Policy/Research Jobs in Greater London
Our programme supporting Higher Technical Education has big ambitions. Known as the ‘missing middle’ of higher education in England, we want to see the declines in level 4 and 5 technical education reversed and more providers emerge who can offer high-quality education and training to help people access highskilled occupations. Key to this transformation is the role of Institutes of Technology (IoTs) – collaborations between further education colleges, universities and employers – and we have been working closely with the National Network of Institutes of Technology to support their success. We are looking for a Project Officer to play an integral part in the successful delivery of this programme, as well as becoming an advocate for Higher Technical Qualifications more broadly.
This role sits within the small Higher Education Team at Gatsby, and you will work closely with the Project Manager and Director of Programmes to: develop and deliver a range of projects to support our programme objectives; represent Gatsby at external meetings; organise meetings and events; and develop strong working relationships with key partners.
Key Role Responsibilities:
- Deliver projects to support Gatsby’s Higher Technical Education programme, with clear objectives and planning, delivering outputs on time and within budget.
- Research, create and write compelling communications that support programme objectives.
- Co-ordinate regular meetings and external events, including drafting agendas, writing minutes, liaising with and organising contributions from external stakeholders.
- Work effectively with other Gatsby programme teams to ensure higher technical education is appropriately represented within their areas of focus.
- Commission consultants/researchers to undertake pieces of work that will inform programme direction.
- Undertake project evaluations to measure success, analysing outputs/feedback and making informed recommendations to improve activity.
- Manage the National Network of Institutes of Technology website and LinkedIn pages, ensuring they remain a compelling national presence with engaging and relevant content.
- Provide administrative and budget support for beneficiary grants and contracts.
- Create and maintain data and contact information relevant to the Institutes of Technology and other key stakeholders in higher technical education.
- Maintain a secure understanding of all high-level Gatsby policy positions and able to communicate them effectively in written form and verbally.
About You:
Experience
- Managed projects to successful outcomes, including some budget responsibility.
- Organised meetings and external events.
- Managed external contracts or grants to deliver agreed objectives on time and within budget.
- Developed and maintained a network of external contacts.
- Have produced effective communication materials for different audiences.
Knowledge & Expertise
- Some knowledge and understanding of the UK post-18 education and skills landscape.
- Basic understanding of the ways in which policy decisions are influenced and enacted in England.
Skills & Abilities
- Comfortable working with partners in education and industry, able to initiate and develop positive relationships with a diverse range of people and organisations.
- Able to persuade, engage and build rapport quickly with new contacts, and maintain important working partnerships.
- Oral and written fluency in English and able to prepare and present accurate and readable briefings and reports from complex information.
- Constantly striving to improve own projects and processes. Open to new ideas and ways of doing things, enabling constructive contributions to organisational progress and innovation.
- Able to set and meet own deadlines under pressure, often balancing conflicting priorities, and dealing calmly with unforeseen issues.
- Diplomatic and politically sensitive, using good judgement and evidence to form opinions.
- An ability to apply an awareness of diversity issues to all areas of work.
Personal Attributes & Other Requirements
- Strong interest in the role of technical education and careers guidance in improving life chances.
- Highly self-motivated, setting high standards for themselves and those they work with.
- Commitment to anti-discriminatory practice and equal opportunities.
- Enjoys working as part of a small team.
- Able to be flexible about working hours and locations, including working remotely and travelling to meetings around the UK and potentially overseas (may include overnight stays).
For the full job pack and details of the application process, please click the How to Apply button.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Job Description
The Head of Advocacy and Policy will be responsible for developing an excellent Advice Service and Retention Team to support and advise students effectively to enable excellent student experience and satisfaction.
This role will lead on the development of effective insights, representation and support initiatives/campaigns for students, across our three campuses at Greenwich, Avery Hill and Medway.
This role will enhance work with the diverse student population of the University of Greenwich and lead a dynamic team to ensure students have consistent and accessible services that contribute to positive student experience.
This role sits within the wider Membership Services department, together with other key areas consisting of; Activities, Sport, Academic Communities, Representation and Democracy, we provide a high-quality service for students, that they can shape, steer and be at the heart of.
This postholder will be part of the GSU Senior Leadership Team and will be expected to contribute to department and organisation wide strategic development.
The post holder will:
- Have expert knowledge in areas of in relation to Advice and Retention and policies and legislation relating to such activity
- Support and develop strong student-led communities and campaigns in areas of: Advice, wellbeing and retention so that members can thrive
- Provide line management support to staff so that the team have up to date, specialist advice skills, knowledge and understanding of University regulations, policies and procedures that may affect the work of the Advice service and oversee engagement across Greenwich’s 3 campuses
- Undertake casework and provide expert advice for the team on all aspects of Advice
- Lead on the project management of wellbeing/health promotion campaigns and initiatives throughout the year, as well as any external bids through bodies such as OfS
- Oversee the Retention and Wellbeing Project work, and other relevant projects with external partners
- Lead on insights work relating to retention, wellbeing and support
- Lead on responses to external consultation and enquiry responses, including but not limited to OfS, Department for Education, OIA and Universities UK
- Support elected officers to deliver on campaigning priorities
- Ensure the Advice service has the skills and is equipped to support the diverse needs of students at Greenwich and Kent at Medway.
- Provide regular insights and reports on the GSU Membership to inform our strategy and service provision
- Work with other Heads to develop relevant and modern Front of House services for each GSU campus ensuring ease of access and consistency for all members.
Key Areas
- Be an engaged and active member of the Senior Leadership team, contributing regularly and working collaboratively with peers
- Provide leadership, strategic direction and day to day operational management to the Advocacy and Policy: recruiting and inducting members of staff, motivating, supporting and developing team members to ensure they have the necessary skills and knowledge for their roles as well as manage performance
- Develop a proactive results driven culture within the team, ensuring agreed objectives and targets are delivered, whilst promoting a collaborative approach to working with internal departments
- Develop succession plans and identify training and development opportunities within the team
- Be accountable for the quality of outputs of the team
- Provide support to the Officer team helping and equipping them, particularly in their roles as representatives and providing pastoral support and guidance.
- Ensure the whole organisation is aware of and understands the work of the Advocacy and Policy Team and its contribution to our strategic objectives
- To maintain expert and up-to-date knowledge on sector policies and regulations relating to advice, retention and student success, providing relevant guidance to officers and staff as required.
- Develop and promote a culture of continuous improvement across the team to ensure we can adapt to changing students’ needs and priorities, as well as building on successes and preparing for the future.
Strategic Development
- Contribute to the strategic objectives of GSU, with a particular focus on advice, support and wellbeing in relation to the student experience
- Develop and oversee a new and innovative approach to proactive health and wellbeing campaigns that empower students to look after themselves and each other, as well as seeking support
- Lead on Access and Participation Plan Engagement, acting as the key contact on this area with the University.
- Build and maintain strong working relationships with relevant senior UoG staff and departments including Student Academic Services, Faculties and our partners at Kent Unio
- Develop and oversee the Advice service to support advocacy initiatives at multiple levels within the University, ensuring both students and University stakeholders view GSU as a credible and reliable source of information on the needs of students.
Monitoring and Evaluation
- Develop and oversee a structured approach to gathering, analysing and reporting on data relating to engagement of students with our services and to student views on key issues relating to retention and success
- Develop and oversee processes of collecting quantitative and qualitative data from casework to analyse trends and inform feedback for the SU and university
- Ensure evaluation mechanism are embedded in the teams working practises and that findings are shared and used to implement learnings with the goal of improving services
- Support Officers by preparing information, statistics and trends about key services to be shared within the University committee cycle
- Be responsible for the implementation of service standards for the Advocacy and Policy Team and to monitor and report on adherence to these standards
- Prepare materials to apply for any relevant quality mark accreditations for the service.
Budget and Financial Management
- Manage a budget relating to Advocacy and Policy including any restricted funds.
- Be responsible for the teams resources, ensuring these are effectively allocated, managed and controlled
- Review and establish processes, systems, polices and where appropriate standard procedures to maximise efficiency ensure deadlines are met and a positive return on investment
- Review and provide narrative for scrutiny at monthly management meetings with the Finance Team
Stakeholder management
- Collaborate with GSU colleagues, particularly the Student Voice and Engagement Teams to ensure we have a consistent approach to how we work with and support students
- Work with students through our representative structures and forums to ensure we shape services students want and need, taking into consideration the varying campus priorities
- Maintain strong relationships with key university staff to develop, deliver and evaluate collaborative projects and interventions supporting advice and retention
- Attend meetings relating to Advocacy and Policy as well as associated areas at both GSU, the University and externally, included, but not limited to regional networks
- Identify opportunities to share best practice and represent the work of GSU and your team to the wider HE community, through conferences and publication.
Personal Specification
Essential Experience
- Line management experience
- Relevant experience working in the youth, education, students’ union or other membership or advisory organisation
- Experience of leading a multi-functional team
- Experience of mentoring coaching staff/elected officers
- Experience of developing operational policies and procedures
- Experience of budget management, project management, and operational management
- Experience of working with a range of stakeholders and partnership working or strategic networking
Essential Skills and Abilities
- Ability to work with and lead a high performing team
- Ability to troubleshoot difficult situations, and deal with them calmly, efficiently and effectively
- Ability to produce confident, clear written reports and be able to write succinct documents on complex areas
- IT skills at a level that supports membership CRM systems, Advice Pro and other platforms
- Excellent time management and organisational skills with the ability to manage others to reach deadlines, within agreed budgets and to a consistently high standard
- Ability to write strategies and be able to effectively communicate vision and mission
- Ability to stay focused and efficient in the face on changing priorities
- Track record of successfully developing and implementing projects and operational change
- Able to draft policies and procures with an eye for detail and accuracy
Essential Knowledge
- Awareness of current issues within the higher education sector
- Knowledge of relevant external bodies and organisations including Advice UK, NUS, Citizens Advice, OIA, Ofs, Student Minds
- Knowledge of relevant health and safety legislation
- Knowledge of Safeguarding, advice legislation, risk assessments and GDPR
- Knowledge of providing 121 support
Education/Training
- No one specific qualification is required, but evidence of recent continuing professional development in a professional area relevant to the post is required. For example: ILM, City &Guilds etc.
Personal Attributes and other requirements
- Able to travel within the Borough and Region.
- Able to work some evenings and weekends and stay overnight where necessary.
- Works well in a team with a flexible approach to work
- Be eligible for a DBS check if needed
- A commitment to the principles and practices of equality and diversity
- An ability to apply awareness of diversity issues to all areas of work.
- Commitment to the values and ethos of GSU.
Desirable other requirements
- Visionary, creative, and innovative strategist
- A positive, solution focused leader – able to make ‘tough’ decisions; determined and resilient in order to cope with the demands of the role
- Empowering, authentic leader with high levels of emotional intelligence
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
The Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) provides its member institutions with timely advice and guidance on all employment and reward matters relevant to the higher education sector.
The UCEA Research team has an influential role in activities related to reward and labour markets, which informs the multi-employer pay negotiations in Higher Education. Working with the Head of Reward and Research and the wider team you will contribute to UCEA’s research strategy on employment matters and maintain our reputation for high-quality research, information and guidance on pay and employment matters in Higher Education.
As the Research Analyst you will support the provision and development of UCEA’s pay and workforce benchmarking services and a range of wider employment-related projects. You will have the opportunity to conduct in-depth quantitative and qualitative research, to communicate your findings to members and wider stakeholders. You will work with internal and external stakeholders to keep abreast of issues affecting the full range of employers across the HE sector.
You will communicate complex information clearly, both in writing and verbally. You will analyse sector data, e.g. Higher Education Statics Agency and ONS, and build and maintain benchmarking dashboards. This requires current intermediate level R skills, or clear aptitude for learning R to intermediate level, and intermediate or advanced Excel. Experience of using survey software to collect, analyse and report on bespoke quantitative surveys is essential.
We provide a supportive and stimulating environment where you will develop your skills through formal induction, a personal training budget, attendance at sector events, involvement in all aspects of our research and communication and exposure to senior stakeholders within the UK’s higher education sector.
This is a full-time, permanent role.
Find out more
If you think this role could be for you, please download the Information for Applicants pack, which includes the job description and person specification, or visit our website.
How to apply
Apply through CharityJob, submitting your current CV and a covering letter setting out what you will bring to this role.
The closing date for applications is Midday on Wednesday 01 May 2024.
Interviews are expected to take place during the week commencing 06 May 2024 and will be held in person at the UCEA offices at 20 Tavistock Square, London WC1H 9HU.
All candidates must have proof of their right to work in the UK.
No agencies please.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
This role will primarily sit within our Capacity Building and Standards (CB&S) function but will work closely with our Innovation and Practice (I&P) and Advocacy and Communications (A&C) functions.
The CB&S function aims to build capacity both inside and outside of public institutions to embed the processes, skills, structures and cultures needed for effective public participation in decision-making. The I&P function is responsible for the deliberative, dialogic and participatory projects and processes that we run. The A&C function aims to build political and public understanding of and support for making participation and deliberation an everyday, integral part of our democracy.
This role will have a thematic focus on public engagement in decision-making within the science, technology and data sectors. Candidates do not need an educational or work background in this sector, although it would be useful, but we would expect the successful candidate to take a keen interest in these topics.
Involve achieves its impacts by growing expertise in sector-specific areas where public engagement is important. Science and tech represent policy areas where citizen engagement on both principles and practice is vital and where public engagement can also open the door to broader deliberative democratic interventions and feedback loops. Technological advancement, including AI, presents risks and opportunities and will be an ongoing priority for government with five critical technologies likely to be central to UK policy for at least the next Government.
Involve has a significant pedigree and is well networked in the area of public engagement in science. Over the last 20 years we have been thought leaders in this space, in particular running the government’s science and tech engagement programme, Sciencewise. We have developed a reputation for best practice public dialogue, deliberation and capacity building.
Given the opportunity to grow this area, our reputation, and the important democratic need, we don’t want to stand still.
As Engagement Lead you will play a central role in leading Involve’s work, and building out our strategy, on public engagement in the science, technology and data field. The job will involve leading on our Sciencewise programme of public dialogue as well as supporting, growing and communicating our science and tech public engagement in general. You will be a proven project leader and strategic thinker looking to make your next move and develop your leadership and profile in this interesting and important area of public engagement in decision-making.