Clinical Technician

Job description

Job responsibilities

Key Responsibilities:

• Work with the team to provide wrap around animal care of the highest standard:
  1. Ensure animals have five freedoms of animal welfare
  2. Maintain an awareness of current best-practice in animal care and welfare, with a view to improve utilised methods and equipment.
  3. Communicate effectively with team members, NACWO, NVS regarding animals in your care.
• Competently work in high containment facilities, housing animals infected with human pathogens.
• Assist with the generation of risk assessments, standard operating procedures, and codes of practices for work to be performed in the facility.
• Hold a Home Office Personal Licence, to the required species, and maintain competency to:
  1. Conduct licenced animal procedures at high containment. under Home Office Licence authority.
  2. Perform a wide range of complex procedural techniques on a wide range of animals, including NHPs.
  3. Assist in surgical procedures such as implantation of telemetric devices.
  4. Manage and maintain anaesthetic systems for delivery of gaseous anaesthesia to animals.
  5. Perform post-mortem examination and removal of specified tissue from a wide range of species. Be available to carry out emergency post-mortem (out of hours) procedures on animals that have met the specified humane endpoints.
  6. Operate and maintain specialist equipment (e.g. X-ray apparatus).
• Maintain an awareness with all relevant Project Licences, their associated severity bands, and limits of individual Personal Licence authority.
• Supervise and train junior staff.
• Collate and interpret data from studies and present, in an appropriate format for presentation/discussion, with Project Team Leaders and Research Leads.
• Perform all duties within guidelines laid down by the Home Office, Health and Safety Executive, DEFRA and MHRA.
• Record all information regarding duties performed in relevant documentation and within specific guidelines.
• Take part in rota system for weekend and public holiday working and essential out of hours scoring of animals in study.

The above is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of the role. You will carry out any other duties as may reasonably be required by your line manager. The job description and person specification may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the department and UKHSA.

It should be noted that the work of the department is of a confidential nature and must not be communicated to other persons except where required for authorised purposes.

You should pursue a programme of continuous professional development in accordance with any relevant professional registration or statutory requirements, while maintaining appropriate awareness of service provider requirements.

Selection process details

STAGE 1 - APPLICATION & SIFT:

You will be required to complete an application form. This will be assessed in line with the advertised essential criteria please do provide evidence of how you meet this.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to an interview.

STAGE 2 INTERVIEW

This competition will involve a face-to-face interview.

As part of the process, candidates will be invited to interview which will involve an in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Your Statement of Suitability should outline your skills, experience, and achievements, providing evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria (outlined in the person specification section).

You will also be asked to provide information within the Employer/ Activity history section of the application form. This is equivalent to the information you would provide on a CV, setting out your career history.

The Success Profiles framework will be used to assess and recruit the most suitable candidate. The following behaviours will be used at the interview:

• Changing and Improving
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace

For further information on the selection process, please refer to the attached Candidate Pack.

Expected Timeline:

Advert close: 23:55hrs on 29th of October 2023 unfortunately, late applications will not be considered. Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Shortlist: w/c 30th of October 2023

Interviews: TBC

Please note these dates could be subject to change.

It is important through your application and Statement of Suitability of up to 1000 words that you give evidence and examples of proven experience mentioned here in the Person Specification section.

Person Specification

Education

Essential

• Educated to degree level in relevant subject, or equivalent level of experience of working in a similar environment/specialist area.
• Home Office Personal Licence holder with a wide range of regulated procedures and species.
• Knowledge of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
• Knowledge of the regulations controlling the use and containment of high hazard biological materials i.e. ACDP, SAPO, Select Agents, NaTSCO etc.

Experience

Essential

• Understanding of the concept of high containment systems whilst maintaining both animal welfare and staff safety.
• An understanding of the requirement to continually review processes with the aim to improve animal welfare through refinement of husbandry and procedural techniques.
• Clear communicator with good writing and presentation skills; capable of constructing and delivering clear ideas and concepts concisely and accurately for diverse audiences.
• Ability to analyse and interpret information, pre-empt issues, evaluate, and recommend appropriate action.
• To be able to work to tight deadlines and prioritise time and resources accordingly.
• Ability to multi-task, have good organisational and interpersonal skills.
• Able to work effectively in a team environment.
• An ability to maintain confidentiality and trust.
• Commitment to continuing professional development.
• Professional calm and efficient manner
• Achieve and maintain SC level of security clearance.
• Available to work weekends / bank holidays.
• Willingness to undergo vaccinations as determined by project work.

Desirable

• IAT Membership (or equivalent).
• Experience of working in a high containment facility with animals.
• Experience in training staff.
• Experience with NHPs

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Employer details

Employer name

UK Health Security Agency

Address

UKHSA Colindale, London

Colindale, London

NW9 5HT

Employer's website

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-health-security-agency (Opens in a new tab)