Lead GP

Job responsibilities

Purpose of the role

The Lead GP role is a hands-on clinical leadership position.

Alongside continuing clinical practice, Lead GPs take responsibility for how the GP team works, the reliability of GP capacity, and the clinical behaviours that drive avoidable workload at practice level.

The role exists to:

• Improve consistency and quality of clinical decision-making
• Support and develop GPs, including newly qualified colleagues
• Reduce avoidable cancelled clinics caused by absence or poor planning
• Reduce unnecessary GP-booked follow-ups and repeat appointments
• Strengthen team performance, standards, and ways of working

Lead GPs are not responsible for appointment scheduling or operational rostering.

Their responsibility is to:

• Lead behaviours that protect clinical capacity
• Support reliable attendance and forward planning
• Challenge clinical practices that create unnecessary demand

This is not a partnership role.

It is a leadership role with real influence, protected time, and clear expectations.

The opportunity

This role sits between traditional salaried GP work and partnership.

As a Lead GP, you will:

• Lead the GP team at an allocated practice or group of practices
• Provide senior clinical leadership across the practice
• Influence consistency, reliability, and quality of care
• Work closely with operational and central clinical teams
• Develop as a medical leader without partnership risk

It offers variety, influence, and professional growth alongside clinical practice.

Session commitment and time allocation

The role requires a minimum commitment of 6 sessions.

• Minimum of 6 sessions per week
• 2 sessions are protected leadership time
• Remaining sessions are clinical

Leadership sessions are used for:

• GP leadership and development
• Safeguarding and clinical governance
• Complaints, learning, and quality improvement
• Demand reduction and pathway improvement
• Meetings and decision-making

Leadership time is protected and expected to be used actively.

Key relationshipsInternal

• GP colleagues (salaried, sessional, and locum)
• Newly qualified and transitioning GPs
• AHPs and AHP Leads
• Operational Leads and on-site operational staff
• Central operational functions including HR, Clinical Admin, and Welcome Teams
• Clinical Partner and other Lead GPs

External

• PCN colleagues
• ICB and system partners
• Federation and collaborative forums

Key responsibilities1. Clinical leadership and standards

• Act as a visible and credible senior clinician on site
• Set and reinforce clear standards of clinical practice and behaviour
• Reduce unwarranted variation in decision-making
• Lead learning from audits, incidents, and complaints
• Promote reflective practice and continuous improvement

2. Leadership and development of GPs

• Lead and line manage the GP team at allocated practice(s)
• Provide support, challenge, and guidance to GP colleagues
• Take a particular interest in newly qualified and transitioning GPs
• Address performance concerns early and constructively
• Set clear expectations around ways of working and reliability
• Work with HR and central teams on people matters

3. Clinical leadership across the practice

• Provide senior clinical leadership and support to all clinical colleagues on site
• Work alongside AHP Leads, who retain line management responsibility for AHPs
• Act as a senior clinical point of escalation for complex or concerning cases
• Be available as a trusted source of clinical advice, support, and challenge

4. Safeguarding and patient concerns

• Act as the clinical safeguarding lead on site, in line with organisational policy
• Provide leadership and oversight for safeguarding concerns
• Support clinical colleagues with safeguarding decision-making and escalation
• Work with central safeguarding leads and external agencies as required
• Ensure safeguarding learning is shared and embedded
• Act as a senior clinical presence for in-person patient complaints
• Support timely, sensitive, and professional resolution
• Lead learning from complaints and ensure actions are taken

5. Demand management and efficient care

• Reduce unnecessary GP-booked follow-ups and repeat appointments
• Promote clinically appropriate first-time resolution
• Challenge defensive or inefficient clinical patterns
• Improve consistency in follow-up planning and safety-netting
• Work with operational colleagues to protect capacity

6. Practice leadership and team working

• Work in partnership with AHP Leads and operational colleagues
• Chair and contribute to clinical and MDT meetings
• Build strong relationships across clinical and non-clinical teams
• Support recruitment, induction, and retention of GPs
• Bring the GP team together around shared standards and goals

7. Governance, systems, and quality improvement

• Lead clinical governance activity at practice level
• Ensure registers, coding, and pathways are robust
• Support delivery of QOF and local priorities
• Contribute to CQC readiness and inspections
• Embed clinical guideline changes consistently

8. Working with central clinical leadership

• Act as a clear link between the practice and central teams
• Contribute to cross-site leadership discussions
• Share learning and good practice
• Support organisation-wide initiatives

9. Continued clinical practice

• Continue to practise as a GP
• Deliver high-quality patient care
• Balance clinical and leadership responsibilities effectively

How we work at Penrose HealthNot a traditional GP practice

Penrose Health operates differently from a traditional GP partnership.

We have deliberately designed our organisation to protect clinical time and maximise value for patients.

• Partners lead clinically
• A Central Management Team runs the operations
• Clinicians are supported by: 
  • Central Clinical Admin
  • Welcome Teams
  • Cross-group AHP team leads
  • HR

This model exists to:

• Reduce administrative burden on clinicians
• Delegate work to the right level
• Support consistent, high-quality care at scale

For Lead GPs, this means:

• You are not expected to carry operational problems
• You work alongside experienced operational professionals
• Leadership time is focused on patients, people, and improvement

Professional registration & qualifications

Essential

• - Qualified GP with a minimum of 2 years post-CCT experience
• - GMC registered with a licence to practise
• - Registered on the NHS Performers List

Clinical experience

Essential

• - Experience working as a GP in UK primary care
• - Strong, up-to-date clinical knowledge

Desirable

• - Experience in multi-site or group practices

Leadership & management capability

Essential

• - Experience supporting or influencing other clinicians
• - Confidence addressing challenge and performance concerns
• - Willingness to take responsibility for standards and outcomes

Desirable

• - Experience managing or supervising other GPs
• - Experience supporting newly qualified or early-career GPs
• - Formal leadership or management training

Safeguarding and complaints

Essential

• - Confidence acting as a senior clinical point of escalation
• - Understanding of safeguarding responsibilities in primary care
• - Comfortable handling in-person patient concerns

Demand and efficiency

Essential

• - Understanding of how clinical decisions affect demand
• - Interest in reducing unnecessary follow-ups and avoidable workload
• - Comfortable working with operational colleagues

Working style & behaviours

Essential

• - Strong time management and prioritisation
• - Able to protect leadership time
• - Calm, credible, and professional
• - Collaborative and relationship-focused

Desirable

• - Experience leading through change or service improvement

Systems & governance

Essential

• - Comfortable using EMIS and clinical systems
• - Understanding of clinical governance and audit

Desirable

• - Experience supporting CQC readiness or inspections

Availability & commitment

Essential

• - Able to commit to a minimum of 6 sessions
• - Willingness to undertake at least 2 protected leadership sessions

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).