Band 5 Pharmacy Technician

Job summary
At Defence Primary Healthcare (DPHC) we are an inclusive, dedicated organisation working to provide outstanding care to our entitled personnel.

Are you a Pharmacy Technician looking for an exciting role, working alongside the military, which offers numerous benefits and opportunities? If the answer is yes, then we are looking to appoint a professional and patient focused individual with a strong commitment to providing a high quality service to work within our friendly and welcoming team at Pirbright Medical Centre, Alexander Barracks.

The vacant post is a full time role working 37.5 hours per week

Requests to work flexibly and/or part time will be considered, taking into account business needs.

If this could be the role for you then we would love to hear from you.

Benefits:

• Access to learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
• An NHS Pension
• Onsite parking

Main duties of the job
To work with the Dispensary for the planning and delivery of pharmaceutical care of Defence Primary Healthcare (DPHC) patients.

The post holder will work as part of a multidisciplinary primary healthcare team within the Pirbright Combined Medical Practice which provides a comprehensive, efficient and effective service in accordance with Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Defence Medical Command (DMedC) policies and procedures. The Combined Practice is formed of two sites Pirbright and Windsor Practices and there is an expectation to work across both sites as and when required.

About us
Our success depends on our people our Whole Force regular and reservist military, civil servants and contractors, all working as one, working together seamlessly to deliver for us.

Our civil servants are a central part of this Whole Force, developing strategy, making policy, supporting ministerial decision-making and Parliamentary processes. In fact, with over 2,000 different roles working across 650 sites around the world, now really is an excellent time to join one of the largest, most exciting departments in government.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to attracting and retaining people from across the full range of backgrounds and enabling flexible ways of working as the norm. We offer maternity, adoption or shared parental leave of up to 26 weeks full pay followed by 13 weeks of statutory pay and a further 13 weeks unpaid, and paternity leave of 2 weeks full pay.

In return, you can expect a department that helps you learn and develop that recognises your expertise and contribution, both as an individual and part of a team.

If you've ever wanted to do more, see more, go further or be better, we have roles in more professions and vocations than ever before. Let's see where your future will take you, together.

Details
Date posted: 04 September 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 5
Salary: £31,049 to £37,796 a year
pro rata for part time
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time, Part-time, Job share
Reference number: K0003-26-0253
Job locations: Pirbright Medical Centre, Alexander Barracks, Woking, Surrey, GU24 0QQ, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities
Duties and responsibilities for the role include but are not limited to:

• To maintain the integrity and stock of the Dispensary and Pharmaceutical stores in accordance with current regulations and requirements.
• To dispense and issue prescriptions to patients in order to contribute to the Principle Medical Officers (PMOs) standards and objectives.
• Provide relevant information to patients on their safe use of medicines including dosage and storage instructions and how to obtain further supplies.
• Ensure medical supplies and pharmaceuticals are stored in accordance with the manufacturers recommendations and guidelines.
• Ensure the storage, accounting, mustering and dispensing of controlled and accountable drugs are in accordance with Joint Service Publication (JSP) 886.
• Act as a mentor and coach for Medical Assistants in pursuit of the completion of their Continuous Professional Development task book and whole departmental awareness.
• Participate in governance and assurance activities, including completion of medicines management audits, contribution to ASER/incident reporting, maintenance of accurate documentation, and supporting compliance with internal and external inspection standards.
• Manage pharmaceutical stock and ordering processes, including routine replenishment, monitoring expiry dates, handling shortages, maintaining accurate inventory records, and liaising with suppliers to ensure uninterrupted availability of essential medicines.

For further details, please see the attached Terms of Reference

Selection Process
At application stage you will be assessed against the following:

CV:

• Please ensure you demonstrate that you have the required skills, knowledge, experience, qualifications and memberships in the CV section of the application form.
• Please provide information of how you meet the criteria set out in the Job Description. You may wish to further include examples of how you have tackled similar tasks or demonstrated the skills outlined in the job advert.

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

At interview you will be assessed against the following:

Technical Skills:

• NHS Core - NHSC1 - Communication
• NHS Core - NHSC2 - Personal & People Development
• NHS Core - NHSC3 - Health, Safety & Security
• NHS Core - NHSC4 - Service Improvement
• NHS Core NHSC5 Quality
• NHS Core NHSC6 Equality and Diversity

The sift will be completed within 10 working days of the vacancy closing date. Interviews will be held on a date to be confirmed.

There will be no reimbursement for any travel expenses for the interview.

Requests to work flexibly and/or part time will be considered, taking into account business needs. Please note the salary will be pro-rata where part time hours are undertaken.

All employees joining Ministry of Defence who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a 6-month probation period (unless otherwise advised) effective from the employment start date.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check.

Access to the NHS pension scheme is available to the successful candidate.

If found successful for this position, you will be required to provide evidence of your immunity to Hepatitis B. Please note that evidence of your vaccination is not a proof of your immunity, but your serology levels will be required. Failure to provide sufficient evidence may result in the offer of employment being withdrawn.

To be considered for this role, qualifications and memberships detailed must be held in full, prior to submitting your application.

There is no requirement to deploy as this is met by our uniformed personnel, but you will form the continuity of care required by our patients when based at home.

The post does NOT offer relocation expenses (move of home, excess fares or temporary transfer). Non-Standard move applicants will be eligible for the full package, subject to eligibility.

Cyber and Specialist Operations Command (CSOC) is going through a significant transformation programme which aims to design the way in which the new Military Command conducts its business and delivers for Defence and the nation. As a consequence of this, posts within CSOC are/or may become subject to review and potential changes as we continuously improve across the period of the transformation programme. These changes may be minor or could be more substantive and will generate new opportunities. Throughout, the Commands transformation programme is committed to following the MODs framework on managing and supporting people through the change process and places an emphasis on early and open consultation and engagement with the Commands personnel and Trade Unions.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system.

Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

This vacancy is part of the A Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative. Apply through our website.

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact View email address on meeveem.com.

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments.

Person Specification
Provide a CV
Essential

• Please copy and paste your full CV as your response to this question; you will not be able to upload your CV as an attachment. Please ensure to refer to the essential criteria where applicable as your application may be rejected should insufficient information to shortlist be included. Please use double spacing where possible.

Experience
Essential

• Planning and Organisational Skills

Behaviour Statement
Essential

• Have you been dismissed for gross misconduct relating to bullying, harassment, discrimination or victimisation from any role in the past five years, or resigned or otherwise left a role but would have been dismissed for such gross misconduct because of an adverse decision, had you continued in that employment? Please respond with Yes or No as appropriate.

Memberships
Essential

• Registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) (achieved via NVQ Level 3/BTEC Pharmaceutical science qualification, or grand-parenting).

Qualifications
Essential

• National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Level 3 in Pharmaceutical Science or equivalent
• Business & Technology Education Council (BTEC) Pharmaceutical Science

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.

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details
Employer name: Ministry of Defence (Defence Medical Services)
Address: Pirbright Medical Centre, Alexander Barracks, Woking, Surrey, GU24 0QQ, United Kingdom
Employer's website: Apply through our website

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact: Laura Shaw
View email address on meeveem.com

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.