Family Practitioner Services (FPS) Dental Team Leader – Band 5

Location: Belfast
Salary: £31,049 – £37,796 per annum, Band 5
Hours: 37.5 hours per week
Working Pattern: Full-time, fixed working pattern
Contract: Temporary

About the Role

An excellent opportunity has arisen for an experienced and motivated FPS Dental Team Leader to join the Family Practitioner Services team within Operations.

The successful candidate will support the FPS Service Manager in the effective management and delivery of the Payments function. You will have day-to-day responsibility for managing a Payments Team, ensuring workloads are effectively coordinated and all payments and associated documentation are processed accurately, efficiently and within required timescales.

This is a varied role requiring strong leadership, financial and analytical skills, combined with the ability to manage competing priorities, support service improvements and build effective relationships with a range of internal and external stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

As FPS Dental Team Leader, your responsibilities will include:

• Managing, supporting and providing day-to-day direction to the Payments Team.
• Scheduling workloads and ensuring appropriate resources are available to meet departmental and organisational deadlines.
• Ensuring payments are processed promptly and accurately in accordance with relevant payment regulations, procedures and Standing Financial Instructions.
• Monitoring payment activity, outstanding approvals and processing performance to prevent backlogs.
• Maintaining appropriate controls to help prevent fraudulent or unauthorised payments.
• Using IT and financial systems to manage workloads and produce routine and ad hoc reports.
• Analysing payment data, contractor performance and submission trends and making recommendations for improvement.
• Developing consistent, effective and efficient working practices across the payments function.
• Producing and developing standardised reports to improve the quality and consistency of management information.
• Supporting the development and implementation of payment monitoring arrangements.
• Providing advice and guidance to colleagues and contractors regarding payments, reconciliations, systems and relevant guidelines.
• Interpreting and applying relevant payment regulations, statutory guidance and policies.
• Building and maintaining effective working relationships with stakeholders across the organisation and wider Health and Social Care environment.
• Identifying and resolving operational issues and supporting continuous service improvement.
• Supporting the implementation of relevant internal and external audit recommendations.
• Ensuring queries regarding payments are investigated and resolved accurately and within appropriate timescales.
• Managing and supporting team members through effective communication, training, development and regular supportive conversations.
• Promoting a positive, open and collaborative working environment.

Essential Criteria

Skills, Knowledge & Experience

Candidates should also be able to demonstrate:

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• The ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with staff at all levels.
• Excellent organisational skills and experience of working to tight deadlines.
• Knowledge and experience of financial software packages, including payment systems.
• Knowledge and experience of interpreting legislation and statutory guidelines.
• Strong IT skills and competency.
• Excellent working knowledge of Microsoft Excel and Access.
• The ability to collate and analyse data, produce reports and make recommendations for action.
• Working knowledge of GDPR and data protection principles.

Desirable Criteria

Preference may be given to applicants with:

• A minimum of 12 months’ experience in one or more of the following:
• Applying statutory rules governing an FPS payment function, including GP, dental, pharmacy or ophthalmic payments.
• Processing payments within a Health and Social Care setting.
• Using FPS finance systems.
• Experience working within a major complex organisation, defined as an organisation with an annual budget/turnover of at least £50 million or at least 100 employees.