Job summary
The Director of Pharmacy is the organisations most senior pharmaceutical leader, accountable for the strategic direction, governance, quality, and performance of all pharmacy and medicines optimisation services.
Main duties of the job
The postholder will provide executive leadership to ensure the safe, clinically effective, and financially sustainable use of medicines across the organisation. This includes corporate accountability for medicines safety, regulatory compliance, medicines optimisation, and pharmaceutical risk, with explicit responsibility for:
- Controlled Drugs (CD) governance and licensing compliance, including robust safe-management systems, auditability, incident response, and statutory assurance.
- Wholesale Distribution Authorisation (WDA) oversight, ensuring compliance with MHRA expectations and Good Distribution Practice (GDP), including quality systems, inspection readiness, and supply chain integrity
About us
At DHU Healthcare, development is part of our culture. From essential training and apprenticeships to supportive leadership and structured career pathways, well help you grow in ways that matter to you. Because when our people thrive, so do our patients and communities.
We believe the best care comes from teams where everyone feels valued and supported. We welcome colleagues from all backgrounds and proudly support Veterans, Reservists and military families. Inclusion and belonging are central to who we are - and together, we make the difference.
At DHU Healthcare, your skills, ideas and growth matter.
Join us and be part of something bigger.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- Support the Head of Clinical Delivery in maintaining continuous regulatory readiness, including CQC inspections and follow-up actions.
- Ensure clinical practice aligns with professional codes, national guidance, and NHS Pathways licence requirements.
- Hold corporate accountability for medicines safety and pharmaceutical governance, including incident learning, investigation oversight, and system improvement.
- Ensure compliance with applicable regulatory requirements (including GPhC standards and MHRA requirements where relevant).
- Lead medication safety, risk reduction, and quality improvement initiatives across services.
- Act as the organisations Controlled Drugs Accountable Officer (CDAO) where designated or provide executive leadership and assurance to the appointed CDAO function, ensuring statutory duties are discharged effectively.
- Ensure end-to-end CD governance: SOP framework, procurement/ordering controls, secure storage and safe custody arrangements, CD registers and recordkeeping, stock balance checks, disposal/destruction processes, and discrepancy management.
- Ensure timely, proportionate response to CD incidents, losses, suspected diversion, and concerns, embedding a culture of reporting, learning, and accountability.
- Provide executive accountability for organisational compliance with WDA licence conditions and MHRA GDP expectations, ensuring governance, resources, and oversight are sufficient for safe wholesale activity.
- Ensure robust arrangements are in place for a fit-for-purpose GDP Quality Management System (QMS), including SOP control, deviation/CAPA, change control, risk management, self-inspection, training competence, and supplier/customer qualification.
- Provide executive oversight of pharmacy service delivery and performance across sites and service lines.
- Ensure pharmacy services are safe, efficient, responsive, and resilient, with appropriate business continuity and capacity planning.
- Hold accountability for medicines expenditure and pharmacy budgets, including forecasting, variance management, and benefits tracking.
- Ensure robust procurement, contract management, and financial controls, balancing value for money with quality and safety.
- Provide professional leadership to pharmacy staff across all services, promoting high standards, competence, and patient-centred practice.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- Support the Head of Clinical Delivery in maintaining continuous regulatory readiness, including CQC inspections and follow-up actions.
- Ensure clinical practice aligns with professional codes, national guidance, and NHS Pathways licence requirements.
- Hold corporate accountability for medicines safety and pharmaceutical governance, including incident learning, investigation oversight, and system improvement.
- Ensure compliance with applicable regulatory requirements (including GPhC standards and MHRA requirements where relevant).
- Lead medication safety, risk reduction, and quality improvement initiatives across services.
- Act as the organisations Controlled Drugs Accountable Officer (CDAO) where designated or provide executive leadership and assurance to the appointed CDAO function, ensuring statutory duties are discharged effectively.
- Ensure end-to-end CD governance: SOP framework, procurement/ordering controls, secure storage and safe custody arrangements, CD registers and recordkeeping, stock balance checks, disposal/destruction processes, and discrepancy management.
- Ensure timely, proportionate response to CD incidents, losses, suspected diversion, and concerns, embedding a culture of reporting, learning, and accountability.
- Provide executive accountability for organisational compliance with WDA licence conditions and MHRA GDP expectations, ensuring governance, resources, and oversight are sufficient for safe wholesale activity.
- Ensure robust arrangements are in place for a fit-for-purpose GDP Quality Management System (QMS), including SOP control, deviation/CAPA, change control, risk management, self-inspection, training competence, and supplier/customer qualification.
- Provide executive oversight of pharmacy service delivery and performance across sites and service lines.
- Ensure pharmacy services are safe, efficient, responsive, and resilient, with appropriate business continuity and capacity planning.
- Hold accountability for medicines expenditure and pharmacy budgets, including forecasting, variance management, and benefits tracking.
- Ensure robust procurement, contract management, and financial controls, balancing value for money with quality and safety.
- Provide professional leadership to pharmacy staff across all services, promoting high standards, competence, and patient-centred practice.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm or equivalent)
- Registered Pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
- Significant senior pharmacy leadership experience in a complex healthcare setting.
- Proven executive-level leadership with Board-level advisory and assurance capability.
- Demonstrable success in medicines safety, governance, and medicines optimisation.
Desirable
- Demonstrable senior accountability for Controlled Drugs governance, including leading SOP frameworks, audit/assurance, and incident response.
- Direct experience of WDA operations and MHRA GDP compliance, including QMS oversight, inspection readiness, supplier qualification, and RP assurance.
- Experience leading transformation/digital programmes within medicines and pharmacy services.
- Non-Medical prescribing qualification.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm or equivalent)
- Registered Pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
- Significant senior pharmacy leadership experience in a complex healthcare setting.
- Proven executive-level leadership with Board-level advisory and assurance capability.
- Demonstrable success in medicines safety, governance, and medicines optimisation.
Desirable
- Demonstrable senior accountability for Controlled Drugs governance, including leading SOP frameworks, audit/assurance, and incident response.
- Direct experience of WDA operations and MHRA GDP compliance, including QMS oversight, inspection readiness, supplier qualification, and RP assurance.
- Experience leading transformation/digital programmes within medicines and pharmacy services.
- Non-Medical prescribing qualification.
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).
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
