Dispensing Optician

NHS; North East; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 40,000; Part time

Job summary

A leading healthcare organization is seeking a motivated Dispensing/Contact Lens Optician to join its team in a busy hospital in Newcastle. This role offers a chance to gain experience in medically necessary contact lenses and low visual aid assessment while participating in teaching and quality improvement projects. The ideal candidate will have a degree in ophthalmic dispensing, GOC registration, and a passion for clinical practice.

Qualifications

• Qualified Dispensing and Contact Lens Optician registered with GOC.
• Awareness of evidence-based medicine and its impact upon clinical practice.
• Practical working knowledge of spectacle dispensing.
• Practical working knowledge of contact lens practice.

Responsibilities

• Assess and diagnose adult and paediatric cases registered with ophthalmologists.
• Create and deliver specialised individual treatment programmes as agreed with the patient.
• Demonstrate optical theory and practices to optometry undergraduates and other health professionals.

Skills

Good organisational skills

Good time management

Basic IT skills

Evidence of team working

Ability to work single-handed/autonomously

Education

Degree in Ophthalmic Dispensing / Level 6 Diploma of Association of British Dispensing Opticians

State registration with the General Optical Council as Dispensing Optician and Contact Lens Optician

Post graduate low vision certificate

Job description

Overview

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a motivated Dispensing/Contact Lens Optician to join our dedicated team within a busy, fast-paced hospital setting. This role provides a rare opportunity for a Dispensing Optician to gain comprehensive experience in medically necessary contact lenses and low visual aid assessment and includes opportunities to participate in research, audit, teaching and quality improvement projects.

The closing date is 28 September 2025

Interview Date: 9 October 2025 • 15 Hours/Week

NO AGENCIES PLEASE

Main duties of the job

You will be responsible for overseeing the small number of spectacle dispenses we provide for in-patients and bespoke dispenses for patients with specialist requirements such as acquired facial differences and ptosis. There will also be the opportunity to provide low vision services to our patients.

You will be actively involved in our contact lens service which provides therapeutic and specialist contact lenses to both adults and children for a range of conditions including keratoconus, aphakia and post keratoplasty. As such, you will be registered with the GOC as a Contact Lens Optician. However, we welcome applications from candidates not yet registered as a Contact Lens Optician and, will support them in obtaining the relevant qualifications.

As a department, we are actively involved in teaching a range of ophthalmology professionals and you will participate in this programme. This includes the teaching of resident doctors, nurses and pre-registration optometrists.

If you are a Dispensing Optician with a genuine interest in developing your clinical skills within a hospital setting, we strongly encourage you to apply.

About us

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.

Our staff oversee over 6,500 patient contacts every day, delivering high standards of healthcare from the following sites:

• Freeman Hospital
• Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI)
• Health Innovation Neighbourhood (on the former Newcastle General Hospital and Centre for Ageing and Vitality site)
• Newcastle Dental Hospital
• Newcastle Fertility Centre
• Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria
• Northern Genetics Service

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

Job responsibilities

• To assess and diagnose adult and paediatric cases registered with ophthalmologists
• Creating and delivering specialised individual treatment programmes as agreed with the patient
• To demonstrate optical theory and practices to optometry undergraduates, optometrists and other health professionals and junior medical staff

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Degree in Ophthalmic Dispensing/Level 6 Diploma of Association of British Dispensing Opticians
• State registration with the General Optical Council as Dispensing Optician and Contact Lens Optician
• UK recognised driving licence
• Post graduate low vision certificate

Knowledge

• Qualified Dispensing and Contact Lens Optician registered with GOC
• Awareness of evidence based medicine and its impact upon clinical practice

Experience

• Practical working knowledge of spectacle dispensing
• Practical working knowledge of contact lens practice
• Experience of more unusual/novel dispensing
• Experience of performing stock taking/other administrative duties
• Active involvement in clinical audit
• Experience of research methodology
• Experience of low visual aid clinics

Skills

• Good organisational skills
• Good time management
• Basic IT skills
• Evidence of team working
• Ability to work single-handed/autonomously

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.

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust