Chief Audiologist

Here at East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust,

Our mission is: Providing high-quality, compassionate care for our communities

Our vision to 2030 is: To be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary service

Job overview

We are looking for a passionate and forward-thinking Chief Audiologist to join our team and help deliver on our vision: to be a trusted provider of consistently outstanding care and exemplary service for our patients.

This role offers a rare opportunity for an ambitious Audiologist to take the lead in developing and expanding our Adult Audiology service at East & North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust.

Our service is undergoing an exciting transformation across multiple sites:

• Lister Hospital: Now equipped with three state-of-the-art sound-treated booths, a modern workshop, and a telehealth space within the ENT clinic.
• Danestrete Health Centre: Recently refurbished for adult hearing aid services.
• QEII Hospital: Dedicated solely to paediatric audiology.
• Hertford County Hospital: The future flagship site, opening in Autumn 2025, will feature 20 rooms, including eight sound-treated booths, consultation spaces, vestibular diagnostics, administrative offices, and a purpose-built environment for multidisciplinary teamwork.

This transformation includes a significant expansion of our team, with six new roles being introduced. The Chief Audiologist post is a key part of this growth.

We are particularly interested in candidates with expertise in one or more of the following areas:

• Tinnitus management
• Complex adult assessments
• BCHI/MEI implants
• Electrophysiological testing

Main duties of the job

Applicants must hold a BSc in Audiology or equivalent qualifications. An MSc or evidence of Post Graduate study preferred. Applicants should also have, or be able to achieve AHCS registration, and membership of BAA while not essential is desirable.

Applications are welcomed from Audiologists nearing completion of their STP. Candidates would be expected to hold or be able to achieve AHCS registration and or HCPC registration as a Clinical Scientist

We are a busy service providing a range of services including:

Full diagnostic support and rehabilitation services to 7 ENT consultants

Direct Access Hearing Aid Clinics

MEI/BCHI service

and are working hard to re open balance Assessment Clinics, vestibular Rehabilitation and tinnitus support pathways as soon as possible.

Research and audit is strongly supported by our ENT colleagues, and the successful applicant will be encouraged to build on this.

As a senior member of staff you will be responsible for steering the rehabilitation and implant service, which will include working in conjunction with two current ENT Otology specialists.

You would also be expected to oversee training of Students (BSc & MSc) and junior staff.

Working for our organisation

At East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust, we are proud of the range of general & specialist services we provide & our 6,000 or so dedicated staff ensure our patients get the best care. Our ability to be flexible & innovative in the way in which we work and deliver our services to our catchment has never been more important than it is now.

We run the following hospitals:

• The Lister Hospital, Stevenage
• New Queen Elizabeth II (New QEII), Welwyn Garden City
• Hertford County, Hertford
• Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC), Northwood

We have ambitious plans to become an outstanding, patient-led Trust where dedicated staff provide high-quality, compassionate care to our patients. We continue to undergo significant transformation; our staff & patients are at the heart of delivering this ambitious agenda.

We understand that finding & starting a new job is an important life decision. If you need reasonable adjustments for a disability, or a life event, such as menopause - so that we can consider your application fairly & to get the best out of you during the selection process, please let us know.

We are committed to a positive work life balance for our employees. Employees are entitled to seek to work flexible working patterns & we are committed to listen and consider all requests. Such requests, of course, have to be made & considered formally, & will need to be balanced against service needs, but our starting point will always be to find ways to support making them happen.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification applicant pack for further detailed information regarding this role.

The service is looking forward to major service transformation in the next year. Applicants are encouraged to contact Dawn Bramham, Head of Audiology to discuss the role further, and arrange informal visits. If you do not meet all of the essential criteria but think you might be ready to step into these roles with support, please get in touch.

5% of basic salary, subject to a minimum payment of £1,258 and a maximum payment of £2,122

Person specification

Previous Experience

• Experience in adult rehab
• Extensive Experience of vestibular testing - VHIT, VEMP/VNG/Caloric and report writing
• Complex case management
• Complex objective testing

• Experience of Middle ear implants
• Vestibular Rehab
• Previous management of student training

Skills

• Good Communication Skills to deal with general public enquiries.
• Ability to work on own initiative
• Ability to lead a team of audiologists
• Good Computer Skills

• Previous experience of overseeing Student trainees
• Experience of team leadership
• Evidence of service development work

Qualifications / Training

• BSc (Hons) Audiology BAAT Part II or CAC or CCC Membership of BAA / BSA
• Evidence of post qualification formal study ( MSc modules, assessment based study)

• MSc Audiology RCCP / HCPC membership Clinical Scientist registration MPhil / PHD Evidence of relevant CPD training

Our values

We want our staff to believe in, demonstrate and live our values in everything we do.

Include

We value the diversity and experience of our community colleagues and partners, creating relationships and climates that provide an opportunity to share, collaborate and grow together.

Respect

We create a safe environment where we are curious of the lived experience of others, seek out best practice and are open to listening and hearing new ideas.

Improve

We are committed to consistently delivering excellent services and continuously looking to improve through a creative workforce that feels empowered to act in service of our shared purpose.

Committed to our Community

In particular we encourage applications from candidates with disabilities, and candidates from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds who are currently under-represented in various parts of our workforce .

We understand the importance of balancing work and home life. We are committed to support flexible working for our staff wherever possible and all our employees are given the opportunity to discuss potential for flexible working.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and achieved our status in 2019.

We will remove barriers that prospective candidates might face at any stage of our recruitment process. If you have a disability and would like the advert in an alternative format, or would like to talk about how we can adjust the interview process to best support you, please contact us by emailing [email protected]

We are also proud to support our UK armed forces by supporting Reservists, Cadet Instructors, Veterans and military spouses/partners into employment and offering supportive policies that value their contribution to the community and to our Trust.

Our approach is inclusive, recognizing diverse challenges and creating a supportive environment where carers feel valued.

When you apply...

Please note that vacancies may close prior to the advertised closing date in certain circumstances. Please ensure that you make your application as soon as possible.

All correspondence relating to vacancies will be via the e-mail address you have provided on your application form. Some servers automatically send e-mails to your junk mail so please check as well as your inbox.

As a publicly funded employer, we need to ensure we utilise our funds responsibly, this may mean we are unable to support sponsorship required to gain the right to work for particular positions. We strongly advise you to contact the line manager or a member of the Resourcing Team before applying to confirm if we will be able to support with sponsorship for that post.

King's Trust Support

Please contact Enquiries.H&[email protected] for support.

Secondments/Fixed term

Where a vacancy is advertised as a temporary position, the duration will be specified in the advert. If the vacancy becomes permanent towards the end of the specified duration, the successful applicant may not be required to re-apply and can be slotted into the role on a permanent basis if appropriate.

If you are an internal applicant applying for a temporary working arrangement, please see the attached notes on secondments.