Main area Oncology Grade NHS AfC: Band 4 Contract 12 months (Secondment/Fixed term contract for 12 months. All existing NHS staff will only be considered on a secondment basis.) Hours Part time - 21 hours per week Job ref 190-1043-DIR
Employer Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Cancer Clinical Trials Centre Town Sheffield Salary £27,485 - £30,162 per annum pro rata for part time staff Salary period Yearly Closing 23/11/2025 23:59 Interview date 03/12/2025
Clinical Trials Laboratory Assistant
NHS AfC: Band 4
We are committed to helping our staff balance their work and home lives and ensure they feel supported, valued and appreciated so whilst you care for our patients and clients, we’ll take care of you. We offer many different ways of helping staff including career development opportunities, flexible working, good annual leave and pension schemes , health and wellbeing packages and financial support systems. Joining the Trust also allows you access to a number of saving options via our salary sacrifice schemes and a wide range of discount opportunities with retailers and service providers.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a part time position as a Clinical Trials Laboratory Assistant. The post holder will be a member of the Sheffield Cancer Clinical Trial Centre (CCTC), based at Weston Park Cancer Centre.
The CCTC is a specially equipped unit with a Clinical Research Unit (CRU) to deliver research treatments to patients. It is devoted to ensuring that research is conducted to the highest standards and providing research participants with excellent quality of care.
Main duties of the job
Under the direction of the CCTC Matron and the Laboratory Manager the Clinical Trial Lab Assistant will:
- Assist the department to provide a professional clinical trial laboratory service for the benefit of patients, users, and staff within CCTC.
- Assist the department in delivering a range of scientific work demanding skilled performance working with some autonomy but within the overall responsibility of the CCTC Laboratory Manager and the CCTC Manager.
- Be required to help with the creation and maintenance of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), equipment repair, maintenance, and calibration, and be involved with systems and processes related to fridge/freezer alarms and out-of-hours laboratory storage and back-up solutions.
- The Clinical Trial Lab Assistant can under the direction of the CCTC Matron/Research Nurse Team Leader to organise, manage and prioritise their own administrative caseload of clinical trials.
Working for our organisation
You will be working for an organisation which values and respects all its staff and the community it serves. The Trust is a leader in the NHS and research sectors and provides excellent benefits for its staff. This includes commitments to professional development but also many policies to support employees in balancing their personal and professional lives.
This vacancy is advertised on a fixed term contract basis for a period of 12 months due to the post being externally funded. The fixed term contract status of the post holder will be reviewed in accordance with the Trust's legal obligations regarding fixed term contracts taking into consideration the ongoing source of the external funding and the requirement for the post to be maintained.
Please also note any secondment must first be agreed with your current line manager.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please view the attached Job Description and Person Specification documents for full details regarding this post.
When completing your application please ensure that you clearly demonstrate how you meet the role criteria.
Person specification
Education and Qualifications
- Educated to GCSE English and Maths at grade C/4 or above or equivalent experience/ qualifications
- Educated to ‘A ‘ level standard or equivalent experience/ qualifications
- Possess or be working towards a degree, preferably health science or science related
- Good Clinical Practice Certificate
Experience
- Experience of working in a laboratory setting
- Experience of pre-analytical lab processes
- Experience of data entry
- Experience of working in a healthcare setting
Skills and Knowledge
- IT skills including use of MS Office applications and databases
- Capable of working with hazardous high-risk samples and daily exposure to infectious material/hazardous chemicals
- Capable of repetitive movements when processing/analysing samples
- Knowledge of GCP, Good Laboratory Practice and Research Governance
- Willing to undertake training in clinical skills: Phlebotomy ECG Recording Laboratory practice
Personal Qualities
- Effective communication skills both written and verbal
- Effective time management skills and ability to prioritise and work to conflicting deadlines
- Organised, methodical with excellent attention to detail
- Ability to understand and follow complex Laboratory Manuals and Standard Operating procedures (SOPs)
- Ability to work effectively as part of a Team
- Ability to work flexibly when required
Please note that in order to comply with the UK Government’s rules on Skilled Worker sponsorship, any applicants who do not meet the eligibility requirements or concessions on salary thresholds under the Skilled Worker visa will not be eligible to receive sponsorship from the Trust. Please keep this in mind when submitting your application. Further details on these concessions, and who qualifies for them, can be found here .
Candidates are advised to read the attached guidance on using AI technology. When you complete your application, you are required to declare that the information in your application form is true and complete. The personal statement is exactly that; personal.
When selecting to apply via NHS Jobs, you will be redirected to our preferred recruitment system called Trac. You will be asked to create and submit your application via the Trac recruitment system.
You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website. All communications should be sent via your Trac system account.
If you are offered employment at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals your information will be transferred from the Trac recruitment system into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system. In addition, in submitting an application form, you authorise our Trust to confirm any previous NHS service details via the ESR IAT process should you be appointed.
Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email sent via the Trac recruitment system, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there.
The Trust is committed to its obligations in accordance with the Equality Act 2010, and we positively encourage applications from all sections of the community. Should you require any assistance in applying for the position please contact the General or Medical Human Resources Departments on the number identified on the NHS Jobs page for the organisation.
Job Share applicants are welcome for all full time posts unless indicated but cannot be guaranteed. In addition for Fixed Term Contracts, internal secondments may be considered, please seek the approval of your current line manager before applying for the position.
All employment with the Trust is subject to a number of NHS Employment Checks being met to a satisfactory standard including verification of identity, eligibility to work in the United Kingdom, references and qualifications in addition to professional registration, a disclosure and barring records check and occupational health check if these are deemed to be a requirement for the position to be undertaken.
For more information about our organisation and the opportunities available, please visit our website and follow us on Twitter and Facebook
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
