Lead Pharmacy Technician

Great things are happening in our Hospital Pharmacy Services across University Hospitals Liverpool Group (UHLG). UHLG is one of the largest and most complex NHS organisations in the UK, serving a large, diverse and deprived population.

We are seeking a motivated and experienced Lead Pharmacy Technician for Technical Services to join our dynamic pharmacy team at Liverpool Women's Hospital (LWH). This is a fantastic opportunity to step into a pivotal leadership role following the departure of the current postholder.

As Lead Pharmacy Technician for Technical Services, you will lead our technical team across the LWH site. This is a senior leadership opportunity for an inspiring professional ready to drive innovation, efficiency, and patient-centred care. You'll be a role model for excellence, with strong interpersonal skills and a passion for collaborative improvement. Your leadership will ensure the right medicines reach the right patients at the right time, while fostering a culture of continuous development. Join us at an exciting time as we build on the legacy of our outgoing Lead Technician and continue to evolve our services to meet future challenges. If you're ready to shape the future of pharmacy services in a progressive NHS environment, we'd love to hear from you.

As the most senior Pharmacy Technician across the LWH Pharmacy service you will support and assist the Chief Pharmacist and Deputy Chief Pharmacist in the strategic and operational management and development of the pharmacy department at LWH.

In this role the postholder will line manage pharmacy technical and support staff, including workload allocation, performance, recruitment and selection of staff, career development and sickness absence management.

The post holder will also:

• Provide leadership of the pharmacy dispensing service and clinical pharmacy technical service delivered at ward level within site including business and strategic planning and the development and continuous improvement of patient care processes.
• Provide a visible, accessible and authoritative presence across the dispensary service in order that staff, patients and their families can have confidence and seek advice and support.
• Be responsible for ensuring that systems are in place to control the dispensing and distribution of medicines safely, effectively, efficiently and in compliance with all relevant legislation, guidance and other relevant policies.

For further details see the job description.

For informal enquiries , please contact:

Dan Collins , Deputy Chief Pharmacist –

Informal visits to the department are also welcomed and encouraged.

Liverpool Women's NHS FT became part of NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group (UHLG) in November 2024, following the coming together with Liverpool University Hospitals NHS FT. UHLG was born from a shared aim to improve the care we provide to our patients.

UHLG is one of the largest employers in the region, with over 16,800 colleagues who are dedicated to caring for our communities - from birth and beyond. For the 630,000 people across Merseyside, UHLG is also their local NHS, providing general and emergency hospital care, alongside highly specialised regional services for more than two million people in the North West.

At Liverpool Women's Hospital, each year we deliver approximately 7,500 babies, carry out around 50,000 gynaecological inpatient and outpatient procedures, care for over 1,000 poorly and premature newborns, perform around 1,000 IVF cycles, and conduct over 4,000 genetic appointments.

We believe that this, along with a strong dedication to research and innovation, makes us the specialist health provider of choice in Europe for women, babies and families.

Job Summary

The post holder will support and assist the Chief Pharmacist and Deputy Chief Pharmacist in the strategic and operational management and development of the pharmacy department at LWH.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership of the pharmacy dispensing service and clinical pharmacy technical service delivered at ward level within site including business and strategic planning and the development and continuous improvement of patient care processes.
• Provide a visible, accessible and authoritative presence across the dispensary service in order that staff, patients and their families can have confidence and seek advice and support.
• Responsible for ensuring that systems are in place to control the dispensing and distribution of medicines safely, effectively, efficiently and in compliance with all relevant legislation, the Trust Medicines Management Policy and other relevant policies.
• Ensure the pharmacy department is adequately staffed 7 days a week with technical staff at all times by overseeing rotas and workload allocation, leading on recruitment and selection of locums, reviewing shift patterns and forward planning services for staff within the teams. Manage service provision at weekends, evenings and bank holidays for dispensary staff.

Responsible for ensuring intelligent drug cupboards are managed appropriately.

• Responsible for ensuring any change to medicines storage arrangements are aligned with LWH agreed standards.
• Responsible for the performance and personal development of dispensary staff by way of check ins, appraisals, service improvement objectives and personal development plans.
• Lead on ensuring all HR policies and procedures are adhered to for all dispensary staff including attendance capability and disciplinary policy.
• Responsible for ensuring robust business continuity plans are in place for the pharmacy dispensing service.
• Responsible for the safe and cost effective procurement and storage of drugs and ensure that national, regional contracts are followed for purchasing where applicable.

Duties and Key Tasks

Clinical / Operational

• Manage patient specific dispensing, medicines supply to wards and maintaining systems for the control of medicines in accordance with current legislation.
• Manage the clinical technical staff who take medication histories on wards and provide a dispensing service involving assessing medicines suitability for safe reuse.
• Counsel and educate patients and their carers on the correct use of their medication and assess their understanding of medicines prescribed, particularly in situations with complex dosing regimens or preparations that require manipulation to administer.
• Be responsible for ensuring pharmaceutical resources (staff, time and medicine stock) are used effectively.
• Analyse and interpret requirements for ward based technical, dispensary and operational services, including staffing and service issues.
• Facilitate the implementation of national guidelines appropriate to medicine.
• Support the pharmacy in reporting, investigating and learning from medication incidents.

Leadership / management

• Act as line manager for the technical pharmacy and support staff employed within the department.
• Complete appropriate work-based assessments of technical pharmacy staff to provide on-going assurance of their competence. Manage departmental workload and allocation of staff to duties.
• Undertake individual appraisal and objective setting with technical pharmacy staff, managing sickness absence, disciplinary and grievance, recruitment and selection decisions in line with department and Trust objectives.
• Develop and implement training packages to support the training and development of pharmacy staff.
• Work independently within appropriate guidelines, referring to manager when necessary.
• Act as a role model for more junior members of the pharmacy department.
• Support the senior pharmacy managers in developing and implementing the strategic goals of the department.

Assist in the writing of procedures and policies to support safe systems of work in accordance with legal, risk management and clinical governance strategies.

• Manage freedom of information requests coming through the pharmacy and cascading them if necessary.
• Represent the pharmacy service on relevant Trust and external committees.

Education and Training

• Lead the training and development program for technical and support staff.
• Performance manage all technical and support staff as appropriate.
• Work with external education providers to deliver and assess relevant course for technical staff.
• Participate in Continuing Professional Development as required to meet the requirements for revalidation as laid out by the General Pharmaceutical Council.
• Lead medicines management audits across the Trust and produce reports for the appropriate committees.
• Represent the Trust at the Regional Pharmacy Technical Support Group meeting.

Clinical Governance/Quality

• Represent the pharmacy department at relevant committees including Health and Safety, Information Governance and operational board meetings.
• Assist the senior team in investigating complaints, provision of suitable responses and ensure remedial action is taken.
• Assist the senior team on Risk Management issues ensuring technical and support staff are aware of their responsibilities under Health and Safety legislation and that they are appropriately trained and provided with any necessary protective equipment to carry out their function.
• Undertake regular Personal Development Reviews of technical and pharmacy support staff. Ensure appraisers fulfil their responsibilities and monitor compliance with development review.
• Ensure all technical staff comply with professional registration requirements.
• Ensure all technical and support staff comply with mandatory training requirements.

General Responsibilities

• Ensure that all rotas for operation of the service are in place.
• Manage the dispensary house-keeping duties on a day to day basis.
• Authorisation of annual leave for technical and support staff.
• Ensure bank staff hours and sickness absences are conveyed appropriately in order for SVL to be updated.
• Authorised signatory of invoices payable up to £5000.
• Ensure in-house induction program is delivered to all new technical and support staff.
• Ensure return to work training and competencies is delivered for all long term absences including maternity leave.
• Undertake any duties required by the Chief or Deputy Chief Pharmacist, commensurate with the grade of the post.
• Comply with the legal and other requirements related to the purchase, supply, use, safe custody and destruction of medicines within the pharmacy and in all other clinical areas of the hospital, reporting any areas of concern to the Chief or Deputy Chief Pharmacist.
• Maintain safe systems of work under relevant current and future legislation e.g. COSHH, Health and Safety at Work Act, Medicines Act.
• Ensure technical and support staff follow and understand relevant HR policies.