Head of Clinical Coding Operations

Main area Clinical Coding – Health Information Management Grade NHS AfC: Band 8A Contract Permanent Hours

• Full time
• Flexible working

37.5 hours per week (Hybrid Working) Job ref 153-CO06318

Department name 01. UHD – General Recruitment Site University Hospital Dorset NHS Foundation Trust Town Bournemouth / Poole Salary £66,582 – £77,368 pa Salary period Yearly Closing Today at 23:59 Interview date 12/08/2026

As University Hospitals Dorset we are a three site acute trust with ‘university hospital’ status through our partnership with Bournemouth University, working with an annual budget of £730m.

We offer highly regarded health services, employing some 10,000 staff. Our ambitious £500m transformation programme is well on the way to delivering state-of-the-art facilities over the next two years to meet the current and future healthcare needs of the populations we serve.

In an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with over seven miles of sandy beaches you’ll find inspirational opportunities to achieve your perfect work/life balance. With the New Forest and the Purbecks on our doorstep, we’re also less than three hours from London by road or train. The thriving towns of Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch give way to idyllic villages and unspoilt landscapes just minutes from our hospitals.

We believe that having a diverse workforce, and allowing people to be themselves, is essential in ensuring we offer an inclusive, welcoming and productive place to work.

We especially welcome applications from minority groups in the community who may be underrepresented in our workforce.

At UHD our active staff network groups are the Women’s Network, Black Asian Minority Ethnic Group (BAME), Pride Network, European (EU), Pro Ability Staff Network, and the Armed Forces Support Group.

As a Trust we are proudly signed up to the Disability Confident and Armed Forces Covenant guaranteed interview schemes.

We are aware that some candidates may choose to use AI tools to support the preparation of their application. While this is not discouraged, we kindly remind applicants that submissions should remain an honest and accurate representation of your own experience and suitability. Personal integrity is an important part of the recruitment process.

Job overview

This is an exceptional opportunity to join University Hospitals Dorset at a pivotal time in the development of our Clinical Coding and Health Information Management Service.

We are transforming Clinical Coding into a modern, clinically engaged and strategically important function, supported by strong executive sponsorship, investment and a clear vision for the future. As part of this transformation, we are expanding coding services, strengthening clinical engagement, developing new career pathways and exploring the adoption of AI support.

As Head of Clinical Coding Operations, you will provide senior operational leadership for the Trust’s Clinical Coding Service, with responsibility for performance, quality, workforce leadership and service delivery across inpatient, outpatient and emergency department activity.

Working closely with clinicians, operational, finance and digital teams, you will drive improvements in clinical documentation and operational performance. You will lead a workforce, deliver sustainable service improvement and support the continued development of Clinical Coding within a wider Health Information Management model.

We are seeking an experienced, qualified Clinical Coding professional with a proven track record of leadership, service improvement and partnership working within complex healthcare organisations.

If you are looking for a role where you can influence strategy, lead change and make a lasting impact, we would love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

As Head of Clinical Coding Operations, you will provide senior operational leadership for Clinical Coding services across University Hospitals Dorset, ensuring the delivery of accurate, timely and high-quality coded data that supports patient care, organisational performance and income assurance.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading the operational delivery of Clinical Coding services across inpatient, outpatient and emergency department activity.
• Managing and developing a high-performing workforce through effective leadership, workforce planning, performance management and staff development.
• Driving improvements in coding quality, productivity, timeliness and backlog reduction, ensuring compliance with national standards and local requirements.
• Working closely with clinicians, operational teams and corporate colleagues to improve clinical documentation and strengthen clinical engagement.
• Leading service transformation, including the expansion of outpatient and emergency department coding and the development of Clinical Documentation Improvement (CDI) approaches.
• Supporting coding assurance and quality improvement in partnership with the Health Information Management Data Assurance team.
• Supporting digital innovation and the safe adoption of AI-enabled technologies while ensuring readiness for future national developments, including ICD-11

Working for our organisation

The Health Information Management Service at University Hospitals Dorset brings together Clinical Coding, Data Quality and wider information management functions within a single service, creating opportunities for collaboration, innovation and professional development.

We are committed to creating a positive and supportive working environment where colleagues are encouraged to contribute ideas, challenge constructively and help shape service development. We place a strong emphasis on teamwork, visibility, professional standards and building effective relationships with clinicians and corporate colleagues.

As a senior leader within the service, you will work alongside an experienced management team helping to drive service improvement, strengthen clinical engagement and support the future development of Clinical Coding and Health Information Management services.

UHD are investing, developing and transforming Trust services in line with the New Hospital Programme. As part of this, some services may move site this year or next, either temporarily or permanently.

Recruiting Managers will be happy to answer any service-specific questions at interview.

UHD has active networks including Women’s, BAME, Pride, EU, Pro Ability, and Armed Forces.

We support Disability Confident and Armed Forces Covenant interview schemes.

AI tools may be used, but applications must honestly reflect your own skills and experience. Integrity is key to our recruitment process.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please refer to the attached Job Description and Person Specification.

We are pleased to offer a £6,000 attraction incentive payment for this role, with full details confirmed in line with Trust processes.

Relocation expenses will be considered for this role in line with Trust policies and subject to internal review.

Base Location: University Hospitals Dorset with cross site and hybrid working

Interview Date: between 12 – 14 August 2026 confirmation of the date will be confirmed upon shortlisting

Person specification

Qualifications

• National Clinical Coding Qualification (NCCQ)
• Evidence of ongoing Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in clinical coding, education, or assurance.
• Clinical Coding Auditor or Trainer qualification.
• Postgraduate qualification or formal training in leadership, management, or service improvement.

Experience

• Extensive post-qualification experience in clinical coding within the NHS, covering inpatient activity and including exposure to outpatient
• Significant experience of operationally managing and leading a Clinical Coding service, including direct responsibility for senior staff or managers.
• Experience of managing and deploying workforce resources to meet competing service demands.
• Experience of mortality coding assurance or mortality review processes.
• Proven experience of working closely with senior clinicians, care group leadership, and corporate teams to address documentation quality, coding performance, and operational issues.
• Experience of implementing or supporting digital (EPR) or AI-enabled solutions within clinical coding or health information management services.
• Experience of working across multiple sites within a large or complex NHS organisation.
• Experience of contributing to national benchmarking or improvement programmes (e.g. GIRFT, HED).

Skills

• Advanced operational understanding of national clinical coding standards and classifications (ICD-10, OPCS-4)
• Confident user of clinical coding systems, encoder software, and operational performance dashboards.
• Ability to oversee and assure coding quality, accuracy, and productivity across multiple coding domains.
• Highly developed analytical skills, with the ability to interpret complex performance, quality, and assurance data and translate insight into operational action.
• Awareness of AI-enabled clinical coding tools and their workforce and training implications.
• Experience of supporting coding quality improvement or optimisation initiatives.
• Experience of using benchmarking or assurance outputs to drive service improvement.
• Awareness of ICD-11 developments and implications for operational delivery.

Knowledge

• Expert knowledge and application of ICD-10, OPCS-4, and National Clinical Coding Standards and datasets.
• In-depth understanding of the role of clinical coding within the NHS and its impact on patient safety, governance, reporting, benchmarking, and organisational assurance.
• Proven knowledge and understanding of the impact of clinical coding on the NHS financial regime, including financial flows, income assurance, and operational risk.
• Awareness of national clinical coding development programmes and future classification changes.
• Awareness of national benchmarking, mortality review, and assurance programmes (e.g. GIRFT, HED, mortality coding frameworks).
• Understanding of ED/A&E coding requirements and standards

Please note:

Staff recruited are expected to be available to work flexibly across all our Trust locations to meet service demands.

This advert may be closed early if sufficient applications are received.

COVID-19 vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself and our patients from the virus when working in our healthcare settings. Whilst this vaccination is not a condition of employment we do encourage our staff to get vaccinated.

Internal Candidates: staff employed prior to merger who voluntarily change jobs will be appointed to UHD terms and conditions.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.

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