Consultant Ophthalmologist - Paediatric / Stabismus

North Cumbria Integrated Care; Carlisle; On-site; GBP 109,000 - 146,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider is seeking a Consultant Ophthalmologist specializing in Paediatric / Strabismus to join a supportive team in Carlisle. The role requires dynamic candidates committed to developing innovative practices in eye care and offers the opportunity to work within the stunning Lake District. The position includes a comprehensive salary and benefits package.

Benefits

Flexible working scheme

Competitive NHS pension scheme

Access to NHS discounts

Employee Assistance Programme

Qualifications

• Experience in High Volume Cataract surgery.
• Ability to cover on call.
• Experience of teaching clinical skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop innovative ophthalmic practices.
• Provide general ophthalmic services across North Cumbria.
• Liaise with clinical staff for patient care.

Skills

High standard of clinical skill in Ophthalmology

Ability to offer expert clinical opinion

Empathetic and sensitive approach to patient needs

Team loyalty

Education

FRCOphth or equivalent

Full GMC registration

Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT)

Job description

Consultant Ophthalmologist – Paediatric / Strabismus

Join to apply for the Consultant Ophthalmologist – Paediatric / Strabismus role at North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust.

Job Summary

We are looking for a dynamic and forward-thinking Consultant Ophthalmologist – Paediatric / Strabismus Surgeon to complete a supportive team of specialists covering North Cumbria. Voted one of the best places to live in the UK, North Cumbria houses the Lake District, one of the country’s most outstanding places of natural beauty and the region is an attractive, largely rural area with access to good road, rail and air communications. Housing is relatively inexpensive and there are excellent state and private education establishments.

Main duties of the job

We are looking for candidates who are interested in developing innovative ophthalmic practice; helping to bridge the gap between acute hospital care, community and primary care. Our post offers an exciting opportunity for an ophthalmologist to help us develop a ‘whole system’ approach to delivering safe and effective modern eye care.

The successful candidate will join a team of consultant ophthalmologists, with specialist interests, who provide general ophthalmic services across North Cumbria to serve a population of approximately 360,000 with some referrals also coming from part of South West Scotland and West Northumbria.

About Us

At NCIC, we have an ambition to deliver outstanding healthcare services to the population of North Cumbria. The Trust is committed to creating a centre of excellence in providing rural and remote healthcare and provides a wide range of community and acute services throughout our county.

Our 5 Key Principles

• Being a clinically led organisation
• Quality and safety at the heart of our Trust
• A positive patient experience every time
• A great place to work
• Managing our money well

As an organisation we are serious about supporting a diverse workforce that reflects our local community and are very much focused on being an inclusive and compassionate place to work.

Across the North East and North Cumbria we are working together to deliver our ambition to be the greenest region in England by 2030. All staff are expected to support sustainability.

Details

• Date posted: 26 November 2025
• Pay scheme: Hospital medical and dental staff
• Grade: Consultant
• Salary: £109,725 to £145,478 a year PA
• Contract: Permanent
• Working pattern: Full-time
• Reference number: 262‑A‑25‑6957517‑C
• Job locations: Cumberland Infirmary, Carlisle (Newtown Road, CA2 7HY)

Job Responsibilities

Please see attached job description and person specification for further information regarding the role and the essential and desirable criteria required to be met by applicants.

Due to changes implemented by the Government to the UK immigration policy, individuals who require a Health and Care Visa or a Skilled Worker Visa may no longer be eligible for sponsorship where the UKVI salary threshold is not met or if the occupation is not included in the updated Immigration Salary List (ISL). Applicants must check their eligibility to be employed in any role they are interested in applying for, prior to completing an application for employment. Any applicants who do not meet the eligibility criteria will not be progressed.

If you are applying under the Disability Confident Scheme or Armed Forces Covenant and you meet all the essential criteria for a post, you will be guaranteed an interview.

Relocation assistance may be available for successful applicants moving to the region for certain posts. Please see our Policy for eligible vacancies.

Important Information

Candidates who have been successfully shortlisted for interview will be asked via an email notification to log on to their Trac account to select an interview time. This will usually be within 2 weeks of the closing date.

For candidates applying using a Hotmail account or have strict firewall settings please ensure the following:

• Junk Mail is checked regularly

Disclosure And Barring Service

On 28 November 2020, the new Disclosure and Barring Service filtering rules will come into effect.

The Changes Mean That:

• youth cautions, reprimands and final warnings will no longer be subject to automatic disclosure
• the multiple conviction rule has been removed, meaning that if an individual has more than one conviction, regardless of offence type or time passed, each conviction will be considered against the remaining rules individually, rather than being automatically disclosed.

If you are unsure about whether you need to disclose certain criminal record information, free confidential advice may be sought from one of the charity bodies listed below. These bodies can advise you on what you are legally required to declare and may also be able to advise you on how you can disclose criminal record information to a prospective employer and your legal rights when doing so.

• Nacro Tel: [phone], or email:
• Unlock Tel: [phone], email or complete the online form on the Unlock website

The Trust is committed to safeguarding adults and children therefore if the post is subject to the Rehabilitation Of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 the successful candidate(s) will be subject to a Criminal Records Check with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The cost of the DBS must be met by the successful candidate(s) through salary deduction. DBS Charges are as follows if applicable to the post:

• Standard Check: £18 + Administration cost of £3.85 = £21.85. Deducted at £6.85 from 1st month salary and £5 deducted from salary over following 3 months.
• Enhanced Check: £38 + administration cost of £3.90 = £41.90. Deducted at £11.90 from 1st month salary and £10 deducted from salary over following 3 months.

Benefits & Working Arrangements

• A lease car may be available for this position; further details will be provided upon appointment if applicable.
• Flexible working scheme
• Excellent opportunities for development
• Competitive NHS pension scheme
• Access to NHS discounts with retailers and leisure companies
• EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) – a free, confidential counselling and information service to assist with personal or work‑related problems
• These schemes are subject to availability

Person Specification

Education & Qualifications – Essential

• FRCOphth or equivalent
• Full GMC registration
• Holder of Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) or within six months of award of CCT or equivalent by date of interview
• Inclusion on the Specialist Registrar in Ophthalmology (or within six months of inclusion on GMC specialist register)

Education & Qualifications – Desirable

• Post CCT fellowship in applicable sub‑specialty

Experience and Knowledge – Essential

• High standard of clinical skill and expertise in clinical Ophthalmology
• Clinical Governance
• Ability to offer expert clinical opinion on range of clinical Ophthalmology problems both emergency and elective and in primary care
• Ability to take full and independent responsibility for liaising with clinical staff for the clinical care of patients.

Experience and Knowledge – Desirable

• Experience in High Volume Cataract surgery
• ROP, infant eye screening and examination

Management and Administrative – Essential

• Ability to advise on efficient and smooth running of their chosen subspecialty service.
• Ability to cover on call.

Management and Administrative – Desirable

• Experience of audit management.

Teaching – Essential

• Experience of and commitment to teaching undergraduate and postgraduate medical staff
• Ability to teach clinical and personal skills required for Ophthalmic care.

Teaching – Desirable

• Experience of teaching basic clinical skills to undergraduates
• Teaching of non‑medical health professionals
• Educational Qualification

Research, Audit and Clinical Governance – Essential

• Experience of, and commitment to, medical audit.

Research, Audit and Clinical Governance – Desirable

• Ability to supervise postgraduate research
• Publications in referred journals

Communication skills and abilities – Essential

• Empathetic and sensitive approach to patient needs
• Approachable and effective multi‑disciplinary team member with excellent interpersonal skills
• Team loyalty
• Positive approach to lessons learnt
• Confident approach without being arrogant

Communication skills and abilities – Desirable

• IT Skills / Presentation Skills

Continued Professional / Personal Development – Essential

• Demonstrable evidence of lifelong learning
• Reflective approach to personal development with an ability to acknowledge and effectively manage poor performance
• Participation in appropriate peer review processes

Personal Attributes – Essential

• Participation in on call and emergency cover.

Personal Attributes – Desirable

• Full UK driving licence

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer details

• Employer name: North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
• Address: Cumberland Infirmary, Carlisle, Newtown Road, CA2 7HY
• Employer's website: https://www.ncic.nhs.uk/