Deputy Clinical Lead - Audiology

NHS; Newcastle upon Tyne; On-site; GBP 43,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in Newcastle upon Tyne is seeking an experienced Advanced Audiologist / Clinical Scientist to join the Adult Audiology service at Freeman Hospital. The role leads improvements in patient care, governance and service delivery within a busy NHS environment.

You will work closely with the Clinical Lead for Adult Audiology and Head of Service, developing leadership and operational management skills while supporting a high-quality, patient-centred audiology

Qualifications

• Must have high level of clinical expertise in adult audiology.
• Must be registered with AHCS as an Audiologist or with HCPC as a Clinical Scientist.
• Previous NHS experience at Band 6+ level is essential.
• Experience in operational management and staff supervision is advantageous.
• Excellent communication, flexibility and teamwork are required.

Responsibilities

• Provide routine and advanced audiological assessment and rehabilitation.
• Lead operational management of the adult hearing aid service.
• Supervise and line-manage audiologists and audiology assistants.
• Support innovative approaches to patient care and governance processes.
• Based at the Freeman hospital with potential clinics at community locations; flexible working.

Skills

Leadership and team management

Communication skills

Multidisciplinary collaboration

Documentation / report writing

IT skills (Microsoft Office, EPR)

Education

BSc in Audiology or equivalent

Completed relevant professional training (e.g. Audiology Practitioner Training Programme, BAAT part 1 & 2, STP or CAC)

Registered with AHCS or HCPC

MSc in Audiology

STP in audiology or HTS modules

Membership of BSA/BAA

Job description

Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the busiest and largest NHS hospital trusts in the country. We have around 16,000 staff and an annual budget of £1.7 billion.

With strong history of providing high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation regionally, nationally and internationally, w e’re in the top five providers of specialised health services in the country.

As well as providing a wide range of hospital and community services, we support people with a range of rare and complex medical, surgical and neurological conditions, cancers and genetic orders.

We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and recognise the benefit in providing an inclusive environment. We value and respect the diversity of our employees and aim to recruit a workforce which reflects the communities we serve, and is equipped to deliver the best service to our patients. We welcome all applications irrespective of people’s race, disability, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.

Newcastle Hospitals are proud to be one of the exemplar organisations across the NHS on sustainability, with a long history of delivering Sustainable Healthcare in Newcastle and the first healthcare organisation in the world to declare a climate emergency. Our strategy includes commitments to being Net Zero by 2030, for our direct carbon footprint, and Net Zero by 2040 for our footprint plus. Delivering these ambitions will not be possible without the help, support and action of every single member of our team.

Job overview

We have an exciting opportunity for a full-time Band 7 Advanced Audiologist / Clinical Scientist to join us at Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals.

This is an ideal post for an experienced Audiologist / Clinical Scientist to have a key role in improving and leading transformation of our adult hearing aid service. The role w ould suit someone who would like to further develop their management and leadership skills. You will be working closely with the whole team, and reporting to the Clinical Lead for Adult Audiology and Head of Service.

Our Audiology department has recently undergone a restructure with a focus on clinical leadership with strong support from operational management. With a focus on improving patient pathways, introducing innovative approaches to improve patient care and establishing robust governance processes, the team are committed to working towards providing a quality audiology service.

• Interview Date Monday 30 November 2026

Main duties of the job

We are seeking a motivated and forward-thinking Audiologist (with a BSc or PTP) or Clinical Scientist (Audiology) to join our team. You must have a high level of clinical expertise in adult audiology and a passion for patient-centred care. You must be registered with AHCS as an Audiologist or with HCPC as a Clinical Scientist. Previous NHS experience at Band 6+ level is also essential, with previous experience of operational management and staff supervision an advantage. You will require excellent communication skills, a flexible approach and be a team player.

The postholder will provide routine and advanced audiological assessment and rehabilitation. You will have a key role in the operational management of the adult hearing aid service, as well as supervising and line-managing audiologists and audiology assistants. You will support us to introduce innovative approaches to patient care and establishing robust governance processes.

You will be based at the Freeman hospital in Newcastle and may be required to undertake clinics at a variety of community-based locations around the region. The department offers flexible working.

The main responsibilities have been highlighted above. Please see full job description and person specification for further details. Potential applicants are encouraged to make informal contact to discuss the role further. If you would be interested in a part-time contract, you are encouraged to get in touch.

Working for our organisation

As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement. If it works for the service, we will do our best to make it work for you.

With around 2 million contacts with patients every year, we deliver care from:

• Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria

These include a range of flagship services which deliver cutting-edge care (supported by state-of-the-art diagnostic services in both radiology and pathology) and are a catalyst for innovation to support pioneering clinical practice in the NHS.

We also have offices at Regent Point in Gosforth and community sites.

Please see attached information on what Staff Benefits we have to offer at our Trust under ‘Documents to download’ or ‘Supporting documents’.

For further information on The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust please visit: Careers | Newcastle Hospitals | NHS | Newcastle Hospitals and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• The post holder will work closely with the Head of Audiology and Clinical Leads to ensure the delivery of high-quality patient care. This role involves mainly working within the Adult Hearing Service carrying out routine and complex audiological assessment and rehabilitation.
• The postholder will take primary responsibility for leading one or more clinical areas of practice.
• There is line managerial responsibility for more junior members of the department.
• The post holder will play a key role in maintaining governance within their area, and continual service improvement.
• The post holder will work as an independent advanced clinical audiologist routinely undertaking the following tasks in close collaboration with the senior leadership team as appropriate:
• Responsible for line management of members of the Audiology team , to include appraisals, personal and career development, sickness absence, disciplinary and grievance matters, performance management and health and safety.
• Take primary responsibility for leading one or more clinical areas of practice as agreed with the Head of Service / Clinical Lead.
• Support the Senior Leadership Team to provide a seamless, unified high-quality audiology service.
• Assist in ensuring that professional and clinical standards are maintained.
• With other staff at this level, provide first-line management of the clinic on a day-today basis, ensuring staffing and patients are appropriately accounted for.
• Participate in the development of policies and procedures applicable to the service.
• Undertake full audiological assessment of patients, to include complex and nonroutine cases such as those with multiple disabilities and severe communication difficulties.
• Analyse test results and other assessment data to determine differential diagnosis, the need for medical opinion and/or to decide on treatment options.
• Develop, arrange and implement individual treatment plans for patients in both highly complex and routine cases.
• For routine and complex cases select, programme and evaluate hearing aids for patients to include the provision of specialist audiological and related services.
• Liaise with a large multidisciplinary team of professionals within the department and wider service structure to ensure that each patient receives a high quality and well-co-ordinated service which satisfies the Patient Charter Standards, national professional standards and the Children’s Act.
• Record clinical observations and test results, maintaining database entries of clinical findings.
• Prepare audiological reports containing findings on assessment and review, with recommendations and advice based on clinical observations, assessment and knowledge for other professional colleagues and patients.
• Act as a point of contact for less experienced staff, in particular for complex and non-routine cases.
• Support new staff during a preceptorship period, and ongoing support/ mentorship of staff within the service to develop their skills and experience,
• Lead, support and actively participate in service change programmes in line with local and national service development.
• Coordinate and participate actively in service monitoring, evaluation and audit.
• Support and lead in areas of research, audit and development within the department, becoming actively involved at a level considered appropriate by the Trust and within their role.
• Responsible for maintaining CPD to maintain registration.
• The post holder will undertake any other duties that may reasonably be required.

Person specification

Qualifications & Education

• BSc in Audiology or equivalent
• Completed relevant professional training (e.g. Audiology Practitioner Training Programme, BAAT part 1 & 2, STP or CAC)
• Registered with the AHCS as a Clinical Physiologist/Audiologist, or HCPC as a Clinical Scientist
• MSc in Audiology
• STP in audiology or HTS specialist modules
• Membership of BSA/BAA

Knowledge & Experience

• Advanced theoretical and practical knowledge as required for a specialist area of audiology service (through clinical experience and study of MSc-level modules or equivalent, for example)
• Comprehensive experience as a Senior Audiologist including specialist audiology assessment, and rehabilitation, working with a complex patient caseload
• Experience of training others, and supporting/mentoring staff with developing their skills and knowledge
• Experience of service development and audit projects
• Evidence of commitment to continuous professional and personal development
• Experience of developing and implementing research proposals
• Experience of working independently in outlying clinics

Skills & Abilities

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to include ability to communicate with the hearing impaired and carers in emotional states
• Proven leadership skills with experience of service change and practice development
• Ability to work effectively in multi-disciplinary teams, collaborating effectively with colleagues across the Trust to successfully lead on and implement service improvement and pro-actively and positively contributing to a good team culture
• Excellent time management and organisational skills including keeping clinical records up to date and the ability to work under pressure, meeting deadlines and prioritising workloads
• Excellent written skill including clinical documentation
• Excellent presentation skills
• Ability to make judgements involving complex facts which require the analysis, interpretation and comparison of a range of options
• Good level of IT skills to include Microsoft Office and electronic patient records

Whilst Newcastle Hospitals are a forward thinking and highly innovative organisation, the use of Third-Party Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents a risk to the integrity of our Recruitment & Selection processes. If you use AI, and it poses a risk to the integrity of your individual application or to the recruitment process, we may withdraw your application at any stage of the process.

Important note on completion of reference section of Application Form

All references from current and previous employers will be sought and must cover a minimum of 3 years employment. Therefore, when completing the reference section of your application form, please give the address, telephone number and work email address of each of your current/previous line managers that cover 3 years employment. Failure to complete this section may result in your application not being processed.

Please note it is a requirement of The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust that all successful candidates who require a DBS for the post they have been offered pay for their DBS certificate. The method of payment is a salary deduction from your first month’s pay.

Candidates who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by e-mail. You should check your SPAM folders as well as your inbox. If you have not been contacted within 4 weeks of the closing date you should assume your application has been unsuccessful.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.