Procurement Specialist/ Senior Procurement Specialist
The closing date is 25 May 2026
We are seeking a suitable candidate to join our Procurement & Supply Chain function. This role provides a supportive and professional procurement service to the Clinical Boards and Corporate Departments across the Trust, supporting the delivery of the best patient care. The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust spends over £750 million annually on goods, works, and services with third‑party suppliers. Our Procurement & Supply Chain teams manage a diverse work programme, ensuring compliant, timely, and effective delivery of procurement activities valued at £12,500 and above.
Whether you are looking to start a procurement career, looking for a career change, or seeking your next challenge as a procurement professional, a career in NHS procurement might be for you if you find the following questions exciting and appealing:
* Do you want a career where you will be supported in your professional development?
* Do you want an opportunity to get involved in a wide variety of projects, from corporate procurement to cutting‑edge IT, robotics and estates projects?
* Do you want a career that supports the NHS to deliver outstanding care to our patients?
* Is career progression important to you?
* Do you have strong interpersonal and analytical skills?
* Can you use your communication skills to influence and manage a variety of stakeholders?
Main duties of the job
The role has been specifically created as a progression or career grade, enabling the Trust to develop our in‑house talent by supporting the successful candidate through their professional development and CIPS qualifications.
* The successful candidate will join the Trust as a Band 5 (actively studying towards CIPS Level 5) or will join as a Band 6 depending on experience (qualified at CIPS Level 5 and actively studying towards CIPS Level 6).
* Timeframe up to 2 years depending on candidate completing CIPS Level 5.
* Individual work programmes and development plans will be based on experience; initially post holders will work on lower‑risk contracts and flexibly support the wider programme across various categories.
* Post holders will be supported to achieve through a competency framework of key skills while progressing through the CIPS Professional qualifications.
About us
We are a flexible‑working friendly organisation that seeks to work in a way that is best for both our patients and our staff. If a flexible arrangement works for the service, we will do our best to accommodate it.
With around 2 million contacts with patients every year, we deliver care from the following sites:
* Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI)
* Freeman Hospital
* Newcastle Dental Hospital
* Newcastle Fertility Centre
* Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria
* Northern Genetics Service
Job responsibilities
* 37 hours 30 minutes per week
* You will be redirected to Trac to apply for the vacancy. Please expand the job details section and read all the information before applying.
NO AGENCIES PLEASE
The successful candidate must possess excellent communication, IT, and writing skills, along with either working knowledge or an understanding of relevant procurement legislation and associated government objectives. Post holders will have a firm understanding of the organisation’s values and will consistently demonstrate positive behaviours in line with those values, seek and respond to constructive feedback, acknowledge and learn from own mistakes, reflect on own behaviour, and review performance.
This role offers continuous development and career progression opportunities within a professional public sector procurement team. Candidates must demonstrate procurement experience and/or transferable skills.
Band 5
* The post holder will be fully conversant with departmental objectives, mindful of the Trust’s Standing Orders and Standing Financial Instruction.
* The post holder will be an integral part of the Procurement Team, upholding our values and further developing the department in line with strategic goals while ensuring an effective service is provided to end users.
* The monitoring and development of KPI performance will be ongoing and will include the implementation of measures that ensure planned performance improvement.
* Provide Trust representation supporting service developments; clear communication and interpretation of information to staff at varying seniority levels is essential.
* Work cross‑functionally with other departments of our Procurement Function.
* The post holder will need to have a thorough understanding of Electronic Procurement and Financial systems.
* Have a shared responsibility for proactively and consistently ensuring that perceived performance problems are clearly identified using system information and procedures are implemented to ensure performance is developed in line with best practice.
* The post holder will report directly to a Procurement Manager and support the Head of Procurement in the procurement lifecycle, including tendering bespoke contracts for goods and services.
* The post holder will work closely with the Directorates Procurement team, including Clinical and Non‑Clinical stakeholder engagement, in the provision of data to support procurement decisions.
* The post holder will need to establish good working relationships with the procurement team, purchasing team, systems support team, inventory management and the finance directorate.
Band 6
* The Senior Procurement Specialist is part of the Supplies and Procurement team and is the procurement lead for the successful delivery of projects within the aligned category or business area.
* The post holder will provide expert advice concerning successful contracting within public procurement regulations and the Trust’s internal regulations and policies.
* Responsible for the tendering of bespoke contracts for goods, services and works, including research, preparation, issue, scheduling, evaluation, reporting on tenders and award and the management of contracts.
* As the senior procurement specialist, the post holder will lead the establishment and/or enhancement of robust relationships within the aligned business area and wider Trust to drive productive collaboration between stakeholders and the procurement function in effective forward planning of procurement and project requirements.
* Supports the development and implementation of discrete service policies which impact across the Trust.
* Responsible for ensuring that the Trust utilises national contracts where appropriate, facilitates communication between internal customers of goods and services covered by such contracts and those formulating them.
This role has a wide pay band because we will consider appointing at both entry level and through to experienced professionals. £32,073 – £48,117 (progression rules apply within a 2 year timeframe).
Person Specification
Meets All Band 5 Criteria
* Degree level qualification or equivalent experience in an appropriate field and academic ability for the demands of the post.
* Evidence of continued professional development including in the areas of procurement systems, CIPS and information management.
* Knowledge and experience of procurement and its application within the public sector, preferably within the NHS.
* Working knowledge of operating within organisational procurement policies, such as Standing Financial Instructions.
* Working knowledge of electronic procurement systems and reporting tools.
* Experience at developing and managing relationships within procurement and clinical environments.
* Experience of analysing information and spend data to support decision making.
* Experience of participating in group meetings to achieve a set outcome.
* Experience of identifying service improvements and supporting change.
* Experience of presenting information to stakeholders.
* Experience of working to both agreed individual and team targets.
* Ability to create, design and produce reports.
* Proven ability to communicate on all levels.
* Ability to work on own initiative without supervision.
* IT skills literate in Microsoft packages, with advanced skills in the use of Excel.
* Experience in the use of Oracle eFinancials and eProcurement.
* Experience in the use of NHS Supply Chain.
* Experience of customer service environment.
Meets All Band 6 Criteria
* Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) Professional Diploma or postgraduate qualification or equivalent level of experience in tendering and complex commercial procurement management.
* Evidence of continued professional development including in the areas of public procurement regulations and contract management.
* Knowledge and experience of procurement and its application within the public sector. This knowledge must be supported by theory and experience.
* Working knowledge of operating within organisational policies, such as Standing Financial Instructions.
* Working knowledge of project management and project forward planning underpinned by applied experience; ability to manage large, multi‑disciplinary projects.
* Working knowledge of electronic procurement systems (e‑tendering and purchasing, ideally including Atamis).
* Experience at developing and managing relationships within a complex procurement environment.
* Experience of analysing information and spend data to support decision making.
* Experience of participating in group meetings to achieve a set outcome.
* Experience of identifying service improvements and supporting appropriate change.
* Experience of day‑to‑day line management of staff and staff development and mentoring.
* Experience of working to both agreed individual and team targets.
* Evidence of continued professional development.
* The ability, skills and knowledge to provide professional procurement advice and guidance to internal and external stakeholders.
* Good communication skills and persuasiveness in presenting, negotiating and resolving complex issues.
* IT skills literate in Microsoft packages, including Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
* Project Management Qualification (such as PRINCE2 practitioner) or equivalent experience.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
#J-18808-Ljbffr