About the programme
Leadership and Management Training is a five-day residential programme developed by and for laboratory professionals. It covers preparing for consultant-level responsibilities, navigating NHS structures, managing people and budgets, and contributing confidently to service change. Sessions are rooted in laboratory and pathology practice, with case studies, workshops, and group projects drawn from real NHS scenarios, including network working, procurement decisions, and workforce challenges, rather than generic management examples.
Who should attend?
This course is designed for specialist registrars and post-registration clinical biochemists, immunologists, and microbiologists, as well as consultants looking to progress into leadership roles in the NHS. For members preparing for FRCPath part 2, the course supports the broader professional development expected at this stage, with exposure to NHS finance, commissioning, governance, employment law, and leadership styles, areas increasingly relevant to senior scientific roles but not always covered in day-to-day work.
What you will learn
By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:
- understand the structure, funding, and accountability of the NHS across the four nations, and the strengths and weaknesses of its organisational models
- apply core people-management skills, including employment law fundamentals, to practical workforce scenarios
- interpret and manage a laboratory budget, and understand how business cases and procurement decisions are built and assessed
- lead and contribute to transformational change in pathology networks, drawing on leadership theory, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness frameworks such as MBTI
Course Outline
Day 1: NHS foundations (Monday 12 October)
The course opens with an overview of the NHS in the UK, past, present, and future, followed by assignment into project groups that will work together throughout the week. The evening includes a facilitated negotiation exercise.
Day 1 - full programme
14:30 Registration & collection of delegate pack
15:00 Check-in to en-suite accommodation
15:45 The NHS in the UK - past, present and future
Speaker: Ian Godber, President of the Association for Laboratory Medicine
17:00 Assignment of delegates to 5 projects which will be undertaken during the week
Organiser: Katy Heaney, North West London Pathology
Delegates will be expected to find time within the busy programme to address the tasks, to work effectively as a team, extract pertinent information from the week’s activities and make a presentation to an invited audience on Friday morning. Details of supporting documentation will be described. Delegates are recommended to bring Lap Tops where possible to support the preparation of the presentations to be delivered on the Friday morning.
19:30 – 21:00 Negotiation Exercise
Leader: Helen Johnstone, South West London Pathology
Day 2: NHS structures and people (Tuesday 13 October)
A look at how the NHS is organised across the four nations, including funding flows, accountability, regulation, and clinical commissioning, with group work on engaging local commissioning boards. The afternoon turns to people management, covering employment law and its practical application to laboratory leadership, worked through real scenarios.
Day 2 - full programme
Tuesday am – NHS Structure & Organisation
Chair: Helen Johnstone, South West London Pathology
Learning Objective:- Understand the relationships across the four nations, Trusts, Commissioning organisations, general practice, social care etc. Flows of funding, accountability and regulation. Understand the strengths and weaknesses of organisational structures within the NHS.
09:00 – 09:40 The NHS – The bigger picture
Speaker: Helen Johnstone
09:40 – 11:15 The structures & Interactions in the NHS
Speaker: Helen Hughes, NHS England
11:15 – 11:40 Understanding Clinical Commissioning
Speaker: Simon Brewer, South West London Pathology
11:40 – 13:00 Workshop - group work on ideas about how to engage with your local commissioning boards
Facilitators: Helen Johnstone, Helen Hughes, Simon Brewer
Tuesday pm – People!
Chair: Mike Cornes, Director of Regulatory affairs
Learning Objective:- Understand and gain insight and skills to help address practical employment problems.
14:00 - 14:15 Feedback on negotiation exercise on Monday evening
Speaker: Helen Johnstone
14:15 - 15:00 An overview of how employment law affects the laboratory management
Speaker: Mike Cornes, Chair of LabMed Trade Union
15:00 - 17:00 Workshop – Example people problem scenarios
Facilitator: Mike Cornes
Day 3: Finance and procurement (Wednesday 14 October)
Sessions on how NHS finance is structured, including budgetary provision for pathology, costing, and business cases, followed by hands-on work managing a laboratory budget through case studies. The afternoon covers pathology procurement and managed service contracts, including the legal framework, tender processes, and common pitfalls, with group work on contract and bid management. The evening features a BBC-style Question Time debate with delegate-submitted questions.
Day 3 - full programme
Wednesday am - Finance
Chair: Alison Whitelegg, University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust
Learning Objective:- Understand how finance is organised in the NHS including budgetary provision for pathology. Learn about budget statements, costing tests and procuring equipment. Learn about business cases and what goes in them.
09:00 - 10:00 Factual overview of NHS Finance
Speaker: Victoria Deakin, NHS South East Regional Academy
10:00 -10:45 Understanding and managing your laboratory budget
Speaker: Sue Alexander, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust
10:45 - 13:00 Workshop. Divided into four groups with case studies drawn from Pathology
Facilitators: Alison Whitelegg, Victoria Deakin & Sue Alexander
Wednesday pm - Managed Serviced Contracts/ Procurement
Chair: Tom Morris, South West London Pathology
Learning Objective:- To gain an understanding of the fundamental concepts behind the VAT incentive to procedure Managed Services, and, the legal framework that applies to public procurement with guidance on the pitfalls leading to unsuccessful procurement and how to avoid these. To gain an understanding of managed service contracts and the procurement process.
14:00 - 14:45 Managed Service Contracts/Procurement – The Laboratory perspective
Speaker: Tom Walton, South West London Pathology – Chemistry Network Lead
14:45 - 15:30 Managed Service Contracts/Procurement – The Suppliers perspective
Speaker: Linda Malek, Roche Diagnostics Limited – Head of Commercial Bids and Proposals
15:30 - 16:15 Managed Service Contracts/Procurement – The Industry perspective
Speaker: Beth Loudon, British In Vitro Diagnostics Association (BIVDA) - Director of Market Access and Operations
16:15 - 17:30 Workshop – Contract Management, Bid Management, Construction of an MSC
Facilitators: Tom Morris, Tom Walton, Linda Malek & Beth Loudon.
19:30 - 21:00 Question Time
Chair: Rob Shorten, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
BBC style debate (questions pre-prepared by all delegates submitted by Tuesday morning)
Day 4: Clinical leadership and pathology networks (Thursday 15 October)
An exploration of leadership and management theory, emotional intelligence, and leadership styles, followed by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to build insight into personal behaviour and motivation. The afternoon shifts to pathology networks, with a national overview and a session on leading large-scale transformational change, followed by group work on real-world network challenges. The day closes with a gala dinner.
Day 4 - full programme
Thursday am - Clinical Leadership
Chair: Emma Walker, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
Learning Objective:- To enable participants to differentiate between management and leadership and to develop personal insights for present/future leadership roles.
09:00 - 09:05 Welcome and Introduction
Speakers: Emma Walker and Elizabeth Ralph
09:05 - 10:45 What is Leadership? Exercises and exploration of theories of leadership and management
Emotional intelligence and leadership styles – an exploration of the emotional intelligence competencies and an overview of a leadership styles’ framework
Speaker: Emma Walker
10:45 -12:40 Understanding Self & Others using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) – an opportunity to acquire a deeper insight into personal behaviour and motivation
Speakers: Emma Walker and Elizabeth Ralph
12:40 -13:00 Discussion in groups - an opportunity to explore the significance of your Myers-Briggs type and how you will use this insight
Thursday pm – Pathology Networks and Beyond
Chair: Annette Armstrong, Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Services
Learning Objective:- Understand current organisational structures in Pathology and be aware of the skills needed for leading large scale transformational change in pathology networks
14:00 -15:00 National overview of pathology networks
Speaker: Suchita Joshi, NHS England
15:00 -16:00 Understanding and managing transformational change in pathology networks
Speaker: Angela Jean-Francois, North West London Pathology
16:00 -17:30 Workshop – group work using real world pathology network issues and challenges
Facilitators: Annette Armstrong, Angela Jean-Francois, Suchita Joshi
19:30 Course gala dinner
Day 5: Group presentations (Friday 16 October)
Delegate groups present the conclusions of their week-long project work to an invited panel, each followed by discussion, before closing comments and departure.
Day 5 - full programme
Friday am – Group Presentations
Chair: Katy Heaney, North West London Pathology
09:30 - 12:15 Five presentations by delegate groups of the conclusions of their project work. 25 mins each (15 mins presentation and 10 mins discussion).
12:30 Departure
Delivery and access
The course is delivered in person as a residential programme at the Ashford International Hotel, with en-suite accommodation included. The residential format allows time for discussion and peer learning that's difficult to achieve in shorter courses. Delegates hear directly from national and regional NHS leaders, laboratory service directors, professional body representatives, and industry specialists throughout the week. CPD certificates are provided on completion.