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Job summary

Main area
Pharmacy
Grade
NHS AfC: Band 8b
Contract
Permanent: + EDC and weekend working
Hours
  • Full time
  • Flexible working
  • Compressed hours
34.5 hours per week (+ EDC and weekend/bank holiday working on a rostered basis)
Job ref
421-LTUCC-3507C
Employer
Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Harrogate General Hospital
Town
Harrogate
Salary
£64,455 - £74,896 pa pro rata + EDC
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
22/12/2025 23:59
Interview date
08/01/2026

Employer heading

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust logo

Lead Pharmacist - Medicines Quality and Safety (MSO)

NHS AfC: Band 8b

Job overview

Looking for a new challenge in 2026?

 Looking to be part of a team that is focussed on medicines quality and safety?

 Looking for a strategic leadership role that provides you an opportunity to work with a wide range of stakeholders across different professions?

 Looking to be part of a team that lives by the Trust values of kindness, integrity, teamwork and equality?

 We have an exciting opportunity for a highly experienced pharmacist to work at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust as an integral member of the Trust Medicines Quality and Safety Group to lead the delivery of medicines safety initiatives across the organisation.

 The successful candidate will act as the Trust’s Medicines Safety Officer and Professional Secretary to the Trust Medicines Quality and Safety Group.  You will have the required skills to lead and manage the provision of medicines quality and safety agenda, working closely with the Trust Quality and Safety leads to ensure medication safety, good reporting culture, learning from incidents and quality improvement is a priority across the Trust.  You will have the required skills to assess and manage risk, initiate and manage change and provide assurance around the safe use of medicines.  You must have a keen interest in education and training. 

Main duties of the job

       To be an active member of the Pharmacy Leadership Team providing strategic leadership to medicines optimisation and pharmacy services advising the Director of Pharmacy. 

·       To act as the Medication Safety Officer for the Trust and as Professional Secretary to the Trust Medicines Quality and Safety Group.

·       To take a lead role in the national MSO network.

·       To provide strategic leadership for medicines safety to the Trust and provide input at Trust level to the multidisciplinary agenda related to medication safety and risk reduction.

·       To support the Director of Pharmacy in the preparation for, and subsequent actions from, inspections from the Care Quality Commission

·       To be responsible for leading, developing, and planning the activities of the Pharmacy Quality of Care Group.

·       To lead in the development and implementation of risk reduction strategies on medicine management issues across the Trust.

·       To lead education and training in medication safety, learning from events and medicines management for Trust staff, and to identify training needs in order to embed medication safety in all aspects of the medication use process                 

To provide clinical pharmacy leadership to a named specialty in agreement with the post holder.         

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

For more information please see attached the job description and person specification.  For more information please contact the manager of the position. 

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • Registered supplementary or independent prescriber
  • Registered pharmacist with GPhC
  • Post-graduate qualification
  • Previous experience working at Advanced Practice level
  • Management or leadership experience
Desirable criteria
  • Quality improvement training
  • Experience of complaint management
  • Experience of investigating incidents
  • Experience of quality improvement initiatives
  • Experience of working across healthcare boundaries

Presentation skills

Essential criteria
  • Ability to present to senior stakeholders in an engaging way

Employer certification / accreditation badges

We are a Living Wage EmployerApprenticeships logoMenopause Friendly EmployerAge positiveHSJ Best places to workMindful employer.  Being positive about mental health.Disability confident employerNational Preceptorship for Nursing Quality MarkArmed Forces Covenant

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

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Kate Woodrow
Job title
Chief Pharmacist
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
01423 553164
Additional information

John Navis (current post holder)

[email protected]

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