Operational Support Manager

Somerset NHS Foundation Trust; Taunton; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 35,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working options

NHS pension scheme

Generous annual leave

Career development

Job summary

Somerset NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an experienced manager to lead administrative services within Surgical Services in Taunton. The role focuses on delivering efficient, patient-focused support for clinicians, operational teams, and patients.

You will provide leadership to admin staff, monitor performance, and drive service improvements to meet RTT and cancer targets, while ensuring governance and information quality.

Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or have equivalent experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage administrative services within Surgical Services.
• Oversee recruitment, induction, appraisal and sickness monitoring.
• Monitor performance and ensure compliance with policies and performance indicators.
• Support service planning, demand and capacity reviews and rota management.
• Lead on new systems, processes and operational changes.

Skills

MS Office Suite

Medical terminology

In-house hospital systems

PALS procedures

Budget basics

Team leadership

Education

Degree or equivalent experience

AMSPAR or British Society of Medical Secretaries Certificate

English language proficiency

ILM 3 Leadership and Management

ECDL / IT qualification

Level III typing qualification

Tools

N/A

Job description

This role is responsible for leading and managing the administrative services within Surgical Services, ensuring efficient, high-quality support for patients, clinicians and operational teams.

You will provide leadership to administration staff, oversees workforce management, performance monitoring, service improvement initiatives and supports the achievement of key operational targets, including Referral to Treatment (RTT) and cancer performance standards.

You will work closely with managers, clinicians and other stakeholders to streamline processes, improve patient pathways, maintain data quality and ensure compliance with Trust policies and procedures.

Provide leadership and line management to administrative teams within Surgical Services, ensuring the delivery of efficient, patient-focused services. Responsible for recruitment, training, induction, appraisal, performance management, and sickness absence monitoring, while supporting staff development.

Oversee administrative processes and patient pathways to ensure compliance with Referral to Treatment (RTT), cancer targets, Trust policies, and data quality requirements. Monitor service performance, analyse workload data, and implement actions to improve efficiency and achieve operational targets.

Support service planning through demand and capacity reviews, rota management, utilisation monitoring, auditsand service improvement initiatives. Lead the implementation of new systems, processesand operational changes.

Act as a key point of contact for complex patient, staff, and stakeholder enquiries, resolving issues and responding to complaints and PALS concerns. Work collaboratively with clinicians, managersand corporate teams to deliver service objectives.

Manage staffing, annual leave, budgets, and procurement processes. Ensure compliance with governance, information governance, health and safetyand Trust policies while maintaining accurate records and reporting requirements. Support digital administration systems and continuous improvement across administrative services.

About us

At Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, we're committed to supporting our employees with a range of benefits designed to enhance your professional and personal life. We offer:

• Flexible working options to help you balance work and life
• NHS pension scheme for long-term financial security
• Generous annual leave allowance to recharge and relax
• A strong focus on career development to help you grow and achieve your potential

Additionally, you'll gain access to our Blue Light Card, unlocking exclusive discounts on shopping, dining, and leisure activities, as well as NHS-specific perks to support you both inside and outside of work.

We are proud to foster a diverse, skilled, and inclusive workforce, and we encourage applications from all backgrounds.

Why Somerset? Somerset offers the perfect blend of idyllic countryside, outstanding areas of natural beauty, and breathtaking coastlines, with vibrant cities like Bristol, Bath, and Exeter just a short drive away - and only two hours to London.

The region is home to excellent educational facilities, and with affordable housing compared to other parts of the country, it's a great place to build both your career and your future.

Somerset truly has it all - the peaceful countryside and cosmopolitan city life, with something for everyone to enjoy.

Please see attached Job Description & Person Specification for further details of duties and responsibilities.

Person specification

Qualifications

Educated to degree level or have equivalent experience

AMSPAR or British Society of Medical Secretaries Certificate includes medical terminology or anatomy

Must be able to communicate in English Language, both written and verbally appropriate to the post

Level III typing qualification or equivalent experience

ILM 3 Leadership and Management, or equivalent (or be prepared to work towards)

ECDL (or equivalent) which show full knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite

Experience

Demonstrative experience within a management role, ideally within the NHS, monitoring and managing performance, development and overseeing compliance with organisational policies and performance indicators

Evidence of prioritising workloads/good time management

Proven experience of working well as part of a team

Recruitment, induction, appraisal, sickness monitoring

Change management, role redesign, project mapping and report writing

Conflict management

Annual leave calculating/planning

Budget reading/monitoring to level of being able to understand finance spreadsheets

Additional Criteria

Advanced working knowledge of Microsoft office suite, including word, excel, outlook and powerpoint.

Knowledge of medical terminology

Working knowledge of in house hospital systems

Knowledge of business case procedures and experience in writing/contributing to business case/capital bids

Knowledge of Trust PALs/Complaints Procedures

Budgeting knowledge: able to understand finance budget spreadsheets, predict and plan under and overspends

Procedural and policy knowledge to enable staff team briefing, induction and information sharing

Project management/monitoring and overseeing change management

Information Governance

Able to demonstrate a good standard of English language

Able to deal with difficult/distressed people in an appropriate manner using skills in tact, empathy, reassurance, negotiation, persuasion, diplomacy and assertiveness.

Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, able to deal with people effectively at all levels: clinical and non-clinical staff, external agencies and the public.

Able to work as a team member and motivate others around you.

Excellent planning, organisational and motivational skills required to meet deadlines, working with other departments across the Trust

Decisive and able to act on own initiative once parameters are set, taking responsibility for tasks

Able to cope in a very busy working environment, make judgements on competing objectives and prioritise accordingly

Flexible approach to

Able to construct and implement systems effectively to manage business processes

Post holder willing to undertake further training and participate in developing new working practices to meet changing needs of a service

Post is office based but requires visiting staff in other departments across the Trust on daily basis

Able to cope in a busy working environment

Advanced keyboard skills

Frequent requirement for VDU use and concentration, sitting for extended periods of time and with frequent periods of continuous concentration

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.

For help with your application, contact:

Agenda for Change

Band

Band 5

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-Time

Job locations

County Hall
The Crescent
Taunton
Somerset
TA1 4DY