Job summary
Partners Procurement Services (PPS) is a mature, collaborative NHS shared service, hosted by Whittington Health and delivering procurement, supply chain, systems and operational buying services on behalf of its member Trusts. PPS operates on a "do it once, do it well" principle - aggregating expertise, standardising processes and maximising value while maintaining strong local engagement with clinical and operational teams.
From April 2026, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust (GOSH) will join PPS as a member. Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust (GOSH) is an international centre of excellence in child healthcare. GOSH is an acute specialist paediatric hospital with a mission to provide world-class care to children and young people with rare, complex and difficult-to-treat conditions.
We are seeking a Senior Category Manager to lead the clinical consumables and devices portfolio supporting GOSH's onboarding into PPS. This is a senior leadership role, responsible for ensuring a safe, compliant and value-driven transition of services, while also contributing to the wider PPS category strategy and future growth.
Please refer to Job Description for a complete breakdown in the role.
Main duties of the job
- To lead a diverse portfolio of procurement projects across clinical consumables and medical devices, achieving both value for money and measurable service benefits for the Partner Trusts, initially focussing on GOSH;
- Provide specialist and professional procurement advice to clinicians, Partner Trust staff, procurement colleagues, and senior management, with a focus on the complexities and clinical implications of product selection and standardisation;
- To support and assist the Assistant Director - Procurement in the development and implementation of procurement strategy and operational plans within the clinical procurement domain;
- To contribute to the development and implementation of robust and compliant procurement procedures aligned with recognised clinical procurement standards and best practice;
- To ensure procurement compliance across all Partner Trusts with UK procurement law and local Trust policies in all procurement activity undertaken within the clinical category.
In the short term, the focus will be on consumables and medical devices at GOSH. In the medium term, it is envisaged you will help deliver on the opportunities presented by the transition of materials management and Scan4Safety services into PPS. You will also gain exposure to the other Trusts in our membership including Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Whittington Health NHS Trust.
Please refer to Job Description and experience requirements.
About us
PPS combines the scale and resilience of a shared service with a strong commitment to collaboration, transparency and statutory compliance under the Procurement Act 2023. This role offers a rare opportunity to work at senior level across multiple NHS organisations while directly supporting one of the world's most prestigious children's hospitals.
Whittington Health serves a richly diverse population and works hard to ensure that all our services are fair and equally accessible to everyone. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the way we look after our staff. We aim to employ a workforce which is as representative as possible of this population, so we are open to the value of differences in age, disability, gender, marital status, pregnancy and maternity, race, sexual orientation, and religion or belief. The Trust believes that as a public sector organisation we have an obligation to have recruitment, training, promotion and other formal employment policies and procedures that are sensitive to these differences. We think that by doing so, we are better able to treat our patients as well as being a better place to work.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please refer to attached job description
Overarching Description and Requirements can be found in "The Role" & "Key Result Areas" within the Job Description.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please refer to attached job description
Overarching Description and Requirements can be found in "The Role" & "Key Result Areas" within the Job Description.
Person Specification
Education
Essential
- Membership of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) or enrolled and working towards accreditation.
- Continuous Professional Development (CPD): Must have evidence of continued professional development.
- First Degree in Procurement related profession or extensive practical experience, over 5 years, within the Healthcare sector.
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Experience with using eTendering tools for competitions.
- Extensive knowledge of UK procurement law and NHS/CCS procurement guidance and framework agreements. Experience and knowledge of NHS procedures, systems, legislation and guidance
- Experience of negotiating and letting contracts from simple through to complex.
- Collaborative Experience with ICB level or equivalent as a minimum. To have worked across multiple Trust and to have delivered joint projects.
- Experience delivering clinical consumables and devices procurements at an ICB level or equivalent.
Desirable
- Minimum 5 years public sector/NHS experience in working within a relevant, demanding procurement environment
- Experience of other Non-Clinical categories (examples are professional services, IT, consultancy, and agency)
- Experience of spend and product analysis tools
Skills and Abilities
Essential
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to enable effective partnership working
- Excellent negotiation and influencing skills
- Excellent negotiation and influencing skills
Desirable
- Strategic thinker with good analytical skills
Analytical & Judgment Skills
Essential
- Ability to sustain prolonged concentration
- Flexible approach to problem solving
- Ability to cope with frequent interruptions
- Experience of operating and utilizing computer systems to provide information for management reports.
Person Specification
Education
Essential
- Membership of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) or enrolled and working towards accreditation.
- Continuous Professional Development (CPD): Must have evidence of continued professional development.
- First Degree in Procurement related profession or extensive practical experience, over 5 years, within the Healthcare sector.
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Experience with using eTendering tools for competitions.
- Extensive knowledge of UK procurement law and NHS/CCS procurement guidance and framework agreements. Experience and knowledge of NHS procedures, systems, legislation and guidance
- Experience of negotiating and letting contracts from simple through to complex.
- Collaborative Experience with ICB level or equivalent as a minimum. To have worked across multiple Trust and to have delivered joint projects.
- Experience delivering clinical consumables and devices procurements at an ICB level or equivalent.
Desirable
- Minimum 5 years public sector/NHS experience in working within a relevant, demanding procurement environment
- Experience of other Non-Clinical categories (examples are professional services, IT, consultancy, and agency)
- Experience of spend and product analysis tools
Skills and Abilities
Essential
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to enable effective partnership working
- Excellent negotiation and influencing skills
- Excellent negotiation and influencing skills
Desirable
- Strategic thinker with good analytical skills
Analytical & Judgment Skills
Essential
- Ability to sustain prolonged concentration
- Flexible approach to problem solving
- Ability to cope with frequent interruptions
- Experience of operating and utilizing computer systems to provide information for management reports.
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.
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).
Additional information
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.
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).
