As an organisation we recognise the value of a healthy work-life balance. When applying, speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate flexible working, so your work life fits around your home life.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates as they are under-represented within the Trust.

Click on this link to find out about our values https://www.uhbw.nhs.uk/p/about-us/our-trust-values

Job overview

The Head of the Dental Production Laboratories is responsible for the safe, efficient, and effective management of the three dental production laboratories (Prosthetics, Conservation, and Orthodontics), and to ensure the manufacture and delivery of dental appliances in undergraduate, postgraduate teaching and NHS service delivery. This is an exciting time to join Bristol Dental Hospital, as we have recently invested in new technologies as part of our Digital Strategy, and this presents a great opportunity to lead on modernising our laboratory practices. 

Main duties of the job

The post holder will lead the development and implementation of new technologies in the laboratories to ensure a modern and efficient service is provided. You will line manage the Chief Technicians within the Laboratories, providing leadership and management to the Production Laboratories. You will also be responsible for delivery capital projects in conjunction with the Deputy Divisional Director. 

You will also take a leading role for Health & Safety and compliance with other statutory requirements, and be responsible for managing an NHS consumables budget with an expectation to manage and deliver efficiencies in line with Trust spending priorities.

Working for our organisation

University Hospitals Bristol & Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, with a workforce of over 13,000 staff and 100+ different clinical services across 10 sites, serving a population of over 500,000 people across Bristol and Weston. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as ‘Good’ overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to patients. As a forward-thinking multi-award winning Trust, committed to improving patient care, our world-leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact.

Join us and you can enjoy city living, be in the countryside or by the seaside, with easy access to all the South West offers. UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.

As an equal opportunities employer, actively working towards a diverse workforce, we aim to create a workforce that represents the diversity of our community and are committed to designing our services around the needs of patients and their loved ones. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.

It is important that you are aware that you may need to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19, for all patient facing roles and roles within patient facing areas (unless there is a clear medical reason or where there are other exceptional circumstances such as no requirement for occasional patient contact).

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For a more detailed job description and main responsibilities, please refer to the job description document attached to this vacancy.

Person specificationQualifications and TrainingEssential criteriaA nationally recognised, registerable qualification in dental technology (BSc degree, BTEC, City and Guilds Final certificate or equivalent) plus at least one advanced qualification in dental technology (HND /HNC, City and Guilds Advanced Certificate or MSc)Registrant of General Dental Council (GDC) and committed to CPDDesirable criteriaPostgraduate level qualification or equivalent in at least one field in Dental TechnologyLeadership and Management training to FHEQ level 5 (Foundation Degree, HND, DHE)Willingness to obtain any further qualification relevant to postKnowledge and ExperienceEssential criteriaTechnically adept with a broad experience of producing a range of routine and specialist technical work in a dental production laboratoryUnderstanding of regulations and national codes of practice and the implications of non-complianceProven management experience including dealing with HR and performance issues, and development of staffSignificant post registration experience in relevant field in dental/dental teaching hospital settingEvidence of influencing members of the multidisciplinary teamEvidence of undertaking audit and service improvement methodology to progress dental technology and impact on patient careEvidence of line management experience and performance review of members of staffDesirable criteriaExperience as a Dental Laboratory Manager in dental/dental teaching hospital SettingExperience of working effectively with management committee structures in a public sector environmentSignificant experience in a management positionExperience of managing policy implementation and change managementExperience of researching projects, producing detailed reports and defending business casesAwareness of the current and future activities of the Healthcare and Higher Education SectorSkills and AbilitiesEssential criteriaProven communication and interpersonal skills in a leadership positionProven ability to interact effectively at all levels and with a wide range of internalExperience of business and financial planning and staff managementExperience of successfully project managing and facilitating service changeHighly developed specialist knowledge and the ability to work with a high degree of precision, speed, and manual dexterityAbility to plan, deliver and report audit and quality improvement projects.Ability to process complex patient information to design and develop the most appropriate appliances.Ability to effectively manage and prioritise own workload and that of others, delivering to deadlines with minimal supervisionAbility to work autonomously and to make clinically based judgements when designing an appliance.Excellent presentation skills and experience in the education and training of members of staff.Ability to recognise limitations of own experience and willingness to seek expert advice where appropriateDesirable criteriaBroad sector/commercial awareness through a comprehensive network of external contacts and external contacts, dealing with highly complex issuesDetailed knowledge of UHBW Policies and proceduresProject management experience including change managementExperience of preparing business cases and budget managementAptitudesEssential criteriaProven Leadership skills - ability to lead and develop specialist technical support staff, support and be part of a high performing team of managers. Ability to influence academics, clinicians and senior managerial staffFinancial - Sound financial training and experience sufficient to manage and control significant budgetsFlexibility/Initiative – ability to adapt to changing priorities and timescalesProven analytical and problem solving capabilityExperience of managing complex issuesExperience of managing organisational change and implementing new technologiesEffective written and verbal communication skills with patients and other dental/health care professionalsAbility to prioritise own workload and service workloadAbility to form working relationships with a wide variety of people and to work as an effective team memberAbility to apply technical knowledge to clinical situations and to tailor the information to suit the recipient. Ability to deal sensitively and confidentially with all patient information/details.Flexibility with working hours/base to meet the needs of the service and patientsAbility to travel to any location where the delivery of dental services is undertaken.

We hope that you will decide to join us and become part of this exciting journey, helping us to shape our future together.

· As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.

· The Trust is committed to investing in and caring for all our staff. We will support you in maintaining and improving your health and wellbeing, as well as your career development through management and training support - developing exceptional people for exceptional careers.

· UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults.

· To comply with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016 all applicants must be able to speak fluent English to an appropriate standard which will be assessed at Interview.

· If you require sponsorship for a visa to work in the UK, to avoid disappointment, please check to ensure you are eligible under the UKVI points based system.

· The Trust uses electronic new starter forms on Trac to collect personal details. Information collected is securely stored and used to set up the employee record on the ESR HR system.

· By applying for this post, you are agreeing to University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

· Please be aware of scams – unless specified above, we will only communicate with you via @recruit.trac.jobs or nhs.net e-mails and we will never ask you for any payments.

IMPORTANT:

Please note that if you apply for a position with this Trust, you may be contacted via Trac or via email. This includes invites for job interviews. We therefore recommend that you regularly check your Trac account and email accounts. We may also contact you by texting the mobile number, if provided, on the application form.

Due to the high number of applications that are received for some posts we may close this vacancy before the advertised closing date. Therefore, please apply for this post as soon as you can, if you are interested and you meet the requirements of the Person Specification

Only those candidates who clearly demonstrate how they meet the person specification will be shortlisted for this job.

As a guide interviews should usually take place within 3 weeks of the closing date.

When providing employment reference details, please provide correct work-related email addresses so references can be sought promptly when we are looking to progress your application. Your referee must all be known to you in a line manager or professional lead capacity.