Job summary
- Main area
- OPTOMETRIST
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 6
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Part time - 15 hours per week
- Job ref
- 421-PSC-3645R
- Employer
- Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Harrogate District Hospital
- Town
- Harrogate
- Salary
- £38,682 - £46,580 per annum pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 25/02/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 19/03/2026
Employer heading
Optometrist
NHS AfC: Band 6
Job overview
Are you a passionate and patient-focused Optometrist looking to develop your career within a supportive NHS hospital environment?
Harrogate District Hospital is delighted to offer a rare and exciting opportunity for a band 6 Optometrist to join our friendly and well established Optical services team, on a part-time basis. This role provides an excellent balance of clinical variety, professional development and work-life flexibility.
In this rewarding post, you will deliver high-quality optometric care to both paediatric and adult patients, playing a vital role in improving vision and quality of life. You will be actively involved in our Low vision service, helping patients adapt and thrive. You will also contribute to the contact lens service, providing initial assessments and aftercare.
Working alongside a skilled multidisciplinary team, you will have the opportunity to grow your clinical expertise within the hospital setting that values collaboration, learning and compassionate care.
Main duties of the job
Key Duties and Responsibilities
· Providing paediatric and adult refractions in the hospital optometry clinic
· Supporting the delivery of the Low Vision Service
· Participating in the contact lens service, including assessment and aftercare
· Perform and interpret diagnostic investigations such as visual fields, OCT, fundus photography, and pachymetry as appropriate
· Explain diagnoses, management plans, and treatment options clearly and sensitively
· Working closely with Ophthalmologists, Orthoptists, Ophthalmic technicians, Nurses, support staff and administrative staff to deliver integrated care
· Delivering safe, effective, and patient cantered care in line with Trust policies
· Supervision and teaching of junior staff and students as required
· Maintaining accurate clinical records and contributing to service improvement
Working for our organisation
Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT) cares for the population in Harrogate and the local area, as well as across North Yorkshire, Leeds and parts of the North East.
At HDFT we provide outstanding care to both our patients and our staff and we value Kindness, Integrity, Teamwork and Equality. If you’re looking for an interesting and rewarding career in the NHS, where you can make a real difference to patients’ lives, HDFT could be the place for you!
We offer colleagues:
- A supportive culture so colleagues can bring their whole selves to work.
- Staff Recognition - as well as regular appraisals, we recognise achievements with our Making a Difference & Team of the Month Awards, along with annual Colleague Recognition Awards.
- Employee Support and wellbeing – we offer a wide range of staff benefits including an Employee Assistance Programme, counselling service and a fast-track Physiotherapy service.
Please note:
- Due to high levels of interest, posts may close early if we reach a sufficient number of applications
- Visa sponsorship is only available for certain roles. Please ensure the role you are interested in meets the criteria for a visa before submitting your application.
- Please also be aware that the Trust does not offer relocation packages for Agenda for Change roles.
- All job offers are subject to satisfactory pre-employment checks.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The main duties are summarised below. Please view the Job Description and Person Specification for full details.
- To provide a high quality, evidence based, comprehensive range of core optometry services to children and adults attending the hospital eye service.
- To work autonomously and as a source of expertise to assess, diagnose, plan, implement and monitor treatment as appropriate, providing advice and guidance concerning optometry to patients, carers, consultants and other health care professionals.
- To carry a full caseload of all types of Optometry patients including paediatrics, patients with learning difficulties and adults with neurological and medical conditions.
- To be responsible as lead optometrist for refraction, including administration, development and continuous monitoring and governance of the optometry refraction clinics.
- To undertake assessment and management of patients with low vision, providing optical aids as required, under the guidance and training of the Lead Optometrist.
- To undertake assessment and aftercare of patients attending the Specialist Contact Lens Service, under the guidance and training of the Lead Optometrist.
- To be responsible for assessing and managing patients referred to the paediatric shared care clinic in collaboration with the Orthoptist.
- To undertake visual field assessment and diagnostic imaging when required.
- To work collaboratively within optical services and ophthalmology to contribute to service development and to ensure a high quality of care is delivered.
- To provide clinical demonstration, supervision and teaching in Optometry to post graduate pre-registration optometry students, junior doctors, orthoptists, nurses, other healthcare professionals and medical personnel, and orthoptic students.
- To participate in clinical audit.
- To ensure compliance with policies and procedures of the Trust.
- To provide training and supervision of ophthalmic technicians when required.
Person specification
essential
Essential criteria
- Degree in Optometry
- Registration with the General Optical Council
- Evidence of working as an autonomous practitioner
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of postgraduate study in specialist courses, self-study and continued professional development.
- Post graduate qualifications e.g. College of Optometrist Diploma in Glaucoma
- Previous work in the Hospital Eye Service
- Low Visual Aid assessment and prescribing low vision appliances
Employer certification / accreditation badges
.png "National Preceptorship for Nursing Quality Mark")
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Fiona Beckett
- Job title
- Head Orthoptist
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01423 553452
- Additional information
Email correspondence preferred
List jobs with Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust in Health Science Services or all sectors