Main area Diagnostics and Specialties Grade Band 3 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Includes late shifts (13:00 - 21:00) and weekends and bank holidays on a rotational basis.) Job ref 318-26-T0049
Employer Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Trustwide Town Gloucestershire Salary £24,937 - £26,598 (pa pro rata if part‑time) Salary period Yearly Closing 05/02/2026 23:59
Higher Medical Laboratory Assistant, Haematology, Band 3
Band 3
At Gloucestershire Hospitals, our people are at the heart of everything we do. As the county’s largest employer, we are proud to provide high‑quality acute, elective, and specialist services to more than 650,000 people across our county. Our care is delivered across Gloucestershire Royal, Cheltenham General and Stroud Maternity Hospital.
With over 9,000 employees representing more than 95 nationalities, bringing together a mix of cultures and experiences to the care that we deliver. Whether you’re beginning your NHS journey or looking to take the next step in your career, this is an exciting time to join us. We’re investing heavily in innovation, research, and transformation, with more than 100 active clinical studies and major developments underway across our hospitals.
We take pride in working as one team, driven by a shared ambition to grow, develop, and continually improve. Every contribution is valued and by combining our collective strengths, we support not only our diverse communities but one another. You can expect a warm, supportive culture and colleagues who are passionate about teamwork, professional development and delivering exceptional care. We offer structured development programmes, mentoring and leadership opportunities to help you progress in your career.
We are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where everyone feels they belong. By joining our Trust, you will benefit from a comprehensive package that includes flexible working opportunities, generous annual leave, the NHS pension scheme, competitive bank rates, local discounts, access to on‑site nurseries, reduced public transport costs, reward and recognition schemes and a wide range of health and wellbeing initiatives.
Be part of Gloucestershire Hospitals, explore your future with us today.
Job overview
We are looking for an enthusiastic person to join our team, in this busy, friendly department.
This exciting opportunity is for a Medical laboratory Assistant Higher position which is designed for support staff to demonstrate a greater technical ability in a specific area of the laboratory (Haematology, Immunology or Blood Transfusion). This role will suit someone who is able to work on their own initiative but also part of a team. It’s a chance to take more responsibility and ownership within the area you are allocated to. The successful candidate will be expected to participate in evening working.
Participation in a weekend/bank holiday morning rota is also required, for additional remuneration at enhanced rates.
Includes late shifts (13:00 - 21:00) and weekends and bank holidays on a rotational basis.
Main duties of the job
The successful candidate will be required to work in the Haematology & Blood Transfusion Department at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital on a rotational basis. Providing continuity to the area, being a role model for the MLA staff and support for the BMS staff.
Good keyboard skills and manual dexterity is essential. Previous laboratory experience would be helpful.
Working for our organisation
We are a busy, fluid environment comprising both support staff and technical staff. There is a great team spirit and we are a very social group with recent activities including bowling, skittles, meals out and family walks. Staff are very inclusive and we appreciate our diversity. The days go quickly and there is always something to do!
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Main duties will include identifying and labelling patient samples, data entry onto the laboratory computer system, performing some simple laboratory tests, analyser maintenance and generally supporting the Biomedical Scientists. The expectation of this role is for the successful candidate to specialise in one of our main areas (Haematology, Blood Transfusion or Immunology) to provide enhanced support and develop greater technical ability in the relevant area.
Person specification
Qualifications
* Evidenced numeracy and literacy and communication in English (GCSE English, Maths and Science)
* Level 3 qualification in Medical Laboratory Sciences (NVQ level 3, level 3 apprenticeship, IBMS certificate of Achievement level 1) or equivalent
Experience
* Experience (through placement or employment) of working in an NHS Blood Sciences department including rotation through Transfusion
* Appropriate experience in an NHS Haematology Laboratory
* Experience of using a range of automated technology
Knowledge, Skills, Abilities
* Able to prioritise own workload and that of others as appropriate
* Personally resilient and able to manage complexity and work in a busy and time sensitive environment
* Able to maintain levels of concentration with an eye for detail
* Demonstrates organisational skills and apply to both time and workflow management
* Demonstrate good levels of communication with the ability to support training, explain and elevate issues and communicate with users of the service
* Self‑motivated and able to work under own initiative.
* Conscientious with a desire and ability to maintain high standards of personal performance and inspire colleagues to do likewise
* Understanding of External Quality Assurance
* Experience of troubleshooting simple laboratory analysers
We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once a sufficient number of applications have been received.
You will only be contacted by the Recruitment Team via email if you are shortlisted for this post. Please ensure therefore that you check your e‑mail account regularly.
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
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