Pharmacy Dispensing Assistant

NHS; Ashington; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 27,000; Part time

Job summary

A regional healthcare provider is looking for a part-time Pharmacy Dispensing Assistant in Ashington. The role involves assisting in the delivery of pharmacy services to inpatients and outpatients, ensuring efficient medicine supply and communication with healthcare teams. Candidates should have relevant qualifications including GCSEs in literacy and numeracy and NVQ Level 2 in Pharmacy Services. This position offers a salary of £24,937 to £26,598 pro rata and requires a valid driving licence.

Qualifications

• Good standard of literacy and numeracy equivalent to GCSE Grade C or above in English Language and Mathematics.
• NVQ Level 2 in Pharmacy Services with appropriate training.
• Valid driving licence and access to a car for work purposes.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to delivering a comprehensive pharmacy service.
• Undertake activities within the pharmacy and at ward level.
• Ensure efficient delivery of medicines to patients.

Skills

Good standard of literacy and numeracy

Communication skills

Teamwork

Education

GCSE Grade C or above in English Language and Mathematics

NVQ Level 2 in Pharmacy Services

Job description

Pharmacy Dispensing Assistant

The closing date is 25 January 2026

We are looking for an enthusiastic and determined individual to work Part time 22.5 hours per week to join our progressive team with a national reputation for innovation and development. You will be part of a broad pharmacy team working using your skills for inpatients, outpatients and clinical trials patients.

We are a growing team and there are lots of exciting opportunities for personal and professional development. Individuals will spend time working outside of the department with key stakeholders including the clinical research team and sponsor representatives.

The post holder may be required to work at other sites within the Trust. Weekend cover will be based at North Tyneside General Hospital to support the 7 day clinical service to the Specialist Emergency Care Hospital. Opportunities for further development are available within our forward thinking service.

Please note we reserve the right to close this vacancy prior to the closing date once the required number of suitable applications have been received.

Main duties of the job

Dispensary roles will remain in line with usual working practice. For traditional dispensing assistant roles, you will be undertaking activities at ward level but also within the pharmacy department which contribute to the efficient and effective delivery of medicines to patients e.g. medicines supply, dispensing medication.

To communicate routine information with other healthcare staff to ensure that a safe and effective system of supply of medicines is maintained to patients. To communicate routine information with patients/carers concerning their medicines which may include to patients with communication difficulties. Must be able to demonstrate the English language proficiency level required cohort for this post.

About us

We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, in addition to our state‑of‑the‑art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. We also care for people in their homes and provide services from facilities in local communities such as health centres. We give people greater choice and control over their care to help them to live independently at home and avoid hospital admission where appropriate. High quality patient care is at the heart of everything we do and we strive to ensure every single patient and service user has an exceptional experience with us. We have one of the most extensive patient experience programmes of any trust in England.

Job responsibilities

To contribute to the delivery of a comprehensive and modern pharmacy service by undertaking activities within the pharmacy and at ward level which contribute to the efficient and effective delivery of medicines to patients e.g. store based activities, ward top‑up services and dispensing medication for patients.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Good standard of literacy and numeracy equivalent to GCSE Grade C or above in English Language and Mathematics
• NVQ Level 2 in Pharmacy Services supported by appropriate underpinning knowledge training e.g. that provided by NPA, Buttercups or other accredited in‑house programmes or a recognised pharmacy dispensing qualification (Boots, NPA) and relevant training /experience.

other

• It is an essential requirement of the role that the post holder has a valid driving licence and is either a car owner and able to use the car for work purposes.

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.

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

£24,937 to £26,598 a year pro rata per annum