Job summary
- Main area
- Orthoptics
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 7
- Contract
- 12 months (Fixed term)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 214-SRG-8156641
- Employer
- Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- King's Mill Hospital
- Town
- Sutton-in-Ashfield
- Salary
- £49,387 - £56,515 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 27/09/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Deputy Head Orthoptist
NHS AfC: Band 7
Thank you for your interest in this role, we would be delighted to welcome you to Sherwood Forest Hospitals.
Sherwood is nationally recognised as being an excellent place to work and deliver care. We are rightly proud of the 5,500 colleagues who work here and know that happy colleagues deliver better care.
Our teams work in a supportive, inclusive environment, which nurtures wellbeing and has opportunities for development and progression. We do not just care for our patients, we also care for you.
At Sherwood Forest Hospitals, we are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. As such, we particularly welcome applications from people who identify as Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, or Disabled. We believe that a diverse team better represents the communities we serve and brings a wealth of perspectives and experiences to our work.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Deputy Head Orthoptist to join our friendly team at Sherwood Forest Hospitals on a fixed term basis.
As Deputy Head Orthoptist, you will play a pivotal role in providing high-quality care and support to our patients. The primary location for this role is at King's Mill Hospital where you will work in a dynamic, multidisciplinary environment that values your expertise and skills.
This role will also involve travel to Newark Hospital and Ashfield Health Village, offering you the opportunity to expand your scope of practice and contribute to patient care in various settings. You will be responsible for assessing and treating a range of orthoptic conditions, managing complex cases and providing a high standard of patient care across different departments.
The post holder will deputise for the Head of Orthoptics and Low Vision in terms of professional leadership, clinical expertise, operational management and development of staff delivering Orthoptic and Optometry Services including extended roles. The role will also involve assisting in developing Orthoptic, Optometry, Low Vision services and Ophthalmology services, in a way that is responsive to changing needs and meeting requirements of clinical governance and risk management in line with new developments.
This position provides a unique opportunity to gain experience across multiple settings, enhancing both your clinical and leadership skills and expertise.
Main duties of the job
To understand the role in more detail, please refer to the attached job description and person specification.
Working for our organisation
We are an award-winning NHS Foundation Trust working alongside health and social care colleagues across the county to provide acute and community healthcare services to more than 420,000 people across Mansfield, Ashfield, Newark and Sherwood, and parts of Derbyshire and Lincolnshire.
We put the patient at the heart of everything that we do and it is our aim to make sure that every patient is treated as we would want a member of our own family to be treated. At the same time, we expect our staff to be caring, kind and courteous to each other and to look out for each other. We believe that we are truly a clinically-led organisation.
We are proud that our Trust colleagues have voted us the best acute Trust to work for in the East Midlands for seven years running in the National NHS Staff Survey, while the Care Quality Commission has rated our Trust as ‘outstanding’ for care and our King’s Mill Hospital as the only ‘outstanding’ NHS-run hospital in the East Midlands.
Not all of our roles are eligible for visa sponsorship. To find out which roles are eligible, please refer to the shortage occupation list found here:
Skilled Worker visa: eligible healthcare and education jobs - GOV.UK
Home Office guidance has changed as of 9th April. Anyone that requires switching visa type may not be eligible for sponsorship even if the role is on the shortage occupation list.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
To understand the role in more detail, please refer to the attached job description and person specification.
Person specification
Knowledge Requirements
Essential criteria
- Excellent communication skills with clear written and oral skills
- Experience of clinical leadership, supervising or managing staff, organisational abilities, supervisory skills
- Highly developed experience and specialist knowledge of working autonomously as an Orthoptist to a master’s level with ability to lead in at least one advanced speciality e.g. Low Vision or Orthoptic Led Stroke/ Neurology
- Experience of clinical teaching, supervising, mentoring/ preceptorship within an Orthoptic service
- Knowledge of service planning and development
- Knowledge and understanding of clinical governance
- Complex problem-solving skills
- IT competent including the use of hospital systems including ICE, Careflow, Medisight, ESR, e referrals
Desirable criteria
- Experience in Low vision clinics
- Experience of Biometry
- Experience in visual field testing and interpretation
- Experience of Orthoptic led Stroke/Neurology clinic
- Ability to use ordering systems
- Ability to use Trac or knowledge of recruitment systems
- Experience of investigating incidents/complaints
- Experience in contributing to rota management
- Experience of working with internal and external agencies
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Bachelor of Science in Orthoptics BSc(Orth), BmedSci(Orth), and/or Diploma from the British Orthoptic Council (DBO) or equivalent
- Registration with HCPC
- Master’s level or qualification or equivalent clinical specialist experience
- BIOS Clinical tutor qualification or equivalent
Desirable criteria
- Medical Exemptions Course
- Membership of British & Irish Orthoptic Society
- Master’s level or qualification or equivalent healthcare leadership experience
- Role of Clinical advisor on a BIOS extended role clinical advisory group
Further Training
Essential criteria
- Evidence of continued professional development within the Orthoptic / Ophthalmology speciality
- Leadership course/qualification
Desirable criteria
- Low Vision Therapy course
- Biometry training
- Stroke & Neurology training
- Teaching and assessing course
Experience
Essential criteria
- Highly developed clinical experience with a broad knowledge of the Orthoptic service
- Experience in leading and supporting Orthoptic staff with audit and/ or service evaluations
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of clinical leadership
- Evidence of Operational management
- Evidence of working in extended roles
- Experience of Orthoptic or Ophthalmology research
Contractual Requirements
Essential criteria
- Ability to assist in leading the Orthoptic and low vision services
- Ability to travel between all hospital sites
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
- Lucy Davis
- Job title
- Head of Orthoptics & Low Vision Service
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07825866704
- Additional information
or 07768615247
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