+ and women, through improved recruitment and leadership development
2. Widening access (anchor institution) and employability
3. Improving the experience of staff with disability
4. Improving the EDI literacy and confidence of trust staff through training and development
5. Making equalities mainstream

We place a strong emphasis on the development of staff and their teams with good access to internal and external support for ongoing development.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical

• Act as the biomechanical/MSK clinical foot specialist within the community Foot Health Service.
• Support clinical triage and prioritisation of all new referrals to the musculoskeletal service.
• Independently carry out advanced assessments and interventions for adult and paediatric patients with complex lower limb MSK conditions.
• Apply highly specialist podiatric skills and communicate effectively with patients, carers, and colleagues.
• Manage complex cases using advanced clinical reasoning, critical thinking and reflection to guide assessment, diagnosis, treatment planning and referrals.
• Recommend evidence-based interventions for routine to highly complex conditions, including onward referral to consultants or other allied health professionals when appropriate.
• Use advanced clinical practice to deliver treatments such as orthotic prescription, rehabilitation planning, injection therapy, and refer for imaging or surgical opinion as needed.
• Make informed decisions about when to involve other specialist services within or outside the department (e.g. physiotherapy, surgery).
• Request and interpret diagnostic tests to support accurate diagnosis and prognosis for a wide range of conditions, including complex and multifactorial cases.
• Prescribe, supply, and review orthotics (custom or off-the-shelf), ensuring cost-effectiveness and quality.
• Oversee and support staff in orthotic prescription and maintain up-to-date protocols and guidelines.
• Act as lead clinician for the provision and safe use of physical therapy services, including laser and ultrasound therapy.
• Serve as the service's laser safety officer, ensuring staff competency, risk assessment awareness, and patient-centred care.
• Keep the team informed of new developments in physical therapies, introduce new modalities, and review guidelines regularly.
• Administer drugs and medicines in line with legal and professional standards, recognising contraindications and patient risk factors.
• Maintain accurate, comprehensive clinical records in line with HCPC and Trust standards.

Leadership and Management

• Provide clinical leadership across the MSK/biomechanics pathway, promoting best practice and clinical excellence.
• Act as clinical lead for specific projects and service improvement initiatives.
• Contribute to audits, service evaluations, and quality improvement activities.
• Offer specialist clinical expertise in musculoskeletal assessment.
• Develop and maintain care pathways for MSK treatments and advanced therapies.
• Propose, develop, and implement service policies, protocols, and guidelines to ensure up-to-date, evidence-based, and safe practice.
• Ensure compliance with National, Trust and professional guidelines in podiatric practice.
• Identify training needs and participate in relevant training.
• Ensure all equipment and instruments are maintained in good working order.

Education and Development

• Act as a mentor and clinical educator for junior staff, students and other professionals.
• Work with the extended scope podiatrist to develop the team's MSK assessment skills and maintain high standards of practice.
• Provide expert knowledge and advice on physical therapies to the foot health team and other professionals within and outside the Trust.
• Maintain own professional development and portfolio in line with HCPC and Trust requirements.

Research and Innovation

• Engage in evidence-based practice and adopt new approaches where appropriate.
• Contribute to audits and the implementation of best practice guidelines.
• Support the development of clinical pathways in collaboration with the multidisciplinary team and commissioners.

Person specification

Qualifications & Training

Essential criteria

• BsC (Hons) Degree in Podiatry
• Registration with HCPC
• Masters level or equivalent in MSK/biomechanics e.g. advanced diagnostic techniques such as ultrasound, injection therapy, theory of podiatric surgery
• Prescription only Medicines Certificate
• IRMER Certificate
• Local Anaesthetic Certificate
• Relevant evidence of CPD

Desirable criteria

• Non-medical prescribing
• Teaching or mentorship qualification

Experience

Essential criteria

• Significant NHS experience working at band 6 level or above
• Demonstrable experience of undertaking biomechanic assessments or working in a podiatric surgery setting
• Teaching/supervision/training of professional staff
• Interpreting medical investigations such as pathology tests and X-Rays.
• Experience in advanced biomechanical assessments, casting techniques & manufacture of orthoses
• Experience of injection therapy
• Previous experience of service development and or project work

Desirable criteria

• Membership of related special interest group

Knowledge & Skills

Essential criteria

• In-depth knowledge of MSK/biomechanical assessment and treatment strategies.
• Familiarity with national guidelines (e.g. NICE, RCOP, HEE frameworks).
• Excellent clinical reasoning, diagnostic, and problem-solving skills.
• Confident in delivering patient education, rehab advice, and long-term condition management.
• Skilled in use of gait analysis, orthotic design/fabrication, and rehabilitation tools
• Up to date with effective Podiatric surgery practice and research &/or related fields of Orthopaedic practice.
• Up to date with effective rheumatology practice and research or related fields of practice.
• Thorough understanding of clinical governance and its implications for service provision.
• Sound knowledge of quality and audit and how to implement change.
• Understanding of scope of practice issues and legal accountability & responsibilities.

We reserve the right to close the post before the stated closing date, please apply early. We do not contact applicants with the outcome of the shortlisting. If you have been shortlisted, you will receive an invite to an assessment day or interview.

As a local employer and anchor institution we work closely with our community to recruit locally and we welcome applications from the widest variety of people to ensure our workforce are reflective of the local communities which we serve. We encourage all suitable candidates to apply including if you are Black, Asian or other ethnic minorities, live with a disability (visible or not) or are LGBT+. We have a number of active staff networks including Disability, LGBT+, Multicultural Inclusion and Women's staff networks to bring staff together and celebrate diversity across our whole workforce.

Please note, not all roles will meet the criteria for a skilled worker visa.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Documents to download

• Job Description & Person Spec (PDF, 356.8KB)
• Working at LGT (PDF, 4.2MB)