Support Secretary - Autism Spectrum Disorder

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals; Preston; Presencial; GBP 26.000 - 27.000; A tiempo parcial

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Flexible working options

Career development support

Descripción de la vacante

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals is seeking an organized ASD Support Medical Secretary to join the Community Neurodevelopmental Paediatrics team. You will support the ASD diagnostic pathway, handle clinic letters, and coordinate communications with families and external partners.

The role requires independent work, confidentiality, and excellent organisational skills. Part-time 22.5 hours with a Wednesday working day is offered, with a pro rata salary and opportunities for development.

Formación

• Educated to GCSE English Grade C or above/Grade 4-9 OR Functional Skills level 2 in Literacy.
• Typing speed of 60 wpm.
• RSA 2 Typing Qualification (or equivalent).
• RSA 3 Typing Qualification (or equivalent).
• ECDL or equivalent experience.

Responsabilidades

• Act as the first point of contact for ASD-related enquiries and direct queries appropriately.
• Provide secretarial and administrative support to consultants and junior medical staff, including clinic letters and reports.
• Track patient progress on the ASD pathway and chase required information.
• Manage consultant diaries, arrange appointments and take minutes when required.
• Maintain filing, data entry, and confidentiality in line with Trust policies.
• Provide cover for colleagues to ensure continuity of the ASD administrative service.

Conocimientos

Communication skills

Typing speed 60 wpm

Medical terminology

Minute taking

Office 365

Autonomy

Educación

GCSE English

RSA 2 Typing

RSA 3 Typing

ECDL

Herramientas

Quadramed

Alma

Evolve

Descripción del empleo

We hope to be welcoming you to the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals team soon; we've shown you exactly why we're 'a great place to work', now it's time to see for yourself! Have a look at our current vacancies down below and make the first step to starting a fantastic new career. Need help with your NHS application? We've got you covered! Our brand-new step-by-step NHS Application Help Video will guide you through the process, making it easier, faster, and stress-free to apply. Additionally, you can check out our helpful Application Guide as well!

You can also look at our recruitment flipbook , an interactive brochure showcasing various entry-level roles. It includes a fun quiz to help you find the right role and links to more information about our hospitals and our fantastic staff.

Corporate Services Roles

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Support Secretary - Autism Spectrum Disorder

Band 3

Main area Community Neurodevelopmental Paediatrics Grade Band 3 Contract Permanent Hours Part time - 22.5 hours per week (Working days must include a Wednesday) Job ref 438-PB4980

Site Ashton Health Centre Town Ashton-On-Ribble Salary £25,760 - £27,476 Per annum, pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 22/11/2026 23:59

Job overview

We are looking for an organised, motivated and compassionate ASD Support Medical Secretary to join our Community Neurodevelopmental Paediatrics team. This role is central to supporting the delivery of our Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnostic pathway and ensuring families experience a smooth, well-coordinated journey through assessment.

Working closely with consultants, junior medical staff, administrative teams, and external agencies, you will provide high-quality secretarial and administrative support across all aspects of the ASD service. You will be the first point of contact for patients, parents and professionals, helping to maintain excellent communication, timely clinical correspondence, and efficient management of the ASD pathway.

This role requires someone who can work independently, use their initiative, manage competing priorities, and consistently uphold confidentiality and professionalism. You will play an essential part in supporting the team to deliver excellent patient care and meet key performance standards.

Main duties of the job

Act as the first point of contact for all day-to-day ASD-related enquiries, directing queries appropriately and maintaining a helpful and supportive approach.

Provide comprehensive secretarial and administrative support to consultants and junior medical staff, including audio-typing clinic letters, DSM-5 reports and other clinical correspondence.

Track patient progress on the ASD pathway, liaising with internal and external partners to chase outstanding information, escape delays, and support timely diagnostic decision-making.

Manage consultant diaries, arrange appointments and meetings, prepare agendas and take accurate minutes when required.

Maintain efficient administrative systems including filing, bring-forward systems, case-note tracking and data entry onto relevant IT systems.

Ensure that patient information is handled securely, confidentially and in accordance with Trust Information Governance policies.

Support colleagues during periods of absence to ensure continuity and smooth running of the ASD administrative service.

Working for our organisation

At Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, we take pride in caring for our staff as well as our patients. We recognise that working in a busy environment requires help with a healthy work-life balance. We also believe in ensuring that our staff get the chance to reach their full potential when working with us, which is why we open lots of doors for career progression once you join our team. With us, the sky truly is the limit!

We have 10,000 fantastic people working hard to deliver quality services to our patients. Whatever your role, you help look after 370,000 people in our local area and give specialist care to 1.5 million people across Lancashire and Cumbria.

Working with us gives you the knowledge and sense of pride that every activity you do genuinely does make a difference to support our patients and staff, ensuring we keep thriving and delivering outstanding healthcare right across our local towns.

You will have access to varied development opportunities, learn new skills, meet inspiring people and do things you’d never have done.

You will make an impact, be challenged to think differently, be bold and help innovate to keep improving things. Everything we do centres around patient care and enhancing their experience which means your role is pivotal and something really to be proud of.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The ASD Support Medical Secretary plays a key role in ensuring that the ASD diagnostic pathway operates safely, efficiently and with excellent patient experience.

You will be responsible for providing a full secretarial service to consultants and junior medical staff, including preparing clinic letters, diagnostic summaries and reports using digital dictation systems such as Tpro. This requires strong typing skills, attention to detail and familiarity with medical terminology. You will also prepare paperwork for clinics, manage incoming messages, organise electronic filing, and maintain accurate records to support clinical decision-making.

A core part of the role is pathway coordination. You will track each patient’s progression through the ASD pathway, liaising with families, schools, GPs and other agencies to gather and chase required information. You will identify and escape delays that could impact diagnostic timeliness or create bottlenecks, helping to ensure the service meets key targets and delivers a smooth patient journey.

You will proactively manage consultant diaries, arrange meetings, prepare agendas, book venues and take minutes as required. Strong organisational skills are essential, as you will maintain bring-forward systems, highlight deadlines, prepare daily briefings, and ensure that relevant files, clinic lists, and notes are ready in advance.

The post requires a high level of communication, professionalism and confidentiality. You will support parents and carers by providing updates, addressing enquiries, and signposting appropriately, ensuring families feel informed and supported. Internally, you will work closely with medical staff, administrative teams, operational managers and external partners to ensure the highest standard of coordination and documentation.

You must be able to work independently, using your initiative to prioritise workload, balance competing tasks and maintain high standards of accuracy. Flexibility is also required, as you may be asked to provide cover for colleagues to maintain continuity across the administrative team.

Person specification

Qualfications

• Educated to GCSE English Grade C or above/Grade 4-9 OR Functional Skills level 2 in Literacy.
• Typing speed of 60 wpm
• RSA 2 or equivalent
• RSA 3 Typing Qualification
• ECDL or equivalent experience

Knowledge and Experience

• Efficient in the use of Office 365 (Word, Excel, Outlook etc)
• Able to manage own workload and work autonomsly as part of a team.
• Demonstrate a commitment to continuing personal and professional development
• Experienced and competent minute takingKnowledge of medical terminology
• Previous administration experience in an NHS environment
• Use of Trust IT packages ie Quadramed , Alma, Evolve
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology

Thanks for taking the time to view this advert; we’re looking forward to receiving your application. You should be aware that the vacancy may close earlier than the published date if sufficient applications are received so it would be best to apply as soon as you can. We’ll contact you by e-mail to update you on the progress of your application so please check the e-mail account that you applied from (including spam/junk) regularly.

We are committed to promoting equality of opportunity, celebrating and valuing diversity and eliminating any form of unlawful discrimination across our workforce, ensuring our people are truly representative of the communities we serve. All individuals regardless of race, age, disability, ethnicity, nationality, gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership, neurodiversity or veteran status are encouraged to apply for this post. Our Statement on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders is available Here

To support you in your application process we’ve created a What we can offer you guide that shows what you can expect when you join our hospitals. The guide includes links to our strategic aims and objectives as well as our values, development support and rewards and benefits. To help you get the best from your application we’ve also put together two guides to help you make your application the best it can be. Just click here and here to go through them, or have themopen as you complete your application.

We recognise that the recruitment process may present barriers for some and you may need personal adjustments to enable you to participate in our recruitment process. Please make contact with the recruitment team at the earliest opportunity to ensure that measures can be put in place to enable your application for this post.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when writing job applications

If you choose to use AI or other tools to assist in writing your application, it's essential to personalise this information, particularly your supporting information section. While AI can help streamline the writing process, these tools cannot fully grasp the context or requirements of the job you’re applying for. There is also a risk that it can generate false or misleading information.
AI-generated job applications can often be generic, impersonal and may not accurately reflect your qualifications, knowledge, skills, and experiences. It is crucial that you personalise your supporting statement by articulating these in your unique voice. Relying solely on AI to write your application and supporting information section is not advocated by Lancashire Teaching Hospitals and could negatively impact your chances of success in the application process.

We have added a disclaimer to our application process advising that the use of AI is monitored and if applicants have used it then they are required to declare this.

Supporting Information

The supporting information section is an opportunity for you to showcase how your qualifications, knowledge, skill and experiences align with the requirements and criteria outlined in the job description and person.
Our recruiting managers score applications based on the criteria listed in the person specification. They will be looking for evidence of how you meet these criteria. To increase your chances of securing an interview, provide evidence of how your skills and knowledge in real-life situations. Share work-related successes and challenges you’ve navigated that align with the criteria. These could be from various aspects of your life, including work, education, and personal experiences.
Consider structuring your supporting information section with clear headings or bullet points. This approach will help both you and the recruiting manager navigate through your application more effectively.

Working Smarter pledge

We are reminded everyday of how important life is, so as part of our Working Smarter pledge we offer a variety of flexible working options and wellbeing support to enable our people to find and maintain the right work-life balance.

Secondments

If you are applying for a secondment role please ensure you have agreement from your current line manager prior to attending an interview. Also please ensure you have read the LTHTR Secondment Policy. A copy of this can be found on the intranet or by contacting [e-mail]

Please note a young one must be in part-time education or training until they’re 18. therefore if you are under 18 we are unable to employ you on a full time basis, unless it is in an apprenticeship role.

Disclosure and Barring Service checks

If the role you’ve applied for requires a Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS) check we will administer this on your behalf and the cost will be recovered from your salary, either as a one-off payment, or over 3 months. The level of check required depends on the role that you have been offered. Currently the charges are - Basic DBS check £26.40 Standard DBS check £26.40 and Enhanced DBS check £54.40. You should be aware that if you are successful in obtaining a position that requires a DBS check but later withdraw your application, you may be required to reimburse the cost of the DBS check. DBS checks remain free of charge for volunteer positions. The DBS Code of Practice can be accessed here .

In line with guidance from United Kingdom Health Security Agency, all staff and volunteers are required to comply with Trust Infection Prevention and Control processes in relation to safe working. This includes mask wearing and adherence to social distancing at all Trust sites.

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