Job summary
- Main area
- Procurement
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 7
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 195-25-240-TAM
- Employer
- South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Northern House
- Town
- Bicester
- Salary
- £46,148 - £52,809 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 29/06/2025 23:59
Employer heading

Procurement Category Manager
NHS AfC: Band 7
Job overview
Fancy an exciting challenge with an emerging and evolving Ambulance Trust Procurement Team? Can you demonstrate a tenacious, strategic mind-set along with the ability to juggle a large number of projects involving the continuous education of stakeholders and pushing the boundaries of effective public-sector wide and Ambulance sector collaboration?
Then look no further than the Procurement Team at SCAS!
The role provides strategic procurement support and outcomes to SCAS Corporate Services teams, providing Workforce, Corporate, and Professional Services category delivery and procurement solutions with an outcome focus, keeping whole life cost, NHS collaboration, and the procurement lifecycle at the centre of everything you do.
You will be an established procurement professional, ideally MCIPS, with evidence of continuous development, excellent category and stakeholder management skills, have an outcome focused, whole life costing approach, and evidence developing category plans which align with both divisional and corporate strategies and action plans.
Reporting to the Senior Procurement Category Manager, you will be responsible for strategic development and subsequent delivery of your category portfolio.
The challenge is substantial, but the opportunity and the rewards are great!
This is an office-based contract, there is currently a minimum requirement to be in the office one day a fortnight.
Main duties of the job
To support the Assistant Director of Procurement and Contracting in delivery of a strategic procurement service to the Trust on specific/allocated portfolio of sourcing categories and contribute significantly to the delivery of allocated procurement projects within key markets, ensuring contract compliance, suitability and cost improvements and a range of benefits across the Trust. To operate in accordance with Trust policy and procedures, while working on own initiative.
The post will deliver a service that facilitates delivery of products and services on time and at the lowest ultimate cost whilst focusing on whole life cost, and maintaining the highest level of probity, legislative and corporate compliance, and supporting delivery of patient care to the highest standard.
Please see Job Description and Person Specification for full details.
Working for our organisation
Benefits we offer:
- Full training and a range of courses which you can book locally.
- Holiday entitlement of 27 days, rising to 29 days after 5 years’ service and 33 days after 10 years’ service, plus an additional 8 days bank holiday (pro rata for part time).
- Automatic enrolment into the NHS Pension Scheme.
- Access to continual professional development within SCAS and the wider NHS.
- Occupational Health support and direct access to our Employee Assistance Programme as well as our own Health and Wellbeing Team.
- NHS Discounts in over 200 + stores saving money on holidays, days out, car insurance, restaurants, clothing and much more.
- Ability to join our staff networking groups (as a member, ally or just for interest).
Corporate Induction
It’s really important for us to ensure you have the best onboarding experience which allows you to feel a sense of belonging from the start. To help with this, we will book your Corporate Induction as soon as we possibly can (depending on availability).
All new starters need to attend our *Corporate Induction in person, this is held over one and half days from our educational centres based in: Newbury (Berkshire), Bicester (Oxfordshire) or Whiteley (Hampshire). More specific details will be sent to you once your start date has been confirmed.
*Please note – depending on your role additional training may be required following on from your corporate induction.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
1. To be responsible for the overall management and performance of a designated category area or areas in a category management approach to procurement.
2. To ensure procurement information is processed in accordance with procedures; investigating highly complex enquiries and providing assistance and advice as required, contributing to corporate reporting, providing strategic, procurement planning advice.
3. To prepares and complete statutory, NHS national procurement requirements and returns, ensuring that work is completed in line with required official timescales and legal requirements, interpreting these where necessary.
4. To engage and work with all relevant stakeholders to ensure that Trust requirements (appropriate to category areas of responsibility) are processed and transacted in accordance with Trust policy and procedures; through identification & creation of most appropriate strategy for the category area, requisitioning and purchase order placement processes, and associated purchase orders are raised in accordance with Trust policy and procedures and that such goods and services ordered are delivered to the right quality, quantity, time and price while working to ensure lowest total acquisition (whole-life) costs are achieved to the benefit of the Trust.
Please see Job Description and Person Specification for full details.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Full membership of a recognised CIPS procurement body, e.g. MCIPS.
- Training and experience in Supply Chain management
- Training and experience in Account & Category Management
Desirable criteria
- Training in Risk Assessment & Analysis
- Experienced in Procurement Contracting Law and Dispute Resolution
- Project Management (PRINCE2 or similar)
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Has significant experience in a procurement function.
- Advanced negotiation skills
- Specific knowledge of category areas and highly developed market understanding
- Highly developed finance & leasing knowledge
- Knowledge of National, International & EU procurement directives and UK legislation, including TUPE, Competition Act, Race Relations, Data Protection, GDPR, and more
Applicant requirements
This post will require a submission for Disclosure to be made to check for any unspent criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Ben Jones
- Job title
- Senior Procurement Category Manager
- Email address
- [email protected]
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