Professional Lead for Optometry

The Professional Lead for Optometry will provide strategic academic and professional leadership for the discipline, driving the development and delivery of a future-focused, innovative portfolio of optometry programmes that respond to the evolving needs of the profession, healthcare systems, and society.

You will bring substantial leadership experience within higher education or a relevant professional or clinical setting, with a proven ability to apply and translate that experience to the design, delivery, and enhancement of contemporary higher education provision.

You will have a demonstrable track record of leading and delivering high-quality outcomes across teaching, research, or enterprise, and the ability to shape direction, influence practice, and drive change within a complex organisational environment.

You will work effectively across disciplinary boundaries, building strong, collaborative relationships with academic and professional colleagues to deliver shared strategic objectives.

You will have a strong track record of developing and leading impactful partnerships with external stakeholders, including healthcare providers, professional bodies, and regulators such as the General Optical Council, translating these relationships into tangible outcomes.

You will bring proven line management experience, including performance review, workload planning, and staff development, with the ability to support and develop colleagues to achieve excellence. Experience of leading or chairing formal committees related to education, quality assurance, or governance is essential.

Qualifications required
You will have a Masters degree (or equivalent) in a relevant discipline. You will have a current membership of a relevant professional body and Fellowship of Advance HE (formerly the HEA).

Please view the job description and person specification for a full list of the duties and essential criteria. Please attach a personal statement showing clearly how your skills and experience match the Person Specification.

An appointment to this role may require an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate.

Please note, this post cannot be visa sponsored unless you can evidence a good honours first degree plus a PhD / Doctorate. A criminal record check may also be required., Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to .