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UK Health Security Agency

About
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will be responsible for planning, preventing and responding to external health threats, and providing intellectual, scientific and operational leadership at national and local level, as well as on the global stage. UKHSA will ensure the nation can respond quickly and at greater scale to deal with pandemics and future threats.
Contact
- Address
- 10 South Colonnade
- London
- E14 4PU
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Senior Clinical Fellow NMRS
Accepting applications until: 01-Sep-2025 23:59
Vacancy status: Open
Accepting applications until: 01-Sep-2025 23:59
Key details
Location
- Site
- Birmingham Public Health Laboratory or Colindale, London / Hybrid
- Address
- Heartlands Hospital, Bordesley Green East, Birmingham, or 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ
- Town
- Birmingham
- Postcode
- B9 5SS
- Major / Minor Region
- London
Contract type & working pattern
- Contract
- 12 months (12-month fixed term appointment)
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Job share
- Flexible working
Salary
- Grade
- NHS Medical & Dental: Specialty Registrar
Specialty
- Main area
- Specialist Microbiology and Laboratories
The United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is a system leader for health security; taking action internationally to strengthen global health security, providing trusted advice to government and the public and reducing inequalities in the way different communities experience and are impacted by infectious disease, environmental hazards, and other threats to health.
UKHSA’s remit, as an agency with a global-to-local reach, is to protect the health of the nation from infectious diseases and other external threats to health. As the nation’s expert national health security agency UKHSA will:
- Prevent: anticipate threats to health and help build the nation’s readiness, defences and health security
- Detect: use cutting edge environmental and biological surveillance to proactively detect and monitor infectious diseases and threats to health
- Analyse: use world-class science and data analytics to assess and continually monitor threats to health, identifying how best to control and mitigate the risks
- Respond: take rapid, collaborative and effective actions nationally and locally to mitigate threats to health when they materialise
- Lead: lead strong and sustainable global, national, regional and local partnerships designed to save lives, protect the nation from public health threats and reduce inequalities.
Job overview
This is an excellent opportunity to work in UKHSA’s world-leading National Mycobacterial Reference Service (NMRS). The successful candidate will be part of an innovative and supportive team delivering whole-genome sequencing for TB as a routine diagnostic service for clinical and public health use. This is a fixed term appointment until August 2026, for applicants who have completed IMT / CMT or at ST 3-7, allowing the post-holder to develop expertise in genomic microbiology and mycobacteriology, with exciting possibilities for being involved in and developing research projects.
The principal activities of the service include provision of a Mycobacterial Reference Service based on Whole Genome Sequencing for identification of Mycobacterium species isolates. The NMRS provides information and advice to clinical and public health teams for the identification and investigation of outbreaks and TB transmission. Our activities support surveillance activity for TB in the UK.
The successful applicant will be expected to participate fully in the clinical service provision (supervised by consultants) of the laboratory.
Further details of qualifications required, and duties of the post-holder can be found in the person specification.
Advert
The National Mycobacterial Reference Service (NMRS) is part of an integrated, scientifically-led TB unit incorporating Consultant and Clinical Scientist Microbiologists, clinical infection specialists, bioinformaticians, infectious diseases and public health physicians, as well TB nursing staff and other allied disciplines, including support staff.
The unit is at the forefront of genomic pathogen surveillance, one of UKHSA’s key areas of interest, having pioneered genomic pathogen surveillance as clinical service. Uniquely, our laboratory processes impact both on real-time clinical care, including the most complex cases of drug resistant TB, on the investigation of TB transmission, and on the formulation of policy to control TB in the medium and long term.
The two NMRS laboratories, in Birmingham, at Heartlands Hospital in the UKHSA Birmingham Public Health Laboratory, and in London at UKHSA Colindale, provide reference mycobacteriology services for NHS labs across England. The service deployed Whole Genome Sequencing between 2016-2018 in England for identification of mycobacteria and drug resistance prediction and determination of relatedness for members of M tuberculosis complex and its application to 4-5,000 isolates received from NHS labs per annum.
Please see attached Job Description for further details.
Working for our organisation
We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.
UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The post-holder will be expected to contribute, with the support of senior colleagues, to the routine clinical functioning of the laboratory. This will include, but is not limited to:
- Advising clinical and public health colleagues on the selection of diagnostic tests and interpretation of results (molecular, genomic and conventional).
- Clinical authorisation of results and participation in weekly multidisciplinary meetings to discuss complex cases and laboratory results.
- Initiation of and participation in clinical audit.
- Liaison with public health teams in outbreaks and incidents.
- Postgraduate teaching of medical and biomedical scientist trainees.
- In addition, dependent on the post-holder’s experience and interests, there will be opportunities to participate in tuberculosis and non-tuberculous mycobacteria outpatient clinics, TB cohort reviews and other clinical activities by arrangement.
- Ensure that the epidemiology, surveillance and monitoring of communicable disease covered by your service is of the highest standard.
Please refer to the attached Job Description for further details and the full essential criteria for the role.
Other Information
External - Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants)
Applicants are strongly advised to use the criteria in the Person Specification of the Job Description as sub-headings in their application to make it clear how they meet each of the selection criteria.
Stage 1: Application & Sift
You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on essential criteria, and this will be in the form of
• Application form (‘Employer/ Activity history’ section on the application)
• a (1500) word Statement of Suitability.
This should outline how you consider your skills, experience, and knowledge, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.
The Application form and Statement of Suitability will be marked together.
Unfortunately, late applications will not be considered .
If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview & assessment
Please do not exceed 1500 words. We will not consider any words over and above this number.
Feedback will not be provided at this stage.
Stage 2: Interview
You will be invited to a remote interview.
Knowledge, experience, skills & abilities will be tested at interview .
A 5 minute presentation will be required, the subject will be provided prior to interview. Visual aids / slides will not be used.
Interviews will be held week commencing 26th September 2025. Please note, this date is subject to change.
Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.
Inclusion in the GMC Full and Specialist Register with a license to practice (or be eligible for registration within six months of interview) is required.
Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.
This role is being offered as lab based at our Scientific Campus at Colindale or at our lab in Birmingham.
If based at one of our scientific campuses or labs, you will be required to have a Counter Terrorism Check security vetting check as a minimum. For meaningful National Security Vetting checks to be carried out individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years as the role requires Counter Terrorism Check (CTC) clearance. In exceptional circumstances UK residency less than the outlined periods may not necessarily bar you from gaining national security vetting and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.
IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Link below:
Artificial intelligence and recruitment | Civil Service Careers
This is a Non-Reserved post under the Civil Service Nationality Rules. To be eligible for employment in the UK Civil Service applicants must meet the Civil Service Nationality Rules (CSNRs) which operate independently of and additionally to the Immigration Rules. Applicants must also meet necessary security and vetting requirements, along with any other relevant pre-employment checks.
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
- individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
- Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
For more information on job nationality requirements and the right to work in the UK, see the Civil Service Nationality rules (opens in a new window) and the UK Visas and Immigration rules (opens in a new window)
For posts on UKHSA Civil Service terms and conditions, new entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. For existing Civil Servants and roles advertised across government, the rules of transfer apply, i.e., level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive a 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.
The Civil Service pay structure and progression is different from NHS Agenda for Change (AfC), most local authority pay grades and other systems that have annual pay increments. For further details, please refer to the Information Sheet- Starting Salaries & Benefits attachment.
For AfC or Medical/Dental posts, you must have the correct professional registration to be appointed. The pay will follow the AfC or Medical & Dental terms & conditions. You may be asked to provide evidence of previous service whilst we are conducting pre-employment checks to determine your starting salary.
For Temporary Appointments, if you are not currently a civil servant, you will take up the post on a Fixed Term appointment. You may be able to take this role up as a Secondment. If you are an existing Civil Servant, based outside of the UKHSA, you will take up the post as a loan which you will need your department to agree. You cannot take the post up as a fixed term. If you are an existing UKHSA member of staff, you will take up the post as either a level transfer or a temporary promotion as per the UKHSA’s Pay policy.
Given the nature of the work of the UKHSA, as a Category 1 responder under the Civil Contingencies Act, you may be required in an emergency, if deemed a necessity, to redeploy to another role at short notice. You may also be required to work at any other location, within reasonable travelling distance of your permanent home address, in line with the provisions set out in your contract of employment.
Late Applications will unfortunately not be considered.
Working for the Civil Service
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: [email protected] If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website here.
Reserve List - If more than the required number of suitable candidates pass the interview criteria, you may be kept on a reserve list for 12 months subject to your agreement. You may be contacted, in merit-order, if similar roles with closely matching essential criteria become available and the department choose to appoint from a reserve list.
The panel will assess if candidates meet the requirement of the role first, using a specific benchmark system. If you are interviewed for the post and do not meet the required threshold for the specified grade, your application may be assessed against a similar, lower grade role and you may be offered the post should one be available.
Interview expenses will not be reimbursed.
UKHSA is required to check employment and/or education history covering three consecutive years. Please ensure you give details of at least two different referees, even if you were employed in one company for three years or more.
If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system. Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there.
Any move to UKHSA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
Benefits of working at UKHSA include:
- Generous annual leave:
-26 days for the first 5 years of continuous service
-28 days after 5 years of continuous service
-32 days after 10 years of continuous service
-Plus public holidays and one privilege day for the King’s birthday - Access to a generous Defined Benefit pension scheme with employer contributions.
- Access to a cycle-to-work salary sacrifice scheme, season ticket advances and payroll giving.
- Access to a retail discounts and cashback site.
- We also promote flexible working patterns (part-time, job-share, condensed hours). UKHSA views flexible working as essential in enabling us to recruit and retain talented people, ensuring that they are able to enjoy a long-lasting career with us. All employees have the right to apply for flexible working and there are a range of options available including working from home, compressed hours and job sharing.
- We also offer a generous maternity/ paternity and adoption leave package.
Hybrid Working
UKHSA operates a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce.
As a hybrid worker, you will usually spend a minimum of 60% of your contracted hours (averaged over a month) working at one of UKHSA's locations (approximately 3 days a week pro rata) and the rest of your time working from home.
Disability Confident Scheme
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria at sift to ensure these candidates are invited to interview. If you wish to be included in this scheme please tick the box on your application form.
Reasonable Adjustments
The Civil Service is committed to making sure that our selection methods are fair to everyone.
To help you during the recruitment process, we will take into account any reasonable adjustments that could help you.
An adjustment is a change to the recruitment process or an adjustment at work.
This is separate to the Disability Confident Scheme.
If you need an adjustment to be made at any point during the recruitment process you should:
Contact the recruitment team in confidence as soon as possible to discuss your needs.
You can find out more information about reasonable adjustments across the Civil Service here: https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/reasonable-adjustments/
International Police Check
If you have spent more than 6 months abroad over the last 3 years you may need an International Police Check. This would not necessarily have to be in a single block, and could be time accrued over that period.
Internal Fraud check
If successful for this role as one aspect of pre-employment screening, applicant’s personal details – name, national insurance number and date of birth - will be checked against the Cabinet Office Internal Fraud Hub and anyone included on the database will be refused employment unless they can show exceptional circumstances. Currently this is only for External candidates to the Civil Service.
Security Vetting
Please check the Security Clearance needed for the role and follow the link for more information:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels
Future location
UKHSA is investing in a new state-of-the-art National Biosecurity Centre in Harlow, Essex, which will eventually bring together teams currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale and Porton Down. For more details, please see: Huge biosecurity centre investment to boost pandemic protection - GOV.UK.
The new facilities will start becoming operational in the mid-2030s, with full completion by 2038. Staff will move in phases as facilities become available. If you're appointed to a role currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale or Porton Down, please note that we'll continue investing in these sites for the next decade. As we get closer to the transition, we'll provide full information about relocation support available to staff.
Applicant requirements
Person specification
Skills and capabilities
Essential criteria
- Skills and knowledge commensurate with completion of Internal Medicine Training
- Comfortable with Information Technology and sound computer skills including Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook
- Good organisation and ability to organise own learning and time, ability to work to deadlines
- Excellent written and oral communication skills proven when communicating to national and local audiences
- Enthusiastic team player with a can-do attitude
- Ability to work as part of a team showing good communication and leadership skills
- Able to relate to all grades of staff
- Ability to keep good medical records and communicate with other hospital departments and primary care
- Ability to understand and communicate with patients and colleagues
- All applicants to have demonstrable skills in written and spoken English adequate to enable effective communication about medical topics with patients and colleagues demonstrated by one of the following: that applicants have undertaken undergraduate medical training in English or have achieved the following scores in the academic International English Language Testing System (IELTS) in a single sitting within 24 months at time of application – Overall 7, Speaking 7, Listening 7, Reading 7, Writing 7. If applicants believe they have adequate communication skills but do not fit into one of these examples they must provide supporting evidence
Desirable criteria
- Commitment to teaching
- Ability to undertake research projects and audit Show interest in investigative, audit and research work outside immediate clinical responsibility
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Qualification requirements: MB BS or equivalent
- Full registration (and with a licence to practise) with the General Medical Council (GMC)
Desirable criteria
- Professional Qualification requirements: either Passed the Fellowship of the Royal College of Pathologists (FRCPath) Part 1 exam or Passed the Membership of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) Diploma
Knowledge and experience
Essential criteria
- Experience of the application of your skills in a clinical context
- Evidence of continuing professional education
- Completed Foundation Years medical training or equivalent
- Completed Internal Medicine Training Year 2 or can demonstrate equivalent training e.g. Core Medical Training and eligible to apply for speciality training
- A demonstrable interest in Infection Specialties-Clinical Microbiology and or Infectious Diseases
Desirable criteria
- 6 months UK experience
Equality and diversity
Essential criteria
- An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships
Documents
- Job Description & Person Specification (PDF, 504.3KB)
- Functional Requirements (PDF, 344.6KB)
- Civil Service Recruitment Principles (PDF, 2.6MB)
- Civil Service Nationality Rules (PDF, 195.3KB)
- Application Form Guidance Notes (PDF, 77.3KB)
- Information Sheet - Starting salaries and benefits (PDF, 129.4KB)
- Information Sheet - Selection Process (PDF, 110.1KB)
- Working at UKHSA and your benefits (PDF, 219.2KB)
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Esther Robinson
- Job title
- Head of Tuberculosis Unit
- Email address
- [email protected]
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