Portering Operations Manager

Job overview

To lead, manage and develop the Trust’s portering operational service, ensuring the safe, timely and effective movement of patients, equipment, specimens, linen, stores, waste and deceased patients across the organisation. The post holder will provide professional and operational leadership for portering, post room , courtesy bus and moves team services, ensuring service delivery is patient centred, responsive, efficient, compliant with Trust policies and national NHS standards, and aligned to the responsibilities and level of accountability expected of an NHS Agenda for Change Band 7 role.

Main duties of the job

To ensure portering and associated operational services are delivered to a high standard, providing a safe, effective, responsive and professional service for patients, staff and visitors across all Trust sites.

To provide operational leadership for the portering service, including day-to-day service management, service planning, workforce deployment, escalation management and business continuity arrangements.

To develop and implement long-term service improvement plans, operational policies, standard operating procedures and performance measures for portering services in collaboration with Estates, Facilities, Nursing, Infection Prevention and Control, Health and Safety, Patient Flow and Clinical Teams.

To lead on the review and redesign of portering pathways to support patient flow, discharge processes, theatre activity, diagnostic services, emergency demand and internal logistics requirements.

To manage, postal manager, shift facilities manager, portering supervisors, team leaders and/or contracted service leads, ensuring staff and contractors deliver duties professionally, safely, courteously and within agreed quality and budget standards. To ensure adequate staffing capacity and skill mix through effective rota oversight, roster review, recruitment, induction, appraisal, supervision, mandatory training compliance and personal development planning.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached Applicant Information Pack (combined Job Description and Person Specification) for key duties and responsibilities.

Due to Home Office immigration rules, a full time permanent vacancy cannot be filled by individuals on a Student visa. Therefore, please be advised that if you are a Student visa holder, we will not be able to offer you a full time permanent contract unless you have: -    applied for a Graduate visa -    or you will have successfully completed your course and have applied for a Graduate visa before the anticipated start date of your employment -    or the Trust has agreed that they will Sponsor you as a Skilled Worker and you will complete your studies within 3 months of the anticipated start date of employment

This vacancy will close at midnight on 12th July 2026.

The interviews are due to be held on 20th July 2026

Benefits to you

At Cambridge University Hospitals, we want to do all we can to support good working days. We offer development opportunities and a wide range of benefits, including on-site leisure facilities, shopping concourse and day nurseries. Our good work programme currently includes providing reduced cost Stagecoach bus travel to and from Cambridge University Hospital site. Park and Ride bus journeys between Babraham Road and Trumpington sites are free, as is the route to and from Cambridge train station and our hospitals. We also subsidise the cost of parking on site for eligible staff.

On CUH campus, hot food is available 24/7 and at a reduced cost for colleagues. Recently we launched the first of our staff pod break spaces. Located in the Deakin Centre, we have a purpose-created colleague-only café, with free tea and coffee, a break space and private outside area for colleagues to rest, refuel and recharge. Just one of the ways we are working hard to support good working days at CUH.

CUH is committed to assisting employees in achieving a good work-life balance irrespective of role or personal circumstances. Flexible arrangements may include, but are not limited to, part-time working, job-share, term-time working and flexible start and finish times. Please note if you would like to discuss the required hours of this role further, you should approach the contact given. In some cases, alternative working hours will be considered.

We welcome applications from the Armed Forces.