Senior Service Designer

Job Summary

At NHS Blood & Transplant (NHSBT), we provide a service that is unique, we help our donors do something extraordinary to save or enhance a life in need. You too can join us and play your part in our life-saving organisation.

In our dedicated team in NHSBT organ donation and transplantation, you’ll be part of a programme team at the forefront of organ transplantation projects, ultimately saving and improving lives.

The establishment of a national Assessment and Recovery Centre (ARC) service will extend equitable access to life-saving products and treatments to everyone that needs them and bridge the gap between shortage of organs available and demand.

You will have an innovative, problem-solving approach, with strong stakeholder management skills and experience in implementing risk management and governance processes. By being part of a passionate, enthusiastic, supportive, and high performing team, you will build positive relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

You will contribute to life-saving work, where every day promises diversity and excitement managing critical programmes aimed at enhancing organ donation and transplantation services.

As a Senior Service Designer at NHSBT, you will directly impact how we understand and design for the needs of our donors, families, the patients we serve, and our people, who deliver and operate services. This is critical to our mission to save and improve lives.

On this journey, you’ll have the opportunity to shape how we achieve our vision and demonstrate the value of research and evidence-driven decision-making in delivery and operational teams. We’re currently working with partners and other organisations in the NHS ecosystem to collaborate and share knowledge through design and research communities of practice.

Main duties of the job

As a Senior Service Designer, you will work as part of a multidisciplinary team to design services for donors and the people who deliver and operate services at NHSBT, and in collaboration with wider health service partners. This will include services and products across both digital and offline channels provided by NHSBT. You’ll collaborate with colleagues in clinical, operational and technical roles. Your responsibilities will include:

• Ensuring services align with NHSBT strategic direction, design principles and user needs.
• Leading the creation and iteration of design artefacts and prototypes with key service users and stakeholders.
• Developing service proposition(s) and service maps to align the delivery team
• Championing the use and value of human centred design tools and techniques throughout the organisation (including but not limited to user research, service mapping, ideation, co-design, prototyping and storyboarding)
• Designing, leading, and facilitating co-design workshops with wide range of stakeholders including end users, for example, potential donors and current donor families, patients, and colleagues

You will be required to travel and spend time away from base, which may involve working irregular hours and overnight stays when required, with prior notice.

About You
Experience and Knowledge

• Significant work/employment experience of advocating, applying and adapting service design methodologies for complex challenges and contexts
• Extensive further experience gained through ‘on the job’ training in user-centred design disciplines
• Strong understanding of how digital economy is changing user behaviour and public sector landscape
• Apply technical knowledge and experience to create or design workable prototypes, both programs and physical outputs. Understand parameters, restrictions and synergies.
• Understand users and can identify who they are and what their needs are, based on evidence. Translate user stories and propose design approaches or services to meet these needs.

Qualifications and Training

• Master's degree or equivalent relevant experience
• Demonstrate commitment to own Continued Professional Development (CPD)

Please view the attached recruitment profile which is a summary of the detailed Job Description and Person Specification for the full personal attributes we require for the role. You will need to demonstrate these throughout the recruitment process.

About Us

It takes all types of people to deliver the kind of service that saves and improves lives. At NHS Blood and Transplant, you’ll join a team of more than 6,000 people who are making a genuine difference to communities, families, friends, relatives and more across the UK. We play a unique and special role in the NHS by helping people do something extraordinary- donate blood, blood products, organs, tissues, or stem cells to save someone in need.

Our three core values are what set us apart. They guide and inspire everything we do.
By being caring, expertly meeting the needs of our patients and our people, and accepting nothing less than the best quality, we can do extraordinary work – and help our people to do something extraordinary in their career, too. Three small words, one big difference - Caring, Expert and Quality. Together we'll save and improve more lives than ever.

You will join us on our journey to create an inclusive workplace and aim to reflect the diverse communities we work with, and we positively encourage applications from all sectors of the community.

What we offer:

• NHSBT promotes flexible and hybrid working opportunities where the role will allow.
• 27 days annual leave (pro rata for part-time) plus Bank Holidays, increasing to 29 days after 5 years’ service and to 33 days after 10 years.
• NHS pension scheme. The NHS Pension Scheme is a defined benefit scheme (not dependent on investment returns) Further details and outline of benefits can be found at: www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/pensions ‎
• We’ve fostered a culture of continuous learning where colleagues are well-led, engaged, and encouraged to grow. We support you in reaching your full potential, both in your current role and future career. Our Thrive program embodies our commitment to learning and development, offering a wide range of activities to support your personal and professional growth. It’s open to everyone at NHSBT, ensuring you have the resources to succeed and shine in your role.

To learn more, please see our recruitment profile, which provides a summary of the job description and person specification. This can be accessed via the link below, or by clicking ‘Apply’ if you are viewing this advert on another site.

This vacancy will close at 23:59 on the 4^th January 2026.

Interviews date(s) to be confirmed.

For informal enquiries please contact – Tara Dunn – Recruitment Business Partner – via email at tara.dunn@nhsbt.nhs.uk