Lead Specialist Dietitian

Lead Specialist Dietitian

The closing date is 11 January 2026

We are excited to be recruiting to a 1.0 WTE, Band 7, Lead Specialist Liver Dietitian to join the Adult Dietetic and Hepatology Service at the Freeman Hospital. This post is until 29 November 2026 and the successful candidate will be responsible for inpatient and outpatient dietetic care of patients under the Newcastle hepatology service.

Newcastle Hospitals is a tertiary hepatology centre and one of the 7 liver transplant centres in the UK. Dietitians play a key role in the multidisciplinary team and so as the lead dietitian for this service, previous experience in liver disease is desirable.

The role also includes leadership of the Freeman Hospital dietetic team, jointly with our other lead specialist dietitians. Leadership roles involve clinical supervision, appraisals, job planning and the day-to-day line management of a small group of staff. Oversight and support is provided by the adult clinical dietetic manager and management team.

• Interview Date Thursday 29 January 2026
• You will be redirected to Trac to apply for the vacancy. Please expand the job details section and read all of the information before applying for the vacancy

NO AGENCIES PLEASE

Main duties of the job

Deliver a high quality dietetic service within the specialist area of Hepatology.

Work effectively as part of the MDT including specialist nurses and Consultants.

Work in collaboration within the acute and regional dietetic departments.

Support the adult manager through provision of service specification and attending meetings regarding service provision.

Take part in student training and supervision.

Contribute to research and audit.

You should be enthusiastic and self motivated and will:

• Have post registration experience in liver disease.
• Have undertaken specialist training in weight management, NAFLD or liver.
• Be able to demonstrate ongoing CPD and have evidence of developing practice.
• Be able to support colleagues and take responsibility for the clinical supervision of junior staff and students.
• Have excellent communication skills.
• Be able to maintain good relationships with colleagues and the wider the MDT.

As part of the wider dietetic department, 'Newcastle Nutrition', you will have support from colleagues at the Royal Victoria Infirmary and Centre for Aging and Vitality sites. Our Dietetic teams are enthusiastic, committed and have established a first class reputation.

About us

As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement. If it works for the service, we will do our best to make it work for you.

With around 2 million contacts with patients every year, we deliver care from:

• Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI)
• Freeman Hospital
• Newcastle Dental Hospital
• Newcastle Fertility Centre
• Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria
• Northern Genetics Service

These include a range of flagship services which deliver cutting edge care (supported by state of the art diagnostic services in both radiology and pathology) and are a catalyst for innovation to support pioneering clinical practice in the NHS.

We also have offices at Regent Point in Gosforth and community sites.

Please see attached information on what Staff Benefits we have to offer at our Trust under 'Documents to download' or 'Supporting documents'.

For further information on The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust please visit: Careers Newcastle Hospitals NHS Newcastle Hospitals and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Job responsibilities

The successful applicant will join our friendly and supportive adult department of over 40 dietitians providing clinical support to patients and act as a source of expertise to the wider multidisciplinary team including medical, nursing and allied health professionals across the trust.

The department provides A, B and C placements for dietetic students. The Trust places significant value on its dietetic services in the provision of first class patient care, and the dietetic service enjoys a high profile with excellent multidisciplinary involvement.

• Provides a professional leadership role in specialist areas of dietetic practice, coaching and mentoring staff and students of any discipline.
• Role will provide day to day supervision of department staff along with carrying out induction, appraisals, 1-1s along with any other meetings relating to the staff in the specialist area.
• Act as a positive role model for the wider team, offering support when other leads are on leave.
• Will lead on service development within the specialist area to ensure that the service continues to meet the needs of service users.
• Provides highly specialist dietetic assessment, treatment, monitoring and management in one or more speciality areas of dietetics.
• Acts as a source of expertise in dietetics practice locally, regionally and nationally.
• Acts as a source of expertise in nutrition support and dietetics to patients, consultants and other health care professionals.
• Delivers education and training with staff at all levels.
• Contributes to designing, planning and implementing research and audit and contributes to publishing results, working in interdisciplinary teams or with other health professionals.
• Works in close association with specialist nurses/other specialised healthcare professionals in named areas in order to deliver integrated services. This may include supplementary prescribing.

Person Specification Qualifications & Education

• Health and Care Professions Council Registered Dietitian
• Degree in Dietetics or Science/Nutrition Degree plus Post graduate Diploma in Dietetics
• Masters degree in relevant area of practice or equivalent level of specialist dietetic experience and training
• Evidence of specialist training through short courses or a validated qualification in one of more specialist areas of dietetics e.g. nutrition support, paediatrics, home enteral feeding, supplementary Prescriber (Non medical prescribing course V300)
• Valid UK Driving Licence

Knowledge & Experience

• Evidence of continuous professional development in the specialist area
• Evidence of participation in and contribution to the publication of research and audit in one or more of the named speciality areas
• Experience of training dietetic staff, students and other healthcare staff
• Experience in supervising staff i.e., completion of 1-1's, supporting preceptorship
• Evidence of initiating and publishing original research in one or more chosen areas
• Basic training in counselling and/or motivational interviewing or cognitive behavioural therapy
• Basic Food Hygiene
• Experience of working with wider multidisciplinary team towards a shared purpose/goal
• Evidence of leadership training
• Experience in recruitment
• Evidence of service development within specialist area

Skills & Abilities

• Clinical Supervisory Skills Course and/or Teaching Certificate
• Good interpersonal skills

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.

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust