Job summary
- Main area
- Orthoptic
- Grade
- Band 7
- Contract
- Fixed term: 12 months (The post is to cover Maternity leave for a 12 month period)
- Hours
- Full time
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 381-SS-7604603
- Employer
- Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- SWB NHS Trust-Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre
- Town
- Birmingham
- Salary
- £47,810 - £54,710 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 11/03/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Senior Orthoptist
Band 7
Here at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust we’re committed to recruiting and supporting a diverse workforce and we welcome applications from all parts of the community. We are committed to having a team that is made up of diverse skills, experiences and abilities whilst employing people to our organisation who meet our Trust values of ambition, respect and compassion. With the opening of our new hospital, Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, it’s the coming together of expertise from every corner of our organisation and a show of our commitment to provide better healthcare and create more jobs and so much more. We at the Trust actively encourage Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) and disabled applicants, as well as members of the armed forces community and value the positive impact that difference has on our teams. We are committed to equality and diversity within our workforce.
Job overview
The Orthoptic service at Sandwell and West Birmingham are looking for a Band 7 Orthoptist to cover a 12 month period of Maternity leave. You will be joining a team of 13 Orthoptists and 9 Ophthalmic technicians based at the Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre.
The Orthoptic team deliver clinical services in three acute locations - Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre, Sandwell and Midland Metropolitan Hospitals in additional to four out-reach clinics and Primary Vision Screening located in schools in Sandwell and west Birmingham.
The clinical roles and responsibilities of this post are complex and require the knowledge, skills and experience of a highly specialist Orthoptist. The Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre is a tertiary eye centre with a large A&E service which refers directly to the Orthoptic team. We also provide in-patient Stroke and Neuro-ophthalmology services.
The team focus on evidence-based care with a strong ethos of lifelong learning. Staff are valued and given the opportunity to learn and develop their knowledge and skills within a supported learning environment.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will be required to provide highly specialist clinical services to the Neuro-ophthalmology, A&E and specialist Paediatric services. This will include the ability to perform a comprehensive range of investigative procedures including Humphrey and Goldmann visual fields, Ocular Coherence Tomography in addition to a full range of orthoptic specific assessments.
As a highly specialist Orthoptist you will be managing patient referred from the Ophthalmic Accident and Emergency service and out-patient referrals from a range of ophthalmic sub-specialities including Oculo-plastics, Orbital and Paediatric as part of a diverse caseload.
Senior colleagues are on hand to support and develop your skills and knowledge and encourage you to provide support to junior colleagues and undergraduate Orthoptists on clinical placement to the Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre..
You will be responsible for delivering high quality clinical care in line with evidence-based practice and national guidelines in order to practice safely and effectively in accordance with the HCPC Standards of Proficiency, Code of Ethics and Standards or CPD.
Working for our organisation
Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust (SWB) serves Birmingham and the Black Country – one of the country’s most culturally diverse areas. It’s a friendly and welcoming place – a place where you can belong, and a place where you can grow.
We care for our patients, we care about our population, and we care about our people.
Our values – Ambition, Respect and Compassion – are at the heart of who we are. They guide us every step of the way; how we work with each other, and how we look after our patients and their families; how we respect and value the rich diversity of our team and our community.
Our Trust has always aspired to be more than a hospital, more than a healthcare provider. Our purpose is to “Improve the Life Chances and Health Outcomes of our Population.” It is what inspires, drives, and unites us every day. It’s what makes us unique.
We want working at SWB to feel like more than just a job. We want our Trust to be a place where you can feel you belong. A place where you feel happy, safe, and rewarded. A place where you can develop your career in whatever way you choose. When we say we’re ‘with you all the way’ we want you to know that we mean it. Visit the SWB website to find out more about our ambitions and people plans.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
For further information about this role, please see the attached job description and person specification.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Significant experience in all aspects of clinical orthoptics involving specialist services, paediatrics, neurology, community, glaucoma.
- Demonstrable experience in a leadership role – lead clinician for a service area
- To have experience of visual field assessment
- Ability to use Microsoft WORD, EXCEL, POWERPOINT and be proficient in keyboard use
Desirable criteria
- Some post graduate clinical experience with the assessment of visual fields
- Some post graduate experience with trauma, neuro ophthalmology and specialised paediatrics
Experience
Essential criteria
- Bachelor of Science in Orthoptics BSc (Orth) or Bmed Sci (Orthoptics) and or Diploma of the British Orthoptic Council
- To be registered with the Health Professions Council
- Post graduate British and Irish Orthoptic Society Clinical Educators Course or British Orthoptic Society Clinical Demonstrators Course
- Post Graduate 730 7 City and Guilds Teaching in Further Education Teachers Course or equivalent.
- NHS management qualification or appropriate experiential learning to enable the post holder to deputise for the Head Orthoptist during annual leave and other short periods of absence
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
Application numbers
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Rosie Auld
- Job title
- Interim Head Orthoptist
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 0121 507 6852
- Additional information
Orthoptic department 0121 507 6829
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