Senior Clinical Scientist and Head of Section

Barts Health NHS Trust; City Of London; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in London is seeking a Band 8A Head of Section in the Clinical Transplantation H&I Laboratory. The role involves supervising clinical staff, managing specialized tests, and developing policies for transplant programs. Candidates should possess significant immunology knowledge and a relevant degree. This position offers opportunities for growth within a supportive and inclusive environment, committed to innovative healthcare.

Qualifications

• Highly developed specialist knowledge gained over at least 4 years post HCPC state registration.
• Experience leading validation of new processes and laboratory audits.
• Ability to interpret complex laboratory results and make clinical judgments.

Responsibilities

• Supervise staff performing highly specialist clinical tests.
• Provide specialized advice for transplant patients.
• Manage service delivery for various transplant programs.

Skills

Highly developed specialist knowledge in immunology

Ability to provide and receive complex information

Proven organisational skills

Leadership in clinical and operational policies

Education

BSc in a biological science

FRCPath Part 1 in H&I or MSc in biological science

Job description

Overview

Barts Health is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country and a leading healthcare provider. The Barts Health group is on an improvement journey to become an outstanding organisation with a world-class clinical reputation. Our vision is to be a high-performing group of NHS hospitals, renowned for excellence and innovation, delivering safe and compassionate care. We strive to be an outstanding place to work where WeCare values and behaviours guide how we work together. Barts Health supports the Pregnancy Loss Pledge and commits to supporting staff through miscarriage.

We are dedicated to being an outstanding place to work and will work with you to get the best experience. We recognise flexible working is not one size fits all and will mean different things to everyone. We are inclusive, so if you are interested in flexible working, please speak to the recruiting manager.

We are an Equal Opportunities Employer and welcome applications from underrepresented groups in our workforce. We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date if a sufficient number of applications are received.

Job overview

As a Band 8A Head of Section in the Clinical Transplantation H&I Laboratory, the post holder will supervise one of the two sections in the laboratory: Molecular or Serology. The post holder will be responsible for the managerial and scientific leadership of the band 3-7 staff in the section and for providing highly specialised advice regarding further investigations and donor/patient selection for transplant. The post holder will work with the Head and Deputy Head of Department and key stakeholders to develop clinical policy and to plan, initiate and perform routine clinical services and R&D that lead to service improvements.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will undertake and manage staff to perform a range of highly specialist clinical and technical tests and services in the Molecular or Serology Sections, including HLA characterisation, antibody analysis and crossmatching activities in day time and out of hours.

Core duties include providing highly specialised advice and laboratory services concerning care or treatment of transplant patients, final verification and clinical interpretation of laboratory results before release to clinicians, providing clinical advice in person and by phone, and attending several MDT meetings each week.

The post holder is responsible for delivering the service in support of thymus, kidney and cardiothoracic transplantation programmes, including virtual crossmatching and transplant immunological risk assessment in liaison with the clinical team.

With delegated authority from the Head and Deputy Head of Department, the post holder has overall line management responsibility to provide strategic and day-to-day leadership to the Molecular or Serology Sections, managing staff and supervising validation and troubleshooting of assays. The post holder will attend clinical meetings to support transplant programmes and participate in Quality Management Systems of the department.

Working for our organisation

The NHS East and South East London Pathology Partnership is an arms-length organisation providing pathology services to Barts Health NHS Trust, Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust. The Pathology Partnership is hosted by Barts Health and formed in May 2021. It operates a single network of laboratories with a shared LIMS and QMS, with a main hub at the Royal London Hospital and Essential Service Laboratories at six other sites. In 2024/25, total operating costs were around £121m with a workforce establishment of approximately 1,? (data provided in the source). We strive to live by our WeCare values and promote inclusion, aiming for an equitable working environment where every staff member can fulfil their potential.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates as they are underrepresented within the Pathology Partnership and Barts Health at this band.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

We are dedicated to being an outstanding place to work and will work with you to get the best experience. We know flexible working is not one size fits all and will mean something different to everyone. We are inclusive, so if you are interested in flexible working, please speak to the recruiting manager. The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience and knowledge required. For both documents, please view the attachment/s below.

Person specification

Experience

Essential criteria

• Highly developed specialist knowledge in immunology and H&I serology and molecular genetics (gained over at least a 4 year post HCPC state registration period) covering all routine and non-routine H&I tests
• Significant theoretical knowledge and practical experience in HLA routine and non-routine serological techniques including Luminex antibody screening and identification, and flowcytometric crossmatching
• Experience of virtual crossmatching and transplant immunological risk assessment in support of solid organ transplantation
• Experience leading the design and implementation of validation of new processes, kits, reagents and equipment, and developing and carrying out laboratory audits that lead to changes in practice

Desirable criteria

• Experience of non-HLA antibodies and their role in solid organ transplantation

Skills

Essential criteria

• Ability to provide and receive complex information with good persuasion and motivational skills; tact and diplomacy
• Proven organisational skills with experience of planning complex activities
• Take overall strategic responsibility for managing all aspects of the section; day-to-day operational management delegated to an experienced band 7 Ops Lead as appropriate
• Ability to interpret a range of highly complex laboratory results and make clinical judgments about options for patients
• Take into account patient clinical history, treatments, medications, prior transplants and HLA mismatches when deciding best options for a patient
• Lead changes to clinical and operational policies and procedures within the section and propose changes spanning the laboratory service
• Propose quality improvement changes to all areas of the laboratory beyond the immediate department

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Highly developed specialist knowledge in immunology and H&I serology and molecular genetics (gained over at least a 4 year post HCPC state registration period) covering all routine and non-routine H&I tests

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• BSc in a biological science
• FRCPath Part 1 in H&I or MSc in biological science and actively working towards FRCPath Part 1

Desirable criteria

• A PhD in a biological science or DClinSci

We strive to live by our WeCare values and promote inclusion, where every staff member has a sense of belonging and is treated with dignity and respect. We aim to create an equitable working environment where every individual can fulfil their potential.

As an Equal Opportunities Employer we actively support applications from individuals under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme and will process your application as appropriate. We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the closing date if sufficient applications are received.

After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred third-party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. By applying for this post you are agreeing to Barts Health transferring information to its applicant management system and, if offered a job, to the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Barts Health is committed to safeguarding children and to child protection. The Trust may require a Disclosure and Barring Check for roles with direct access to children or vulnerable adults.

Barts Health promotes active travel as part of its Net Zero goal. Each site is accessible by public transport and the Trust has a cycle-to-work scheme and Brompton Hire Pods at some sites.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration. This post is subject to a Disclosure to check for any previous convictions.

Documents to download

• Job Description and Person Specification Band 8a (PDF, 809.6KB)
• Our Values and Behaviours (PDF, 334.9KB)
• Policy Statement on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders (PDF, 92.0KB)
• Candidate Information Pack (PDF, 549.5KB)