Senior Dispensing Assistant

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust; Colchester; On-site; GBP 23,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Senior Dispensing Assistant to join the Pharmacy team at Colchester Hospital on a part-time basis (23.5 hours per week). The role covers dispensing for inpatients and outpatients, including controlled drugs, with duties spanning stock replenishment and patient-focused service delivery.

The post is fixed-term to 14 September 2027 (maternity cover). Prior pharmacy experience is essential; NVQ Level 2 or equivalent is desirable.

Qualifications

• Pharmacy experience in hospital or retail settings is essential.
• Formal qualification such as NVQ Level 2 or equivalent is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Dispense for inpatients and outpatients following SOPs.
• Label and package medicines correctly with patient information.
• Handle controlled drugs in line with procedures and legal requirements.
• Ensure timely supply of medicines and accuracy through self-checks.
• Operate cash till and payment processing for prescriptions.

Skills

Pharmacy experience

Education

NVQ Pharmacy Services Level 2

Job description

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

Senior Dispensing Assistant

The closing date is 15 November 2026

We are looking for Senior Dispensing Assistants to join our Pharmacy team. You will work within most areas of the ESNEFT Pharmaceutical Service based at Colchester Hospital, providing dispensing support to qualified staff.

This post is fixed term until 14th September 2027 to cover maternity leave, part time 23.5 hours per week

This role is not eligible for sponsorship

Duties will include dispensing for in-patients, outpatients and controlled drugs following standard procedures; a re-stocking service of pharmaceutical products to wards and departments.

Pharmacy experience is essential and a formal qualification is desirable, e.g. NVQ Level 2 or equivalent.

Formal Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holiday commitments are mandatory and will be on a rostered basis.

Main duties of the job

• To dispense for inpatients and outpatients by calculating appropriate dosage and quantities required against prescriptions/requisitions, following departmental Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• To ensure that all customers receive the appropriate medicine in the correct form and in a timely manner.
• To ensure that all medicines are labelled and packaged appropriately, and all relevant patient information and compliance aids/sundries are supplied.
• To dispense controlled drugs for ward stock and named patients, following all relevant Pharmacy procedures and legal requirements.
• To perform a self-check on all dispensed items to ensure accuracy and quality prior to placing the item in the designated area for final checking.
• To receive in prescriptions from a wide range of outpatient clients and use listening and questioning skills to obtain appropriate information to enable effective service provision.
• To operate the cash till and debit/credit card machine to take payment for prescriptions.
• To ensure that the declaration of payment/exemption on outpatient prescriptions has been correctly filled in and clearly endorsed with grounds for exemption if a fee is not paid.
• To sell over the counter products under the supervision of a pharmacist.

About us

We are one of the largest NHS organisation in the region, employing over 12,000 staff. We deliver care from two main hospitals in Colchester & Ipswich, six community hospitals, clinics and patient's homes.Our scale provides exciting opportunities for development, innovation, research, education and training.Talk to us about our range of flexible working opportunities, apprenticeships and staff benefitsEquality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is at the heart of all we do; and it forms part of ESNEFTs core activities. The Trust operates and relies on everyone treating each other with dignity and respect, to receive equitable and fair treatment in the implementation of Policies, procedures and in its practices and to foster positive work relationships. The EDI Agenda reflects the Trust values of Optimistic, Appreciative and Kind. In line with the NHS Long Term Plan and Staff Standards, we consistently strive to improve, to take the learning into Action for a better ESNEFT.

Job responsibilities

Interview date: 24th November 2026

Working at ESNEFT

We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options. Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

Our philosophy is that Time Matters to everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients.

We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what's widely regarded as the world's best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients.

If you are passionate about patient care and want to develop your skills and knowledge, then we want to hear from you.

To comply with UK Government regulations on sponsorship we are unable to provide sponsorship to applicants who do not meet the eligibility criteria or the salary threshold. Full guidance on sponsorship can be found Skilled Worker visa: Overview - GOV.UK

Notes

Please note that where response levels are exceptional we may close the post before the specified date, therefore early application is recommended.

In line with AfC Terms and Conditions new entrants to NHS will commence on the entry level of the salary

If you require any information in an alternative format or have any access needs for the application process, please contact us.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Basic Secondary Education O level/GCSE English, Maths & Science Grade C/4 or above
• NVQ Pharmacy Services Level 2 optional units: relevant to pharmacy practice area or equivalent.

Experience

• Previous experience of working in pharmacy (retail/hospital)
• Use of computers

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.

Employer name

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust