Biomedical Scientist (Biochemistry)

NHS Trust; Burton upon Trent; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust invites applications for a Main area Biochemistry Grade Band 5, based at Queens Hospital Burton with cross-site working. You will join the Biochemistry Department to deliver technical excellence, support the Associate Practitioners and BMS, and operate in a modern lab with automated systems.

The role requires night, late, early, weekend and bank holiday shifts as part of a 24/7 roster.

Qualifications

• Experience in NHS Biochemistry laboratory settings is desirable.
• Ability to work flexibly on a 24/7 shift pattern across sites.
• Proactive and collaborative approach to quality and service development.

Responsibilities

• Carry out day-to-day sample processing and analyser maintenance.
• Shadow authorisation of clinical results to support KPI targets.
• Support 24/7 shift pattern including nights, weekends and bank holidays.

Skills

Shift flexibility

Teamwork

Attention to detail

Education

IBMS Accredited BSc in Biomedical Sciences

HCPC Registration

CPD participation

Tools

Winpath/Infinity

Job description

Main area Biochemistry Grade Band 5 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (24/7 cover required including cross site working) Job ref 320-CDCS-BUR-4447

Site Queens Hospital Burton Town Burton Upon Trent Salary £32,073 - £39,043 pa Salary period Yearly Closing 10/11/2026 23:59 Interview date 24/11/2026

As a trusted organisation at the heart of our communities, we recognise the important role we can play in supporting the public, patients, our own people and local partners in achieving the best of health for the local population and the communities in which they live by providing Exceptional Care Together.

Our fundamental Values of Compassion, Openness and Excellence underpin how we intend to work as a Trust and the associated behaviours are becoming embedded in all aspects of how we work.

With over 14,000 members of staff you can expect huge variety and new opportunities every day! Our staff go above and beyond and take pride in caring for our patients.

University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust is fully committed to promoting inclusion, equality, diversity and human rights in employment and delivery of its services. The Trust is committed to providing an environment where all employees, patients, carers and visitors experience equality of opportunity by means of understanding and appreciating the value of diversity.

As a Trust we promote an inclusive environment and welcome applications from a diverse pool of talent and backgrounds. All individuals are valued and given every opportunity to succeed based on merit.

The Trust actively encourages applications from members of our Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities. These groups are under-represented in our organisation, and it’s important to us that our workforce reflects the diversity of our communities as much as possible.

Armed Forces and Disability Confident guaranteed interview scheme

To further support the pledges in the Armed Forces Covenant and to make a positive contribution to support ex-armed forces personnel (veterans) make the transition to civilian life, the Trust has introduced a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for veterans who meets the essential criteria set out in the person specification, to help them overcome barriers to find civilian employment. The scheme will operate for all external recruitment.

The Trust is a Disability Confident Employer and committed to both employing and retaining people with disabilities. This commitment is to guarantee an interview for any candidate that has disclosed a disability under the Equality Act 2010 and who meets the essential criteria set out in the person specification. Reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 will be considered upon request.

if you are blind or visually impaired and require application material in an alternative format- such as Braille, large print, audio or accessible electronic formats oryou require support/adjustments with your application please contact the recruitment team on 01332 788466

The Trust is proud to be a signatory of the Care Leavers Covenant and is committed to supporting care-experienced people into employment.

Applicants who identify as a care leaver and who meet the essential criteria for the role, as detailed in the person specification, will be guaranteed an interview.

If you wish to be considered under this scheme, please indicate this within your application.

Join us and help make a real difference to our Trust.

Here’s more about the role and what we’re looking for;

Job overview

Based at the Queens Hospital Burton but cross site working may be required

We are inviting internal candidates with pathology experience to join our friendly and hardworking team in the Biochemistry Department at Queens Burton Hospital.

Based in the Biochemistry section of the laboratory, you will help to deliver technical excellence; attention to detail and a professional attitude in this busy department are crucial. You will be working to support the Associate Practitioners and BMS.

Our modern laboratories are equipped with Roche Cobas 8100 automated workflow system and ISE, c702 and e801 units. You will be based at Queen's Hospital Burton but maybe asked to work cross site as part of Derbyshire Pathology

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate will be trained and competency assessed to join the 24/7 shift system; carrying out night, late, early, weekend and bank holiday shifts.

You will not be expected to lone work but will have the support of the BMS.

Key elements of the role involve undertaking day to day sample processing, analyser maintenance and shadowing of authorisation of clinical results in order to maintain agreed KPI’s and the supervision of support staff.

In addition, they will be involved in service development including quality management activities and various projects, so an aptitude with Microsoft Office programs is preferable. Experience of using Q-Pulse/Ideagen and WinPath would be an advantage.

Closing date of applications: 10 November 2026

Interview date: 24 November 2026

We expect a high volume of applicants so the vacancy may close sooner that the closing date.

Working for our organisation

As a trusted organisation at the heart of our communities, we recognise the important role we can play in supporting the public, patients, our own people and local partners in achieving the best of health for the local population and the communities in which they live by providing Exceptional Care Together

Our fundamental Values of Compassion, Openness and Excellence underpin how we intend to work as a Trust and the associated behaviours are becoming embedded in all aspects of how we work.

In return we will offer:

• Development opportunities, both professional and leadership development
• On-going support from recruitment to when you join our team and beyond.
• Staff benefits including employee assistance programme, discounted gym membership, onsite fitness classes, car schemes

Key Facts:

• We see on average 4810 OP appointments a day.
• We are the 4th busiest Trauma & Orthopaedic outpatients department in England – an average of 2077 per week.
• An average of 1115 patients are seen in A&Es across our network every day – 3rd largest in the country.
• Our hospitals admit an average of 195 emergency patients daily.
• Last year we undertook almost 33,700 planned surgical operations in our 57 operating theatres.
• We are one of only 7 Trusts nationally with more than 50 operating theatres.
• We carry out more than 140 elective procedures each working day.
• UHDB is a research active University Hospital with a large and varied portfolio of clinical trials and research opportunities for all staff.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Important visa information: Due to UK Home Office immigration rule changes effective from 22 July 2025, applicants sponsored under Occupation Code 6131 (Nursing Auxiliaries and Assistants) may not be eligible to bring dependants under the Skilled Worker route if their Certificate of Sponsorship is issued on or after this date. Applicants are responsible for understanding how these rules apply to their individual circumstances. The Trust cannot provide immigration advice. Further information is available on the Skilled Worker visa: Your partner and children - GOV.UK

Your application (for shortlisting purposes) is assessed based on the Person Specification in the job advert (below).

Skilled worker: Health and Care Visa

Read about the Health and Care Visa for employing overseas nationals (excluding Irish citizens) under the points-based immigration system.

Person specification

Qualifcations

• IBMS Accredited BSc in Biomedical Sciences
• HCPC Registration
• Evidence of participating in CPD

Registration

• Significant recent experience working in an NHS Automated Blood Sciences Laboratory
• Understanding of Biochemistry tests and their significance
• Recent experience working in Biochemistry

Skills

• Ability to work flexibly on 24/7 shift rota
• Experience using Winpath/ or Infinity
• Experience with fully automated equipment

Other

• A basic understanding of Immunological assays and their clinical significance

Our Trust aims to provide the highest quality care to patients within Derbyshire and South East Staffordshire and we want the very best people to work with us.

Follow us on Twitter @UHDBTrust or find us on Facebook & LinkedIn - UHDBTrust

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

At UHDB , we offer different ways to work flexibly to each and every one of our colleagues, many of whom already work flexibly at all sites of the Trust.

For our roles we are open to discussing the possibility of part-time/ reduced hours/ compressed hours/ flexible start and finish times/ fixed/flexible shifts/annualised hours/ term time hours/ hybrid working – working partly in the trust/partly at home.

Why don’t you talk to us at interview about the flexibility you would like to explore and what it means to you, and we will discuss what’s possible for the job and team, and the opportunities we might be able to create together.

We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want, but we do promise to work with you to look at all the available options.

Most of our posts are subject to a DBS check, however having a criminal record will not necessarily bar you from obtaining a position. Please be aware that all new employees starting work with us will be charged for the cost of their DBS check, if it is required for the role.

All correspondence relating to your application will be sent to you via our trac.system account. Please ensure that you regularly check your emails; this includes junk/spam, as your security settings may not recognise the sender.

Anyone from outside of the UK (excluding from the Republic of Ireland) will need permission from UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) to work in the UK and may also need entry clearance before travelling here.

UKVI is responsible for managing migration. To obtain a visa or entry clearance, you will need to meet certain requirements and demonstrate you have the right the work in the UK via:

• the points-based immigration system
• the EU settlement scheme
• eVisa

During the course of its employment activities, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust collects, stores and processes personal information about prospective, current and former staff.

Our Privacy Notice includes applicants, employees (and former employees), workers (including agency, casual, honorary and contracted staff), volunteers, trainees and those carrying out work experience – please refer to our Privacy Notice available on our Trust website: https://www.uhdb.nhs.uk/information-governance

UHDB is committed to fair and transparent recruitment. We welcome authentic applications that reflect your own skills, experience and motivations for the role. While we understand that candidates may use AI tools for grammar, formatting or accessibility purposes, applications that appear to be substantially AI‑generated may be subject to additional review. If this applies to your submission, we will let you know and may ask for clarification. Please ensure your application accurately represents your experience and is written in your own words.

We’d love to hear from you! If you have any questions about the role, team, or working environment, feel free to get in touch for an informal chat. Speaking with us before applying is completely optional, but it can help you decide if this opportunity is the right fit for you.