Senior Buyer

This job is brought to you by Jobs/Redefined, the UK's leading over-50s age inclusive jobs board.

Our cultural ambition is to have a culture that places people at the heart of all we do, where we all belong, and where learning, improvement and excellence thrive.

Job overview

Wessex NHS Procurement Limited is delighted to offer a fantastic opportunity to work with us.

Please see below for a detailed job description of the role.

Please note this role will be based at Royal South Hants Hospital - Brintons Terrace, Southampton SO14 0YG- and Basingstoke Hospital - Aldermaston Rd, Basingstoke RG24 9NA.

Please note WPL does not hold a Home Office Workers Licence and therefore unable to offer sponsorship

Main duties of the job

Wessex NHS Procurement Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust and Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The company provides end to end Procurement and Supply Chain services to hospitals in Basingstoke, Winchester, and Southampton.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Senior Buyer to join the team on a permanent basis.

Please note this role will be based at Royal South Hants Hospital - Brintons Terrace, Southampton SO14 0YG- and Basingstoke Hospital - Aldermaston Rd, Basingstoke RG24 9NA

Working for our organisation

At WPL, we play a key role in supporting the NHS in Hampshire, delivering end-to-end procurement and supply chain services for University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust and Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. As a wholly owned subsidiary of both Trusts, WPL offers the opportunity to contribute to the wider NHS family and improve healthcare services across the region.

Our services include strategic sourcing, value creation, tendering, contract management, inventory oversight, distribution, and materials management across Southampton, Basingstoke, Winchester, and Andover. Joining WPL means being part of a dynamic, forward-thinking team, working alongside stakeholders to drive innovation, efficiency, and value.

Employee Benefits:

Generous NHS pension scheme
NHS terms of service and annual leave
Access to an employee benefits platform offering discounts on groceries, high street shopping, family outings, holidays, and more

For more information, visit: www.wessexprocurement.nhs.uk

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Responsible for the Operations team to deliver a customer-focused and efficient service in the purchasing of goods and services.
Day to day to management of a team, including a range of HR procedures which may include attendance, performance and appraisals.
Undertaking training for the team in relevant procedures and processes. Ensuring procedures and processes are kept up to date.
Plays a key role in the induction and training of new staff.
Plans own workload and team's workload to ensure all order requests are processed, queries resolved and catalogues reviewed as required
Ensures all reports are produced for line manager within specific time frames.
Budget and Resource management .
Support the team with CIP opportunities and catalogue management.
Responsible for recording savings made using appropriate procedures.
Responsible for sourcing suppliers for goods and services in line with user department requirements.
Training of Trust staff on e-procurement tools.

For additional information, please refer to the candidate pack, job description and person specification.

Person specification

Qualifications, Knowledge and Experience

Essential criteria

• CIPS Foundation Diploma in Purchasing & Supply (level 3) or able to demonstrate equivalent knowledge skills and experience
• Passed GCSE Mathematics and English
• Previous experience of buying in a procurement environment
• Market and supplier / product knowledge including Procedures, catalogue management and contract law
• Track record of achieving cost reductions
• Previous experience in a customer service environment
• Experience in supporting the management of team members
• Ability to communicate effectively with all levels of staff
• Support and empower teams to work independently
• Strong negotiator with a track record of savings
• Travel required to customer and site locations

Desirable criteria

• Member of CIPS or equivalent
• Procure to Pay system knowledge
• Vendor management
• Supply chain knowledge
• Training experience
• Working knowledge of public sector procurement processes
• Experience supervising or line managing staff

Our commitment to you:

We are committed to equality and diversity in both the provision of our services and how we recruit and manage our staff. Applications are encouraged from everyone with the necessary attributes for the job, irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity.

Happy to Talk Flexible Working - all requests for flexible and part time working will be considered.

The paperwork:

• HHFT is committed to putting the safety and care of our patients first - as well as helping us to protect you and your colleagues. Therefore, we would recommend that you are vaccinated against COVID-19 and that you understand that we are treating COVID-19 positive patients within our services.
• Shortlisted candidates will be contacted at least 5 working days before the scheduled interview date. Applications will be submitted directly into our preferred third party recruitment system (Trac). All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs via email - please ensure to check your junk/spam folders.
• All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering their first six months in post.
• In compliance with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016, all applicants must be able to communicate fluently in English to an appropriate standard which will be assessed as part of the selection process.
• This vacancy may close before the current listed closing date. If you intend to apply you are advised not to delay submitting your completed application.
• We believe that using technology wisely reflects strong time management and a commitment to innovation. However, it's essential to personalise your recruitment application to showcase your unique skills and experiences. Over-reliance on generic, AI-generated content may result in rejection if multiple candidates submit applications with similar language or structure. In such cases, recruiting managers may reach out for further clarity where applications appear consistent with others, to better understand your individual strengths.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Documents to download

• Senior Buyer JD/PS (PDF, 288.4KB)
• Tackling Climate Change at Hampshire Hospitals (PDF, 4.9MB)