Skip to main content
Please wait, loading

Job summary

Main area
Dentistry
Grade
NHS Medical & Dental: Salaried Dentist - C
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Full time - 37.5 hours per week
Job ref
267-MSD7274445
Employer
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Littlemore Mental Health Centre
Town
Oxford
Salary
£101,434 - £116,573 per annum | pro rata
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
22/07/2026 23:59
Interview date
29/07/2026

Employer heading

Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust logo

Assistant Clinical Director - Dentistry

NHS Medical & Dental: Salaried Dentist - C

Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust has been rated as Good by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

We are a responsive and innovative Foundation Trust that places our values of Caring, Safe and Excellent at the heart of everything we do. We take great pride in our staff and believe that investing in you is key to us achieving our vision of outstanding care delivered by outstanding people.

We work with a wide range of partner organisations to deliver care and support to people in their own homes and from a number of hospitals and community bases. We focus on delivering care as close to home as possible.

Job overview

Are you an experienced and inspirational dentist ready to take the next step in your leadership career? Join Oxfordshire Community Dental Service as our Assistant Clinical Director (Dentistry) and play a pivotal role in shaping high-quality, patient-centred dental care across the county. This is a full-time role based at our headquarters in Oxford. 

This is a brilliant opportunity to combine clinical excellence with strategic leadership. Working alongside the Clinical Director, you will help lead a dedicated multidisciplinary team, drive service improvement, champion clinical governance, and support the delivery of outstanding care for patients with complex needs, including paediatric, special care and urgent dental services.

You'll have the opportunity to influence service development, mentor and develop colleagues, contribute to reducing health inequalities, and build strong partnerships across primary and secondary care. Alongside your leadership responsibilities, you'll continue to maintain an active clinical role, ensuring you remain connected to patient care.

We're looking for an enthusiastic, collaborative leader with significant clinical experience, excellent communication skills and a passion for delivering safe, innovative and compassionate dental services.

If you're ready to make a lasting impact on patients, colleagues and the future of community dentistry, we'd love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

  • Deputise for the Clinical Director (Dentistry) in the leadership and management of the Oxfordshire Community Dental Service across a range of sites and settings.
  • Assist with the strategic provision of oral and dental healthcare for the Trust and to champion the improvement of health inequalities of the population.
  • Assist with managing all clinical dental performers in the service while working in both primary and secondary care, and support with the management of contracts and service level agreements including those with secondary care providers such as general anaesthetics and medical physics.
  • Maintain an effective senior clinical role and will be required to provide clinical sessions for special care and paediatric patients as appropriate.
  • Provide professional and clinical advice to colleagues, service users, Boards, Committees and other stakeholders as required.
  • Deliver teaching and training to dental staff as required.

Interviews for this role are scheduled for Wednesday 29 July.

Working for our organisation

Oxford Health is a great place to work and to be able to showcase the best of yourself when making an application please read the “candidate guide to making an application” and ensure your supporting statement is tailored to the role you are applying for and addresses any essential criteria.

As a Trust we provide physical, mental health and social care for people of all ages across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath and Northeast Somerset. Our services are delivered at community bases, hospitals, clinics and people’s homes, delivering care as close to home as possible. Our vision is that no matter who you are or where you are, you will tell us that you receive: “Outstanding care delivered by an outstanding team”

Our values are: “Caring, safe and excellent”

We offer a wide range of benefits designed to support your career and wellbeing. These include:

•    Excellent opportunities for career progression
•    Access to tailored individual and Trust wide learning and development
•    27 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days with continuous service
•    NHS Discount across a wide range of shops, restaurants and retailers
•    Competitive pension scheme
•    Lease car scheme
•    Cycle to work scheme
•    Employee Assistance Programme
•    Mental Health First Aiders
•    Staff accommodation (please note waiting lists apply)
•    Staff networking and support groups hosted by our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion team

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Provide clinical and strategic leadership for the Community Dental Service
Support and deputise for the Clinical Director in leading and managing the Oxfordshire Community Dental Service across multiple sites, ensuring safe, effective and high-quality service

Maintain an active senior clinical role
Deliver specialist clinical care for patients with complex needs, including special care, paediatric and urgent care patients, while providing expert clinical advice to colleagues and stakeholders.

Lead and develop the workforce
Provide visible leadership through staff management, appraisals, job planning, performance management, teaching, training and supporting the professional development of dental teams.

Drive clinical governance and service improvement
Lead integrated governance, oversee quality assurance and clinical performance, ensure compliance with operational policies and KPIs, and contribute to the planning and delivery of high-quality, clinically effective services.

Build partnerships and influence service development
Work collaboratively with commissioners, secondary care providers and other stakeholders to support service planning, contract management, reduce health inequalities and improve patient outcomes across the county.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • A primary care dental qualification registrable with the General Dental Council
  • Full registration with the General Dental Council
  • Dental foundation training or equivalence or exemption from dental foundation training
  • Relevant post graduate qualification
  • Evidence of membership of professional organisations relevant to clinical area of expertise
Desirable criteria
  • Managerial qualification
  • Teaching qualification
  • Evidence of management and leadership training

Experience

Essential criteria
  • Evidence of significant recent clinical experience
  • Experience in treating a broad range of patients
  • Experience of CDS/GDS/HDS
  • Experience of staff management
  • Experience of teaching or supervising staff (therapists/dental officers/DCTs')
  • Relevant experience in clinical governance, quality assurance and audit
  • Experience of complaints and concerns management
Desirable criteria
  • Evidence of research and publications

Contractual requirements

Essential criteria
  • Have NHS performer number (on appropriate list required for Trust dentistry services)
  • Have enhance DBS as working with children and vulnerable adults
  • Hold a full UK driving licence and have use of a car
  • Ability to travel independently between sites within the Trust
  • Ability to travel to multiple sites
  • Able to work flexibly
  • Willing and able to work out of hours

Knowledge

Essential criteria
  • Knowledge of wider dental agenda
  • Knowledge of primary care dental services commissioning
  • Knowledge of clinical governance agenda
  • Political awareness

Skills

Essential criteria
  • Excellent communication skills
  • Excellent team working
  • Provides visible leadership
  • Open and inclusive attitude
  • Good timekeeping and deadline skills
  • Involvement in staff training and development
  • Able to work flexibly with role and to organise and prioritise own workload
  • Good IM&T knowledge and skills
  • Able to maintain standards of service delivery
  • Ability to deal with sensitive information and respect confidentiality
  • Good office skills and maintenance of records

Personal qualities

Essential criteria
  • Able to work as part of a team
  • Enthusiastic, resilient and able to work under pressure
  • Good professional conduct and appearance
  • Commitment to high ethical standards
  • Willing to work flexible hours

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Apprenticeships logoNo smoking policyPositive about disabled peopleCare quality commission - GoodArmed Forces Covenant Gold AwardMindful employer.  Being positive about mental health.Disability confident employerStep into healthNHS 75th BirthdayDefence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) - Gold

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
Sarah Buckingham
Job title
Clinical Director (Dentistry)
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
01865 904040
Apply online nowAlert me to similar vacancies