Band 8a Principal Clinical Scientist (MRI Physics)

NHS; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Birmingham is seeking a Principal Clinical Scientist in MRI Physics. The successful candidate will lead projects and provide technical support for MRI services. Ideal for those with substantial MRI experience and leadership aspirations. Flexible working is supported in a collaborative team environment, promoting ongoing learning and development opportunities.

Qualifications

• HCPC registered Clinical Scientist required for MRI physics.
• Significant post-registration experience in MRI physics is essential.
• Corporate membership of IPEM or relevant professional body is needed.

Responsibilities

• Provide specialist scientific and technical support for clinical MRI services.
• Deliver and assist in Acceptance Testing and routine Quality Assurance programmes.
• Support research and development activities for clinical innovations.

Skills

Advanced theoretical knowledge of MRI

Good interpersonal and communication skills

Scientific programming experience

Good data analysis skills

Education

Honours degree in physical science

Higher degree (MSc) in medical physics

PhD with a focus on MRI methods

Health & Care Professional Council registration

Tools

Python

C++

MATLAB

Job description

Go back University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust

Band 8a Principal Clinical Scientist (MRI Physics)

The closing date is 18 November 2025

We are seeking to recruit a HCPC registered Clinical Scientist with significant post‑registration experience in MRI physics to join our team at University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB), where you will take a lead role in a specialist area of practice and drive our service forward as part of a dynamic and supportive team of 7 other MRI physicists.

Our team is part of RRPPS, providing physics services within UHB and to a range of external providers across the region. We provide MRI physics support for clinical and research activity on 18 in‑house scanners across four UHB hospital sites, the Institute of Translation Medicine and Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust including a dedicated paediatric intra‑operative scanner and a radiotherapy planning scanner, and support over 45 scanners in total across all providers.

This role is ideal for someone looking to develop their leadership skills, and engagement is encouraged with all appropriate regional and national networks. Opportunities for ongoing learning are continuously supported, and we are supportive of flexible working arrangements within the team.

We invite anyone interested in this role to contact Robert Flintham (Deputy Lead MRI Physicist; [e-mail]) or Dr Nigel Davies (Lead MRI Physicist; [e-mail]) for an informal discussion prior to applying.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be a Clinical Scientist with extensive knowledge and clinical experience in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) who will:

• Work as part of the RRPPS MRI Physics team to provide specialist scientific and technical support for clinical MRI services at UHB NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and multiple other NHS Trusts and MRI service providers in the West Midlands region and beyond.
• Provide MR Safety Expert (MRSE) support including advice in response to specific MR safety queries, advice in the design of new MRI facilities, MR safety surveys, review and development of MR safety framework documentation and MR safety training appropriate for different staff groups.
• Deliver and assist in the development of Acceptance Testing (AT) and routine Quality Assurance (QA) programmes suitable for clinical MRI equipment and services.
• Take a lead role in scientific support for one or more MRI specialisms or advanced applications, as agreed with the Lead MR Physicist.
• Actively support research and development (R&D) activities aimed at clinical translation of innovations for improving the efficacy, quality and/or efficiency of clinical MRI services.
• Participate in the training of future Clinical Scientists and Clinical Technologists in MRI, provide bespoke training for radiographers and radiologists, and lecture on internal and external courses where appropriate.

About us

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust strives to have an inclusive culture where everyone feels like they belong, can thrive, knows that they add value and feels valued. We do this by developing compassionate and culturally competent leaders, being values driven in all that we do and by creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace that thrives on the diversity of our people. As such we want to attract and recruit talented individuals from all backgrounds, and for each of you to feel supported for the diversity you bring, to achieve your full potential. For those staff with a disability, including physical disability, long‑term health condition, mental health or neuro‑diverse condition, this also means being committed to making reasonable adjustments needed for you to carry out your role.

Job responsibilities

Please note: For a detailed job description for this vacancy, please see attached Job Description.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Health & Care Professional Council registration as a Clinical Scientist
• Honours (first or second class) degree in physical science or equivalent
• Higher degree (MSc or equivalent) in medical physics or related field
• PhD with a focus on MRI methods & applications
• Corporate membership of IPEM or other relevant professional body
• IPEM MRSE Certificate of Competence (or likely to achieve this within ~2yrs)

Experience

• Advanced theoretical and technical knowledge in MRI and spectroscopy
• Specialist knowledge of MR safety and extensive experience in the clinical environment
• High level of understanding of the hazards and risks arising from the use of MRI in the clinical environment and how to mitigate them, sufficient to act as MRSE
• Extensive knowledge and experience of techniques and equipment employed to measure the performance of MRI equipment
• Extensive knowledge and experience of clinical applications of MRI
• Specialist knowledge and experience in one or more advanced MRI techniques
• Understanding of the needs for ethics protocols and patient confidentiality, research and clinical governance
• Understanding of relevant national standards, guidelines and legislations relevant to MRI including MHRA, NRPB, IEC, ICNIRP, CEMFAW, Caldicott, GDPR, COSHH and Health & Safety at Work Act
• Experience of working with a Quality Management System
• Experience of supervision, training and/or management of scientists / trainees
• Record of disseminating scientific work through peer‑reviewed publications and conference presentations
• Specialist knowledge and experience in other non‑Ionising radiations (NIR) including ultrasound, coherent light sources (e.g. Lasers) and incoherent optical radiations (e.g. ultraviolet, blue light etc) as applicable to healthcare

Additional Criteria

• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Good scientific writing and presentation skills for a wide range of audiences
• Able to operate a range of different clinical MRI systems
• Good data analysis skills
• Scientific programming experience in languages such as Python, C++, MATLAB
• Experience of MRI Pulse sequence programming and/or image reconstruction
• Knowledge of DICOM standards, anonymization, storage and management of complex and large MRI datasets
• Full driving licence

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.

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust