Care and services research officer jobs

This role will join an ambitious programme developing the capacity of the Libraries Connected public library networks. We want to help them evolve as strategic partnerships able to deliver social impacts at scale and to secure resources and investment from national, regional and sub-regional government. Be key to the development of libraries as essential social infrastructure, and help them secure the resources they need to make an impact. 

The role is part of a small team of two Regional Managers, supported by an Administrator. 

By developing our existing regional networks into formal, resourced structures we can enable the regions to: 

• Secure investment for the service and for the libraries from regional and devolved / combined authority funds.
• Create unique regional offers to meet specific needs across and within the regional areas.
• Deliver at scale. For example, the Yorkshire & Humber regional network has 15 library services, and 348 library buildings. 
• Create opportunities for cost saving – through joint procurement and shared / collaborative services. 
• Share good practice and experience on a formal and integrated basis. 

We have 9 regional networks in England, covering all library services and ranging in size from 9 to 33 services. Within each region they provide hundreds of library branches, thousands of staff, and serve millions of service users.  They have a long tradition of working together as peer support networks and to deliver activities such as festivals, marketing, and staff training. 

Please see the attached job description for a full description of the role, including person specification. 

Frequent travel within the UK may be required for the role.

About Libraries Connected 

We are an independent charity that supports, promotes and represents public libraries. Our work is driven and led by our membership, which includes almost every library service in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Crown Dependencies (Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man).  

Across the areas we serve there are 176 individual library services with around 3,000 library branches serving over 61 million people. 

Our unique approach is to bring these services together to share experience, expertise and evidence – driving innovation and impact across the public library sector.

While senior library leaders sit on our board and committees, we work with library staff at all levels.

As well as providing practical support, training and advice to libraries, we represent them to government and raise their profile in the media. We also develop and lead national library projects with cultural, academic and corporate partners.  

We work to a strategic plan that runs until 2027, organised around four themes: drive, grow, connect and engage.  

We generate income from membership subscriptions, commissioned services, events and grants. As an Arts Council Investment Principle Support Organisation, part of our core funding in England comes from the Arts Council to help embed their Investment Principles across the library network.   

Our values 

• We are supportive. We respond to the varied, emerging needs of our members and their communities to enable libraries to learn from each other, and other sector leaders, so that they can safeguard and improve their services.  

• We are inclusive. We work with our members and partners to design and deliver our work and to determine our strategic priorities because we are committed to representing the diverse communities and libraries which we serve.  

• We are open. We are in constant communication with our members and partners on all levels to learn from their experiences, reflect on our practice and develop our services. We welcome challenge and new directions for our work.  

• We are ambitious. We believe that libraries are an essential part of the solution to a range of society’s needs. We promote innovation and collaboration to ensure that libraries are recognised locally and nationally.  

Working at Libraries Connected 

We are a friendly, collaborative team of around 20 staff based all around England and Wales. 

We value diversity and are committed to promoting an inclusive working environment. We strongly believe that inclusive and diverse organisations are not only better places to work, they are more innovative, make better decisions and are more successful. We value people who bring unique perspectives and knowledge to our team. 

We want to make our recruitment process as fair as possible. To reduce bias, we shortlist candidates based on their responses to up to six application questions. These are designed to tell us about your values, experience, attitudes to work, and transferable skills. We do not ask for a separate cover letter or supporting statement. 

We offer flexible working as standard, helping work fit around family and caring responsibilities. Many of our staff work their hours in different ways, including flexi time and compressed hours. We are open to discussing what would work for you and be possible for the role. 

All roles are remote and are open to applicants who live anywhere in the UK. We provide staff with a home office set-up including laptop, monitor and phone. There is the option to work from our central London office or use a co-working space if it is not possible to work from home. 

We welcome requests for adjustments to our standard recruitment processes for anyone who needs them. 

Date posted: Monday 6 July 2026

Salary: £94,592 per annum with excellent benefits

Contract type: Permanent, full time or part time

Hours per week: 37.5 hours per week. All staff are required to work in person for a minimum of two days per week, in line with our hybrid working policy. The post-holder may be required to undertake some work outside normal working hours.

About the Health Foundation

Health is our most precious asset. Good health enables us to live happy, fulfilling lives, fuels our prosperity and helps build a stronger society. Yet good health remains out of reach for too many people in the UK, and health and care services are struggling to provide access to timely, high-quality care.

The Health Foundation is an independent charitable organisation with a mission to build a healthier UK. We work to achieve this by generating high quality research and analysis; developing practical solutions to the biggest problems in health and health services; engaging, convening and building coalitions to build understanding, inform debate and drive action; and developing the long-term capability needed to transform health and care.

Our values

We expect everyone who works with us to be committed to our values and to share our commitment to becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation. Our values are impact, evidence, integrity, and collaboration. You can read more about them in our five-year strategy. We also expect everyone to share our commitment to becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation and to help deliver our EDI Strategy.

About the role

This role is one of three key Deputy Directors in the Health and Care Policy team. The team focuses on shaping the future of the health and care system in the UK to ensure the best care for all, by supporting more evidence-informed policy and decision-making.

You will work alongside the Director of Policy and Research and other senior staff to oversee and manage our large portfolio of work on health and care policy. This will include leading high-quality research and analysis and using evidence to inform policy and decision-making – including through direct engagement with policymakers, events and convening. You will also be directly responsible for overseeing our thematic programme of work on health system reform and neighbourhood health, working with staff in the Health and Care Policy team and other teams across the Foundation.

Key responsibilities include:

• Working with the Director of Policy and Research and other senior members of staff to oversee and lead the health and care policy team’s work
• Lead the development and delivery of high quality research and analysis, and communicate our messages to external audiences
• Lead the delivery of our thematic programme of work on health system reform and neighbourhood health
• Build and maintain strong networks with relevant health and social care policy stakeholders
• Be a visible and credible senior leader for our work on health and care policy, setting high standards for the quality, rigour, and impact of our work, and supporting others to meet them

How to apply

Our priority is to find the right individual for each opportunity. We are dedicated to building an inclusive workplace that values diversity and invite you to find out more.

If you would like to apply, please submit your CV, and a supporting statement that answers the following application questions:

• Why are you well suited to this role? What leadership skills and experience would you bring to the Senior Leadership Team of the Health Foundation? (max. 300 words)
• What skills and experience do you have in generating and using high quality research and analysis to influence and inform national policy? What experience do you have in leading teams to do this effectively? (max. 400 words)
• Based on your experience, what are some of the key ingredients for effectively using research and analysis to influence policy decisions? (max. 400 words)

Our commitment to equality, inclusion and diversity

We are committed to an inclusive hiring process, where every candidate has the chance to showcase their unique skills and experience in an accessible and supported environment, to ensure that we can make the best appointment for each opportunity on merit.

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and encourage those from underrepresented groups in this field to apply to us.

We have identified three key areas to improving diversity. Our aim to achieve a more balanced representation across our organisation, with a particular focus on increasing the number of women in leadership, enhancing the representation of people from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds and welcoming more people with disabilities. As part of this commitment, we strongly encourage applications from these groups.

Apply to join our team and let's work towards building a more diverse and inclusive workplace together.

If you require any support through this process, please contact us. Help us work together to make the recruitment process and potential future employment more accessible and enjoyable for you.
 

Closing date: Friday 24th July 2026

Interview date: Week commencing 17th August 2026

Pathway's Business Development Manager plays a key role in our small core team, working with staff across the organisation to develop our offers to NHS partners and building and managing relationships with external funders and partners from the statutory, charity and corporate sectors. Reporting to the Chief Executive the postholder plays a leading role in developing strategies to increase our impact, diversify our revenue streams and support the spread and replication of evidence-based models of care and service improvements, emerging from Pathway’s own work and our wide inclusion health networks.

The main tasks are:

1. Business Development & Lead Generation

Research and identify opportunities to spread Pathway's models of improved care, including new routes to NHS commissioners, budget holders, and innovative funding mechanisms. With senior support, identify target contacts and generate leads to develop and diversify Pathway's revenue streams and carry out planning to adapt to the external environment.

2. Grant Writing & Funding Applications
Lead and co-ordinate the development of high-quality grant applications and service business cases, working across Pathway's teams to gather evidence, articulate impact, and make compelling cases for support to NHS commissioners and Trusts, charitable foundations, and corporate partners.

3. Relationship Management
Build, manage and track relationships with NHS commissioners, system partners, clinical champions, corporate partners and funders through new and existing mechanisms. Represent Pathway externally, developing a deep understanding of commissioners' and funders’ needs, and propose ways Pathway can plan to meet them. Help staff, Fellows, and close partners to understand these needs and how Pathway may need to change in response.

4. Marketing & Communications
Work with the Communications Manager to develop promotional campaigns and marketing materials that increase Pathway's impact and externally generated income. Maintain a strong working knowledge of Pathway's care innovations and service models, and promote these in an NHS-appropriate style. Keep abreast of developments in the NHS to ensure Pathway's communications and marketing activities connect with current health service concerns.

About you - You need to have:

i. excellent oral and written communications skills including presentation skills

ii. experience of building trust, confidence and excellent working relationships with clients and partners

iii. experience of working within the health or health inclusion field preferably within NHS commissioning organisations or public health

iv. demonstrable knowledge of NHS commissioning structures and practices

v. passion for and a strong commitment to improve health outcomes for the most marginalised people in the UK

vi. the credibility to describe and promote care and service quality improvements developed by Pathway and practitioners across our networks

vii.  knowledge and experience of marketing techniques and evidence of success in applying them to public sector organisations

viii. demonstrable experience of project and programme management

ix. ability to see the big picture and develop strategies that can be understood and taken forward by others in the team

x. demonstrable experience of working successfully within a team

xi. strong negotiating skills including evidence of securing ongoing revenue for projects or programmes

xii.  a commitment to Pathway’s core values including a firm commitment to human rights-based approaches and eradicating unfair discrimination in all its forms

Ideally you will have:

i. experience of fundraising and grant writing

ii. experience of charity sector governance

iii. experience of working with central, regional and/or local government

Working at Pathway

Pathway’s offices are in London but with limited desk space. The postholder will be expected to split their time between the office and working from home with an expectation of at least two days a week in the office – precise arrangements to be agreed with the CEO.

Pathway is an equal opportunities employer and is committed to growing a diverse workforce. We will make any necessary adaptations for a disabled employee. Applications from people with lived experience of homelessness or other forms of social exclusion are particularly welcome.

 Benefits

We are a friendly, committed group of people, who provide a positive and proactive working environment. We are a flexible employer and your working pattern can be agreed with your line manager.

 Holiday entitlement: 30 days plus bank holidays

 Pension: Pathway’s employees are automatically enrolled into the Nest Contributory pension scheme (which was set up by the Government). Contributions are made as follows:

· Full time salary £30,001 and above, employer contributes 3% and employee contributes 5%

Sporting Events Officer

Salary: £31,000–£33,000 per annum
Location: London (Hybrid – minimum 2 days per week in our City office)
Contract: Permanent, Full-time (35 hours per week)

Join Team Tommy’s and help save babies’ lives.

An exciting opportunity to join the Sporting Events fundraising team at Tommy’s and help raise over £2.4m towards vital life-saving research to help save babies’ lives. We have a multitude of running, trekking and challenge events in our portfolio, and this role has visibility across all of them. It’s a fantastic opportunity for someone looking to broaden their fundraising events experience and develop their career in a supportive, ambitious team. 

As Sporting Events Officer, you'll support the delivery of Tommy’s sporting events programme, helping to recruit, engage and steward thousands of supporters while ensuring excellent event administration and supporter experience. You'll work across participant recruitment, fundraising, supporter communications, event delivery and data management, playing a key role in helping the team achieve its ambitious fundraising targets. [Sporting E...PACK 2026 | PDF]

About You

We're looking for someone who is:

• Highly organised with excellent attention to detail
• Passionate about delivering great supporter experiences
• Experienced in administration and customer service
• Confident building relationships with supporters and colleagues
• Comfortable managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment
• Interested in fundraising, events and mass participation challenges 

Why Tommy's?

Join a passionate organisation dedicated to stopping the heartbreak of baby loss and making pregnancy and birth safer for everyone. You'll be part of a collaborative team, gain exposure to a wide range of fundraising events, and have opportunities to develop your career while making a genuine difference.

How to Apply

To apply, please submit your CV and a covering letter via CharityJob, outlining how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role.

For full details of the role, including the complete job profile, responsibilities, person specification and further information about Tommy's, please refer to the Recruitment Pack. 

Tommy’s is committed to creating an inclusive recruitment process. If you have a disability, long-term health condition, or require any reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, please let us know and we will be happy to discuss how we can support you.

Closing date: Monday 3 August 2026. Applications will be reviewed after the closing date.

Thank you in advance for your interest in joining Team Tommy's. We look forward to hearing from you.

Main Purposes of the Post

To provide proactive and effective support to the Chief Executive Officer and Strategic Leads in the delivery of Salford CVS’s strategic work, ensuring the smooth running of strategic meetings, forums and events. You will help enable the voice and influence of the VCSE sector, facilitate two-way communication between the sector and strategic partners, and produce timely, accurate briefings, content and monitoring that tell the story of our strategic work and the impact it is making.

Hours: 37.5 hours per week (excluding breaks), Monday to Friday (core hours are worked between 8am and 6pm).

Contract: Initial 12-month fixed-term contract, subject to the successful completion of a 6-month probationary period.

The Benefits of Working for Salford CVS

• 28 days’ holiday – rising to 30 days (after five years), plus Bank Holidays (pro rata for part-time)
• Enhanced company sick and maternity pay, subject to terms and conditions of service
• Pension scheme – with 7% employer contribution (and 1% mandatory employee contribution)
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Membership of the Hospital Saturday Fund via an employer-subsidised scheme (optional and non-contractual)
• RHS family membership (optional and non-contractual)
• Development opportunities – we support and encourage our staff to progress in their careers (including formal training)
• A supportive working culture – we respect and support one another to do the best we can

We are an accredited Living Wage Employer, Living Hours Employer and Living Wage Funder, ensuring not just our staff are paid the ‘real’ Living Wage but also that any projects we fund can do the same.

For more information and to apply, visit our website via the ‘apply’ button.

Closing date: Noon on Monday 3rd August 2026.

Interviews will take place in person at Salford CVS’ offices in Eccles on Tuesday 18th August 2026.

Position: Customer Services and Central Administration Officer
Hours: Full time, 35 hours per week
Contract: Permanent
Location: Office-based in London N4 (with some flexibility to work remotely 1 day per week)
Salary: Starting from £26,384 per annum, plus excellent benefits
Salary Band and Job Family: Band 1, Charity
You’ll start at our entry point salary of £26,384 per annum, increasing to £28,033 after 6 months service and satisfactory performance and to £29,682 after a further 6 months.

About us

We make sure people living with MS are at the centre of everything we do. And it’s this commitment that unites us across the UK.

Our strategy is based on what people affected by MS have told us is important to them. It gives us a clear and determined focus.

Our work is based on the hopes and aspirations of our MS community. Together we campaign at all levels, fund ground-breaking research and provide award winning support and information.

Our people are our greatest asset and the key to our success. We offer a vibrant, progressive working environment where you'll be able to make a difference.

About this job

The MS Society is a dynamic and customer-focused organization dedicated to delivering an exceptional service to our customers.

We are looking for a motivated and friendly Customer Services and Central Administration Officer to join our team and provide outstanding customer support.

As a Customer Services and Central Administration Officer, you’ll be the first point of contact for our customers, providing them with a professional and efficient service and ensure that every customer has a positive experience with contacting the MS Society. You’ll also be responsible for processing a wide range of income types on our CRM, providing admin support through management of your supporter care inbox and provide health and safety cover for the office you’re based in - the office location will depend on which of our locations are closest to you.

This is an office-based role, with staff working from home 1 day a week upon successful completion of a six-month probation period.

Closing date for applications: 9:00 on Monday 27th July 2026

Interested?

PLEASE PRESS THE 'HOW TO APPLY' BUTTON FOR MORE INFORMATION.

Equal Opportunities 
We particularly welcome applications from people with disabilities and or from ethnic minority backgrounds.

We’d be grateful if you downloaded and completed the equality and diversity monitoring form and submit it with your application. 

Disability Confident Employer 
We’re a Disability Confident Employer and we’re committed to promoting equality and diversity.

You can ask for reasonable adjustments as part of both our recruitment and new starter on-boarding processes.

If you need any help or adjustments to apply for this role, please contact us. You can also ask for the application materials to be sent to you in a different format. Such as for them to be sent to you by email or in a larger word format.

More about our employee benefits:
We have a wide range of employee benefits including (but not limited to): 

Encouraging work life balance

• 38 days paid annual leave (including bank holidays), pro-rata for part-time
• More annual leave entitlement, based on length of employment
• Smart working options (with the opportunity to work remotely and find a smart working pattern that suits both you and us) 
• Flexible working options 

Caring for you and your family 

• Generous sick pay entitlement
• More sick pay entitlement, based on length of employment 
• Opportunity to buy and sell annual leave in each calendar year 
• Free access to a GP virtually 24 hours a day/7 days a week allowing you unlimited advice, reassurance and where appropriate diagnosis 
• Enhanced leave for new parents 
• Free access to a confidential 24 hours a day/7 days a week helpline service for both you and your family with a specialist range of support and information
• Special leave options (such as up to 5 days paid leave for domestic or personal emergencies a year)
• 10 days paid disability leave a year, pro-rata for part-time 
• 10 days paid carers’ leave a year, pro-rata for part-time 
• Cycle to work scheme 
• Death in service scheme
• New family-friendly benefits, including paid leave:
  • In the event of miscarriage or still birth 
  • To support fertility treatments
  • For antenatal appointments for both parents

Thinking about your finances 

• Enhanced salary sacrifice pension scheme
• Discounted season ticket loan and interest-free emergency loans
• Give as you earn to support other charities of your choice before tax
• New employee portal including lifestyle savings vouchers and personal wellbeing

Enriching your life at work

• Personalised development plans with a wide range of training courses and opportunities to source additional training options with your line manager
• Yearly internal apprenticeship opportunities
• New, modern offices that embrace working together both in-person and remotely 
• Various opportunities to influence how we internally operate (including surveys, and focus and committee groups) 
• Active and supportive internal employee networking groups for collaboration and peer support 
• 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering for MS Society activities during normal working hours (such as fundraising events, or campaigning in the local community) 
• 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering with other charities during normal

Safeguarding 
We’re committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of everyone who uses our services and we come into contact with.

This is regardless of Gender, Race, Disability, Sexual orientation, Religion or belief, Pregnancy, Gender reassignment.

We recognise our particular responsibility to make sure vulnerable adults and children are protected.

We have measures in place to protect everyone we come into contact with from abuse and maltreatment of all kinds.

Your right to work in the UK 
You must have the right to work in the UK to work in paid employment with us. You’ll need to share documents showing you’re eligible to work in the UK if we offer you employment.

You can find the UK visas and permits granting you the right to work in the UK on the UK Government website. We currently don’t have a Sponsor Licence agreement with the Home Office and aren’t able to support you with your visa applications.

No agencies please.

About the Role
We are looking for a proactive and organised Grants Officer to support the delivery of our grant-making programme and help empower young people facing deep-rooted inequality to create lasting change. Working across the full grants cycle, you will coordinate key administrative processes, maintain accurate records, analyse and report on grants data, and support the planning and delivery of events.

The successful candidate will be dependable, detail-oriented, and committed to ensuring efficient systems and high-quality support for applicants, grant recipients, and colleagues.

As a Grants Officer, you will:

• Coordinate the administration of grants and events across the grants programme.
• Maintain and improve grant management systems and processes.
• Provide timely support and guidance to applicants and respond to enquiries.
• Ensure accurate grant records and documentation for compliance, audit, and impact reporting.
• Collect, monitor, analyse, and report on grant-making data.
• Support consistent use of Salesforce across the team.
• Assist with event logistics, travel bookings, invoice processing, and general team administration.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone with strong organisational and administrative skills who enjoys working with data, improving processes, and contributing to meaningful social impact.

Date posted: 8 July 2026

Salary: £45,168 per annum with excellent benefits

Contract type: Permanent

Hours per week: 37.5 hours per week. All staff are required to work in person for a minimum of two days per week, in line with our hybrid working policy. The post-holder may be required to undertake some work outside normal working hours.

About the Health Foundation

Health is our most precious asset. Good health enables us to live happy, fulfilling lives, fuels our prosperity and helps build a stronger society. Yet good health remains out of reach for too many people in the UK, and health and care services are struggling to provide access to timely, high-quality care.

The Health Foundation is an independent charitable organisation with a mission to build a healthier UK. We work to achieve this by generating high-quality research and analysis; developing practical solutions to the biggest problems in health and health services; engaging, convening and building coalitions to build understanding, inform debate and drive action; and developing the long-term capability needed to transform health and care.

Our values

We expect everyone who works with us to be committed to our values and to share our commitment to becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation. Our values are impact, evidence, integrity, and collaboration. You can read more about them in our five-year strategy. We also expect everyone to share our commitment to becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation and to help deliver our EDI Strategy.

About the role

The Programme Officer role sits within our Health & Inequalities Directorate, which is focused on the ‘building blocks’ that make up good health and how health can be promoted outside of formal health systems and services, especially for those experiencing the greatest inequalities. You will work as part of the Health & Inequalities Directorate’s embedded Portfolio Management team to support the delivery of our Health & Inequalities programmes and projects.

The role will act as programme support on a suite of projects and programmes, working closely with content leads on aspects of the design, implementation, delivery and management of a range of projects within our three overarching Health & Inequalities themes: Health and the Economy; Public Health Led Prevention and Cross Sector Action (including our Health Equals campaign).

As Programme Officer, you will work closely with our expert colleagues, supporting them to navigate our internal funding and procurement processes, and in setting up projects for success by implementing and overseeing a project management approach. You will be involved in a variety of projects and programmes, from projects focused on research and analysis, to events, test and learn programmes, agency contracts and partnerships.

You will be responsible for ongoing programme/project oversight and governance, and updating internal systems, such as on project progress, budget management and risks. You will also support the wider governance of our three overarching themes, supporting the leads with preparing and delivering oversight meetings and maintaining records on how our portfolio of work is progressing.

You will be part of an enthusiastic and friendly team, who are strongly committed to putting health and inequalities at the heart of decision making and building a healthier UK. You will also be part of a cross-organisation community of project and programme managers, working together to share expertise and drive best practice across the organisation.

To find out more about the role and what we are looking for, please read the job description.

How to apply

Our priority is to find the right individual for each opportunity. We are dedicated to building an inclusive workplace that values diversity and invite you to find out more.

If you would like to apply, please submit your CV and answer the application questions below. Please try to limit your response to each question to no more than 300 words.

• Project management. Please describe a project or programme that you have coordinated and managed. What role did you play, and how did you help to deliver success?
• Grants and contracts. Please summarise your experience of managing funding grants and/or contracts. What have you learnt from your experience?
• Stakeholder management. Please give an example of how you have worked with a range of internal and external stakeholders to deliver a successful outcome. This could include managing a grant, contract, procurement process, commissioned piece of work, event, or partnership. Please explain how you built relationships, coordinated activity, resolved issues, and ensured progress was maintained.

Our commitment to equality, inclusion and diversity

We are committed to an inclusive hiring process, where every candidate has the chance to showcase their unique skills and experience in an accessible and supported environment, to ensure that we can make the best appointment for each opportunity on merit. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and encourage those from underrepresented groups in this field to apply to us. We have identified three key areas to improving diversity. Our aim is to achieve a more balanced representation across our organisation, with a particular focus on increasing the number of women in leadership, enhancing the representation of people from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds and welcoming more people with disabilities. As part of this commitment, we strongly encourage applications from these groups.

Apply to join our team and let's work towards building a more diverse and inclusive workplace together. If you require any support through this process, please contact us. Help us work together to make the recruitment process and potential future employment more accessible and enjoyable for you.

Closing date: Wednesday 22 July 23:59

Interview dates:

First stage: Thursday 30 July (online)

Second stage: Wednesday 5th August (in person at our London offices)

Location: Contracted to our Peterborough office with the flexibility for hybrid working 
Salary: £29,000 – £34,000 depending on experience
Hours: Full time, 37.5 hours per week
Contract: Fixed term contract – 12 months (maternity cover)

Benefits: We want all our employees to feel valued and engaged and are committed to offering a positive working culture along with a good work-life balance. As well as ensuring we pay our employees fairly, we offer the following benefits: Flexible working, Generous annual leave, Private Medical Insurance, including dental and optical, Pension Scheme, Sick Pay, Death in Service, Employee Assistance Programme, Bike Loan Scheme, Cycle2Work Scheme, Eyecare, Discount Portal.

Be a part of an energetic and vibrant team who are driven by the desire to improve the lives of people living with kidney disease. Our vision is the day when everyone lives free from kidney disease.

Kidney disease affects one in ten people in the UK, yet it still doesn't get the attention it deserves. At Kidney Research UK we are determined to change that. In this role, we are looking for an experienced senior research communications officer to help us drive increased engagement with our research across all audiences.

The Role
·        Play a key role in bringing the research we fund and the partnerships we develop to life, telling our story in an accurate and engaging way and raising the profile of Kidney Research UK
·        Work with colleagues across the charity to develop, lead and deliver communications plans to support specific areas of our work, including partnerships with other medical charities and industry, and key strategic projects being led by Kidney Research UK
·        Build relationships with the researchers we fund to help create a sense of community, develop an in-depth knowledge about our research portfolio and encourage our research community to engage and work with us

What We're Looking For
·        Educated to degree level in life sciences
·        Experience in a communications role in a health, medical, patient or research-related organisation

If you're ready to help us grow and strengthen our scientific communications, we'd love to hear from you. Please complete the online application form and submit together with your CV.

We are committed to providing equal opportunities for everyone and encourage applications from all sections of the community.

About Kidney Research UK:
Kidney Research UK is the leading charity in the UK focused on funding research into the prevention, treatment and management of kidney disease. Our vision is the day when everyone lives free from kidney disease and for more than 60 years the research, we fund has been making an impact. But kidney disease is increasing as are the factors contributing to it, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity, making our work more essential than ever.
At Kidney Research UK we work with clinicians and scientists across the UK, funding and facilitating research into all areas of kidney disease. We collaborate with partners across the public, private and third sectors to prevent kidney disease and drive innovation to transform treatments.
Over the last ten years we have invested more than £71 million into research. We lobby governments and decision makers to change policy and practice to ensure that the estimated 7.2 million people living with all stages of kidney disease in the UK have access to the most effective care and treatment, and to make kidney disease a priority.
Most importantly, we also work closely with patients, ensuring their voice is heard and is at the centre of everything we do, from deciding which research to invest in to how we plan our priorities and our work across the charity.
Those patient contributions are vital, always helping us and our partners to understand what life is like with kidney disease, always ensuring we see the patient behind the treatment and always reminding us that behind every statistic and every number is a person – the patients and the carers who inspire our mission and push us forward to make a difference and change the future of kidney disease.

Closing date: Monday 6 July 2026. We may extend the closing date, however, please apply as soon as possible.
Preliminary telephone interviews will be held on 10 and 15 July 2026. In-person interviews will be held in Peterborough on 20 or 22 July 2026.
No agencies please.
You may have experience in the following: Research Communications Officer, Science Communications Officer, Health Communications Officer, Medical Communications Officer, Communications Manager, PR and Communications Officer, Research Engagement Officer, Science Writer, Health Writer, Charity Communications Officer, Content and Communications Officer, Charity, Charities, Third Sector, Not for Profit, NFP, etc.

REF-229 462

Job Description and Person Specification

Job title Participation Manager

Hours 35 hours per week. We are opening to discussing flexible arrangements – please highlight any requests when applying.

Length of contract  12 months

Location Hybrid work between home and our Vauxhall office. Please read more about our approach to hybrid working in the relevant section below.

Reports to Director of Evidence and Improvement

National Voices

Making what matters to people matter in health and care

National Voices is the leading coalition of health and social care charities in England. We have more than 200 members covering a diverse range of health conditions and communities, connecting us with the experiences of millions of people. We work together to strengthen the voice of people: patients, service users, carers, their families, and the voluntary organisations that work for them.

Our Vision: People shaping their health and care.

Our Mission: We advocate for more inclusive and person centred health and care, shaped by the people who use and need it the most.

We do this by:
 

· Understanding and advocating for what matters to people especially those living with health conditions and groups who experience inequalities.

· Finding common cause across communities and conditions by working with member charities and those they support.

· Connecting and convening charities, decision makers and citizens to work together to change health and care for good.

 

The Role

At National Voices, our aim is to make what matters to people matter in health and care. Too often, we see decisions made about the design of health and care services which don’t consider the people who use and need those services – especially those with long term conditions and from groups experiencing inequality. While the intentions of decision makers are usually good, they can unwittingly develop services which are difficult to access, stressful to experience and which don’t enable people to live life to its full potential.

We believe that if health and care leaders were better supported to meaningfully involve people living with health conditions, disability, inequality and their carers in decisions about how services are delivered then our NHS and social care services would be more equitable, and person centred.

At National Voices, we believe that this can best be achieved by connecting health and care leaders in health and care to key groups including:

· Leaders within the patient participation movement, who can support and advise health and care leaders on how to share power with people and communities using coaching and quality improvement techniques, and by acting as a critical friend.

· Leaders from voluntary sector organisations and community groups, who can bring insight into the needs, experiences and priorities of the communities they serve. They can identify opportunities to improve how services are designed and delivered, and help connect decision-makers with communities whose voices are often underrepresented.

· People with lived experience of inequality, particular conditions or services, who bring unique expertise based on their direct experience of care. They can provide timely insight into the impact of policies and services, helping decision-makers stay tuned to current needs, experiences and priorities, rather than relying on historical evidence or assumptions.

We are looking for a Participation Manager who can lead on the design, development and delivery of funded projects that generate insight, support improvement, and enable meaningful participation in health and care decision making. This will include end-to-end responsibility for project design, delivery, reporting and impact.

Projects may include designing and delivering activity such as workshops, coordinating lived experience advisory groups, coordinating coalitions of VCSE organisations, undertaking qualitative research, facilitation and engagement work. The postholder will need sufficient breadth of experience across these areas to confidently design and steer programmes, while drawing on colleagues, partners and associates for specialist input where needed.

You will be responsible for overall programme management - ensuring projects are well planned, appropriately resourced, and delivered on time, within budget and to a high standard. This includes managing risks, reporting requirements and funder relationships.

Projects may also include co-ordinating the delivery of Voices for Improvement coaching relationships and workshops on meaningful participation. We are open to a Participation Manager who has skills and experience around coaching theory and practice, however, we can also bring in external Associates with this subject matter expertise where needed to guide and supervise the coaching elements of the process.

You will also play an active role in identifying and developing new funding and partnership opportunities, contributing to the growth of National Voices’ portfolio of externally funded work.

Finally, where needed, you will also work collaboratively with another Participation Manager who leads National Voices’ Lived Experience Partner programme, membership scheme and partnership programme. You will contribute to these areas where required, particularly where they intersect with funded projects, but they will not be the primary focus of this role.

Responsibilities

Lead the development and delivery of funded participation projects

Lead the end-to-end design, delivery and management of funded programmes and projects that generate insight, support improvement and drive meaningful participation in health and care, including:

· Lead on shaping, securing and delivering funded projects from proposal stage through to completion, ensuring clear outcomes and impact

· Design and oversee programmes that may include research, engagement and participatory activity, such as qualitative and quantitative research, stakeholder engagement and participation work

· Convene and coordinate a range of delivery approaches including advisory groups, workshops, events, VCSE engagement and system partner collaboration

· Ensure delivery is well planned, resourced and managed, including oversight of budgets, timelines, risks and funder reporting

· Draw on colleagues, partners and associates for specialist expertise where needed, while holding overall responsibility for programme design and coherence

· Translate insights and findings into clear, accessible outputs in collaboration with policy and communications colleagues to support influence and impact

· Develop and shape new funding opportunities and proposals to grow the organisation’s portfolio of externally funded work

Deliver coaching and engagement programmes

Manage the delivery of structured coaching and engagement programmes, including National Voices’ Voices for Improvement model, where included within funded projects:

• Oversee delivery of coaching and engagement activity including matching, coordination and participant support
• Ensure coaching relationships between people with lived experience and system leaders are well supported and of high quality
• Contribute to the design and facilitation of associated engagement or learning sessions where required
• Work with associates or external specialists to bring in coaching or quality improvement expertise where needed
• Capture learning, feedback and impact from coaching programmes and contribute to funder reporting, case studies and evaluation outputs

Contribute to wider participation programmes

Work collaboratively with another Participation Manager to support integration with National Voices’ wider participation infrastructure:

· Contribute where relevant to the Lived Experience Partner programme, membership scheme and partnership programme

· Support the involvement of lived experience partners, members and partners in funded projects and engagement activity

· Ensure alignment across programmes and share learning between project delivery and participation infrastructure

General

• Provide line management to one Project Officer within the team, if needed - quality assuring outputs, holding regular 1-2-1s as well as setting annual objectives and completing appraisals.
• Provide matrix management for other National Voices colleagues as and when required.
• Work in sync with other managers across National Voices, contributing to a joined-up, supportive team culture.
• Deputise for the Director of Evidence and Improvement, or other senior colleagues, when required.

· Follow organisational processes to measure, monitor and communicate the impact of our work

· Support good project, financial and data management

 

Person Specification

Values, attitudes and behaviours

· Passionate about National Voices’ mission and the meaningful involvement of people with lived experience

· Strong commitment to equity, inclusion, and reducing health inequalities

· Proactive, flexible, and responsive, with a willingness to work in complexity

· Comfortable working both collaboratively and independently, taking ownership of delivery

· Calm under pressure and able to manage multiple priorities and tight deadlines without compromising quality

· Confident engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, including constructively challenging where appropriate

· Entrepreneurial - able to spot opportunities for growth, collaboration, and impact

· Energised by variety, able to work across diverse themes while identifying connections and opportunities

Skills and abilities

· Strong programme and/or project management skills, with demonstrable experience of leading complex, multi-stakeholder funded programmes from design through to delivery and completion

· Ability to shape ideas into deliverable programmes, including contributing to funding bids, designing delivery approaches, and translating proposals into practical delivery plans

· Strong analytical and synthesis skills, with the ability to translate complex qualitative and quantitative insight into clear, structured outputs that inform decision making and drive action

· Excellent organisational skills, including planning, prioritisation, risk management and delivery of high-quality work to deadlines

· Confident stakeholder and relationship management skills, with experience working across partners, funders, subcontractors, commissioned work and multi-organisation collaborations

· Strong facilitation and engagement skills, including designing and delivering workshops, events and participatory sessions for diverse audiences

· Strong communication skills, including the ability to produce clear, accessible written outputs and presentations

· Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to work collaboratively, support others in delivery, and contribute to shared outcomes

Experience, knowledge and understanding

· Demonstrable experience of leading or delivering participation work with people with lived experience, ideally addressing inequality

· Strong experience of designing and delivering insight generation projects (qualitative and/or quantitative) that have led to real-world impact and improvement

· Experience of working meaningfully with people experiencing inequalities in safe and inclusive ways

· Experience of managing projects, budgets, and multiple stakeholders, working with a high degree of autonomy

· Experience of managing partnerships, funders, or commissioned work, including contributing to income generation

· Experience of facilitating workshops, events, or participatory sessions

· Understanding of the health and care landscape

· Good understanding of the participation landscape, with the ability to act as a credible contributor in the field (desirable)

· Experience of managing or contributing to coalitions or networks of VCSE or membership organisations (desirable)

· Understanding of mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) approaches to evidence generation and analysis (desirable)

· Coaching and/or quality improvement qualifications (desirable)

· Lived experience of disability, caring responsibilities and/or inequality (desirable)

Our approach to hybrid working

We recognise the importance of coming together regularly, in-person, as a team, so we can share learnings and spend social time with each other. We also recognise that people need flexibility, and that homeworking enables focused work and can fit well in people’s lives.

We ask all staff to take part in pre-arranged team meetings which take place every six weeks in our office space. We also might ask you to meet in-person with members of your team from time to time, or to be available for face-to- face meetings with clients and partners where this enhances the work.

We assume that this would usually not amount to more than one day per fortnight for people who work full time. We are happy to discuss how this sits in your life. This can be agreed by your line manager.

Please note that our offices are fully wheelchair accessible and that we are committed to making our workplace fully inclusive.

Application guidance

Please submit a CV and cover letter to apply. We are also recruiting a permanent Participation Manager role at the same time. If you would like your application to be for both roles, please make this clear in your cover letter.

You're welcome to use AI tools to help you prepare your application. However, we encourage you to make sure your application reflects your own voice and experiences. We often see similar AI-generated writing styles, which can make applications less distinctive. As a charity, we're particularly interested in hearing why our mission matters to you and how your values align with ours.

Please specify any access or other requirements of which we need to be aware for the online interview.

The deadline for applications is 5pm on Thursday 30th July.  

The interviews will take place in early August on Microsoft Teams. Details of an interview task and interview questions will be emailed to you in advance.

We are committed to diversifying our team in order to broaden the insight and experiences we can draw on, and to do our work more credibly. In particular, we would welcome applications from older people, disabled people and people who have experienced socioeconomic inequality. Our offices are fully accessible and we are a Disability Confident and an LGBT+ friendly employer.

Position: Head of Research
Hours: Part-time, 14 hours a week – job share
Contract: Permanent
Location: Office-based in London N4, with flexibility for hybrid working
Salary: £66,421 per annum FTE (£26,568 per annum, actual for 14 hours per week) plus excellent benefits
Salary Band: Band 4

About us

We make sure people living with MS are at the centre of everything we do. And it’s this commitment that unites us across the UK.

Our strategy is based on what people affected by MS have told us is important to them. It gives us a clear and determined focus.

Our work is based on the hopes and aspirations of our MS community. Together we campaign at all levels, fund ground-breaking research and provide award winning support and information.

Our people are our greatest asset and the key to our success. We offer a vibrant, progressive working environment where you'll be able to make a difference.

About this job

The Head of Research enables successful delivery of the organisation’s ground-breaking Research Strategy. They will provide vital leadership, strategic direction and day to day management of the MS Society’s research programme as well as leadership of the Research Team.

This varied and exciting role also involves developing and maintaining strategically relevant partnerships, annual grant round, new research strategy and acting as a spokesperson for the MS Society as well as being a key ambassador – inspiring internal teams about the MS Society’s research programme.

Please note this is a part-time 14 hours per week position. This could be worked across either 2 or 3 days.

Closing date for applications: 9:00 on Tuesday 21 July 2026

Interested?

PLEASE PRESS THE 'HOW TO APPLY' BUTTON FOR MORE INFORMATION.

We particularly welcome applications from disabled people and or people from minoritised ethnic backgrounds.

We’d be grateful if you downloaded and completed the equality and diversity monitoring form and submit it with your application. 

Disability Confident Employer 
We’re a Disability Confident Employer and we’re committed to promoting equality and diversity.

You can ask for reasonable adjustments as part of both our recruitment and new starter on-boarding processes.

If you need any help or adjustments to apply for this role, please contact us. You can also ask for the application materials to be sent to you in a different format. Such as for them to be sent to you by email or in a larger word format.

More about our recruitment and selection process 

• The first round of our recruitment and selection process includes an interview with competency-based questions.
• Our recruitment and selection process might also include extra tasks. For example, a written or Microsoft Excel test or making a presentation.  
• We’ll let you know what the selection process will include when we invite you to interview. You can ask for any more reasonable adjustments for the interview as part of the invitation.
• You might also be invited for a second interview. We’ll let you know about this during the selection process.

More about our employee benefits:
We have a wide range of employee benefits including (but not limited to): 

Encouraging work life balance

• 39 days paid annual leave (including bank holidays), pro-rata for part-time
• More annual leave entitlement, based on length of employment
• Smart working options (with the opportunity to work remotely and find a smart working pattern that suits both you and us) 
• Flexible working options 

Caring for you and your family 

• Generous sick pay entitlement
• More sick pay entitlement, based on length of employment 
• Opportunity to buy and sell annual leave in each calendar year 
• Free access to a GP virtually 24 hours a day/7 days a week allowing you unlimited advice, reassurance and where appropriate diagnosis 
• Enhanced leave for new parents 
• Free access to a confidential 24 hours a day/7 days a week helpline service for both you and your family with a specialist range of support and information
• Special leave options (such as up to 5 days paid leave for domestic or personal emergencies a year)
• 10 days paid disability leave a year, pro-rata for part-time 
• 10 days paid carers’ leave a year, pro-rata for part-time 
• Cycle to work scheme 
• Death in service scheme
• New family-friendly benefits, including paid leave:
  • In the event of miscarriage or still birth 
  • To support fertility treatments
  • For antenatal appointments for both parents

Thinking about your finances 

• Enhanced salary sacrifice pension scheme
• Discounted season ticket loan and interest-free emergency loans
• Give as you earn to support other charities of your choice before tax
• New employee portal including lifestyle savings vouchers and personal wellbeing

Enriching your life at work

• Personalised development plans with a wide range of training courses and opportunities to source additional training options with your line manager
• Yearly internal apprenticeship opportunities
• New, modern offices that embrace working together both in-person and remotely 
• Various opportunities to influence how we internally operate (including surveys, and focus and committee groups) 
• Active and supportive internal employee networking groups for collaboration and peer support 
• 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering for MS Society activities during normal working hours (such as fundraising events, or campaigning in the local community) 
• 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering with other charities during normal

Safeguarding 
We’re committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of everyone who uses our services and we come into contact with.

This is regardless of Gender, Race, Disability, Sexual orientation, Religion or belief, Pregnancy, Gender reassignment.

We recognise our particular responsibility to make sure vulnerable adults and children are protected.

We have measures in place to protect everyone we come into contact with from abuse and maltreatment of all kinds.

Your right to work in the UK 
You must have the right to work in the UK to work in paid employment with us. You’ll need to share documents showing you’re eligible to work in the UK if we offer you employment.

You can find the UK visas and permits granting you the right to work in the UK on the UK Government website. We currently don’t have a Sponsor Licence agreement with the Home Office and aren’t able to support you with your visa applications.

No agencies please.

• Would you like to be a part of a specialist pilot programme to benefit people living with both dementia and cancer?
• Could you lead learning, engagement and research elements of a Dementia-Inclusive Cancer Support Pilot?
• Are you a skilled facilitator able to engage diverse groups with particular experience?

Be part of our new service supporting people living with cancer and dementia

People living with both cancer and dementia face significant unfairness:

• Cancer pathways are not designed for cognitive impairment
• Dementia makes it harder to understand information, attend appointments, and make decisions
• Individuals are often excluded from decisions and disengage from care
• Carers face high stress navigating fragmented systems with little tailored support

Our solution: A community-led, learning-based pilot that combines personalised support with system improvement.

The postholder will establish and facilitate a Participatory Learning Group involving people with lived experience, carers and professionals, ensuring that learning from the project informs service development, system improvement and future practice.

The role will gather, analyse and communicate insight from participants and frontline delivery, helping generate evidence about what works in supporting people living with dementia and cancer.

We are looking for a skilled Facilitator who:

• Has experience of community engagement, participation, co-production or qualitative research.
• Has experience gathering and analysing qualitative information and ability to identify themes and learning from complex information.
• Has excellent written communication and report-writing skills.

Training and development opportunities are available to all staff.

Full details about the role, including key responsibilities, can be found within the job pack. We encourage applicants to contact us for an informal chat to discuss the opportunity and working at Age UK Sutton. You will be able to view the job pack once you hit apply. 

Hours: 21 hours per week

Salary: £18,300 pro rata (£30,500 actual)

Location: Sutton (community venues, partner organisations and hybrid

working)

Contract: Fixed Term (Grant funded - 2 years)

Closing date for applications: 12th July 2026

Interview date: 20th/21st/23rd July

If you cannot attend this interview date, please let us know when you submit your application. If we invite you to interview, we will always do our best to find a suitable alternative date. We recognise that everyone is unique and may have particular needs during the recruitment process. Therefore if there is anything you would like to discuss in relation to that process, please contact us. We strive to make our recruitment process fully accessible to all applicants, including those with a disability, long term condition or anyone who may otherwise require additional support or reasonable adjustments. An applicant’s disclosure of their disability will not disqualify nor adversely affect the candidate’s chances of being short listed or offered the post.

Role purpose

The Head of Finance is a key member of the Charity’s senior management team, working closely with the chief executive, directors, and trustees. The head of finance will lead the day-to-day financial operations of the Charity, including budgeting, reporting, audit, payroll, and pensions. Managing the finance manager and management accountant, the Head of Finance will ensure the effective running of the finance department and smooth day-to-day processes. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive, you will be a key advisor on strategic financial decisions, balancing meticulous operational control with strategic planning.

As the Head of Finance, you will:

• Proactively contribute to the development and delivery of the Charity’s strategy through developing long-term financial planning to underpin our objectives.
• Act as senior finance business partner to the senior leadership team, supporting strategic and operational decision-making.
• Lead on the annual audit and production of statutory accounts, ensuring effective management of the audit process.
• Support the rest of the Charity team to become financially informed and comfortable understanding financial performance, control, and accountability.

Main responsibilities

Financial controls, reporting, and operational finance

• Lead the finance function of the Charity, ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant financial management and reporting.
• Ensure that appropriately robust internal financial and operational controls are in place.
• Ensure that our unrestricted and restricted funds and accounting records are maintained in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements and best practice.
• Ensure timely and accurate monthly management accounts and other reports are produced by the finance team and distributed to members of the senior management team, encouraging ownership of departmental budgets.
• Manage and oversee accounts receivable and payable, ensuring strong cash management.
• Ensure all banking facilities, financial systems, and internal processes function to a high standard and enable the Charity to carry out its transactional and operational financial functions.
• Lead financial risk identification and mitigation, working closely with the chief executive and leadership team, and reporting to the board of trustees.

Financial administration and governance

• Manage the production of statutory accounts in line with the Charity SORP and lead the annual external audit process.
• Oversee our tax affairs, including PAYE, national insurance, corporation tax, VAT, and gift aid.
• Responsible for our payroll and pensions functions.
• Maintain and continuously improve financial policies, procedures, and controls, working closely with the fundraising and operations teams to ensure organisational efficiency.
• Identify and escalate financial risks to the chief executive and board
• Line manage and support the management accountant and finance manager, ensuring professional development and high-quality output.

Person specification

Knowledge and experience

We are looking for candidates with demonstrable strategic financial leadership spanning organisational planning, budgeting, risk, and reporting. You will have:

• You must be a fully qualified accountant (ACCA, ACA, OR CIMA)
• Excellent knowledge of charity financial management, SORP, and audit is essential.
• Experience of effective budget setting and implementing controls and processes to manage and monitoring budgets
• Firm understanding of risk management
• Experience of improving policies and processes in comparable organisations
• Success in delivering increased cost effectiveness
• Evidence of building financial impact and performance metrics and reporting
• Understanding of the requirements of legislation, Charity Commission and professional body guidance on a being a well-run and financially accountable Charity
• Considerable experience of management and development of staff

Skills, abilities, and behaviours

• A strategic thinker with the ability to see the bigger picture and make decisions in line with the charity’s needs as part of a team
• Strong change management skills with experience of managing teams through change
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to interpret and communicate financial information to a non-specialist audience
• Strong organisational development skills, able to identify and act on opportunities to drive performance in business
• Experience of the charity or not-for-profit environment (this could be gained as a trustee) preferably with some understanding of charity funding and investment management
• Collaborative working style with excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Resilient with a flexible, creative and solutions-focused approach to problem-solving

Participation Manager

Job Description and Person Specification

Job title Participation Manager

Hours 35 hours per week. We are opening to discussing flexible arrangements – please highlight any requests when applying.

Length of contract  Permanent

Location Hybrid work between home and our Vauxhall office. Please read more about our approach to hybrid working in the relevant section below.

Reports to Director of Evidence and Improvement

National Voices

Making what matters to people matter in health and care

National Voices is the leading coalition of health and social care charities in England. We have more than 200 members covering a diverse range of health conditions and communities, connecting us with the experiences of millions of people. We work together to strengthen the voice of people: patients, service users, carers, their families, and the voluntary organisations that work for them.

Our Vision: People shaping their health and care.

Our Mission: We advocate for more inclusive and person centred health and care, shaped by the people who use and need it the most.

We do this by:
 

· Understanding and advocating for what matters to people especially those living with health conditions and groups who experience inequalities.

· Finding common cause across communities and conditions by working with member charities and those they support.

· Connecting and convening charities, decision makers and citizens to work together to change health and care for good.

 

The Role

At National Voices, our aim is to make what matters to people matter in health and care. Too often, we see decisions made about the design of health and care services which don’t consider the people who use and need those services – especially those with long term conditions and from groups experiencing inequality. While the intentions of decision makers are usually good, they can unwittingly develop services which are difficult to access, stressful to experience and which don’t enable people to live life to its full potential.

We believe that if health and care leaders were better supported to meaningfully involve people living with health conditions, disability, inequality and their carers in decisions about how services are delivered then our NHS and social care services would be more equitable, and person centred.

At National Voices, we believe that this can best be achieved by connecting health and care leaders in health and care to key groups including:

· Leaders within the patient participation movement, who can support and advise health and care leaders on how to share power with people and communities using coaching and quality improvement techniques, and by acting as a critical friend.

· Leaders from voluntary sector organisations and community groups, who can bring insight into the needs, experiences and priorities of the communities they serve. They can identify opportunities to improve how services are designed and delivered, and help connect decision-makers with communities whose voices are often underrepresented.

· People with lived experience of inequality, particular conditions or services, who bring unique expertise based on their direct experience of care. They can provide timely insight into the impact of policies and services, helping decision-makers stay tuned to current needs, experiences and priorities, rather than relying on historical evidence or assumptions.

We are looking for a Participation Manager who can manage our lived experience programme, our membership scheme and our partnership scheme. This role will ensure that where there are opportunities for people and communities to shape health and care, National Voices has the right relationships, processes and support systems in place to connect decision makers with our Lived Experience Partners, members and people with lived experience.

The Participation Manager will:

· Lead National Voices’ Lived Experience Partner programme by strengthening engagement and participation, investing in members’ knowledge, skills and confidence, and ensuring lived experience insights shape our work.

· Lead National Voices’ membership scheme by driving engagement, retention and inclusion, strengthening member relationships, embedding member insights across the organisation, and overseeing satisfaction, records and knowledge management.

· Lead National Voices’ scheme by managing partner engagement, retention and recruitment, overseeing delivery of the partnership offer, and ensuring partners receive high-quality advice, insight, connections and access to relevant people and communities.

· Develop and deliver funded projects, supporting income generation and securing resources to advance National Voices’ strategic priorities.

The Participation Manager will work in collaboration with:

· Policy and communications colleagues who have worked hard to ensure when we capture insights from people and communities, we have established relationships and ways of communicating with key players in health and care so that insights collected lead to impact.

· Research and insight colleagues who have expertise around qualitative research methods and inclusive engagement, who regularly deliver high quality qualitative research on a range of topics and on a range of topics – often focussed on surfacing the experiences of those least well served by health and care services.

· Colleagues across the organisation who lead and contribute to member and partner benefits, including policy forums, networking opportunities, events and other engagement activities.

The Participation Manager will play a central role in ensuring National Voices’ lives its values around meaningful participation so that in both our internal and external work people and communities are engaged in a timely and inclusive way, using methods that ensure their input is heard and acted upon, and their knowledge, priorities, and contributions are recognised and fairly valued.

Responsibilities

Lead our Lived Experience Partner programme

National Voices’ Lived Experience Partners are a group of 15 people who have significant experience of navigating the health and care system, expertise in meaningful participation and who have received training and support to enable constructive and strategic input into improving health and care. The majority of Lived Experience Partners have also accessed learning around coaching and are regularly matched into coaching relationships with senior leaders in health and care. Your role will be to:

· Deliver meetings where our Lived Experience Partners have opportunities for peer learning and opportunities to influence live pieces of work.

· Gather insights from our Lived Experience Partners on how they are experiencing working with National Voices and how they want to grow.

· Ensure our Lived Experience Partners are supported to grow in their knowledge, skills and confidence to influence decision making – through 1:1 catch ups, training and more.

· Lead our work matching Lived Experience Partners in high quality coaching relationships with senior leaders in health and care, ensuring that coaching duos have the support they need to gain value from the relationship.

· Diversify and grow our network of Lived Experience Partners as needed.

Lead our membership programme

National Voices’ members are a group of over 200 not-for-profit organisations who serve a diverse range of communities, including: condition-specific charities - such as Diabetes UK, Allergy UK and Lupus UK; equality charities - such as the Caribbean and African Health Network, Groundswell and National Ugly Mugs; other health, care and community based organisations – such as Compassion in Dying, Pain UK and Patient Information Forum. Our members include some of the biggest and smallest charities in England. They connect us with the experience of millions of people. Your role will be to:

· Direct the activities of our membership working group, taking lead responsibility for member engagement, stewardship, renewals, support and retention.

· Deepen the relationship with our membership, ensuring that we have the structures in place to understand their ambitions, insights, practice and ideas.

· Collaborate with colleagues across the team to ensure our members’ insights become more central to everything that we do.

· Diversify and grow our membership.

· Oversee our annual survey on member satisfaction.

· Oversee improvements in records and knowledge management.

Lead our partnership programme

National Voices’ Partners are a small group of impactful organisations who want to join National Voices in achieving our mission of making what matters to people matter in health and care, including the Nuffield Trust, the Kings Fund, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and others. Your role will be to:

· Take lead responsibility for engagement, stewardship, renewals, support and retention of organisations in our partnership scheme.

· Oversee the delivery of the partnership offer – co-ordinating requests which come from partners and collaborating with colleagues, members and Lived Experience Partners to ensure partners receive high-quality advice, insight, connections and access to relevant people and communities.

Develop and deliver funded projects

· Identify opportunities for collaboration, partnership and income generation that support our strategic priorities – leading on selected funding bids and supporting others as required.

· Develop ideas into clear, fundable proposals and secured projects. This may include designing and delivering activity such as workshops, coordinating advisory or lived experience groups, undertaking qualitative research, facilitation and engagement work.

· Plan confidently and realistically across lived experience workstreams, taking accountability for delivery, spend, and completion of agreed outcomes.

· Manage projects, programmes and budgets in partnership with colleagues and stakeholders, putting in place effective systems to ensure timely, high-quality delivery and reporting.

General

• Provide line management one Project Officer within the team, quality assuring outputs, holding regular 1-2-1s as well as setting annual objectives and completing appraisals.
• Provide matrix management for other National Voices colleagues as and when required.
• Work in sync with other managers across National Voices, contributing to a joined-up, supportive team culture.
• Deputise for the Director of Evidence and Improvement, or other senior colleagues, when required.

· Follow organisational processes to measure, monitor and communicate the impact of our work

· Support good project, financial and data management

 

Person Specification

Values, attitudes and behaviours

· Passionate about National Voices’ mission and the meaningful involvement of people with lived experience

· Strong commitment to equity, inclusion, and reducing health inequalities

· Proactive, flexible, and responsive, with a willingness to work in complexity

· Comfortable working both collaboratively and independently, taking ownership of delivery

· Calm under pressure and able to manage multiple priorities and tight deadlines without compromising quality

· Confident engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, including constructively challenging where appropriate

· Entrepreneurial - able to spot opportunities for growth, collaboration, and impact

· Energised by variety, able to work across diverse themes while identifying connections and opportunities

Skills and abilities

· Strong project and/or programme management skills, with demonstrable experience delivering complex, multi-stakeholder work

· Excellent organisational skills, including the ability to prioritise, plan, manage risk, and maintain high-quality delivery

· Strong communication skills, including the ability to translate complex insight and evidence into clear, accessible outputs

· Confident relationship and stakeholder management skills, including working with partners, subcontractors, and commissioned work

· Excellent facilitation and presentation skills, including delivering workshops and events to diverse audiences

Experience, knowledge and understanding

· Demonstrable experience of leading or delivering participation work with people with lived experience, ideally addressing inequality

· Strong experience of designing and delivering insight generation projects (qualitative and/or quantitative) that have led to real-world impact and improvement

· Experience of working meaningfully with people experiencing inequalities in safe and inclusive ways

· Experience of managing projects, budgets, and multiple stakeholders, working with a high degree of autonomy

· Experience of managing partnerships, funders, or commissioned work, including contributing to income generation

· Experience of facilitating workshops, events, or participatory sessions

· Understanding of the health and care landscape

· Good understanding of the participation landscape, with the ability to act as a credible contributor in the field (desirable)

· Experience of managing or contributing to coalitions or networks of VCSE or membership organisations (desirable)

· Understanding of mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) approaches to evidence generation and analysis (desirable)

· Coaching and/or quality improvement qualifications (desirable)

· Lived experience of disability, caring responsibilities and/or inequality (desirable)

Our approach to hybrid working

We recognise the importance of coming together regularly, in-person, as a team, so we can share learnings and spend social time with each other. We also recognise that people need flexibility, and that homeworking enables focused work and can fit well in people’s lives.

We ask all staff to take part in pre-arranged team meetings which take place every six weeks in our office space. We also might ask you to meet in-person with members of your team from time to time, or to be available for face-to- face meetings with clients and partners where this enhances the work.

We assume that this would usually not amount to more than one day per fortnight for people who work full time. We are happy to discuss how this sits in your life. This can be agreed by your line manager.

Please note that our offices are fully wheelchair accessible and that we are committed to making our workplace fully inclusive.

Application guidance

Please submit a CV and cover letter to apply. We are also recruiting a 12 month fixed term Participation Manager role at the same time. If you would like your application to be for both roles, please make this clear when applying. 

Applications should be addressed to our Director Evidence and Improvement, Sarah Sweeney, and submitted through CharityJob.

You're welcome to use AI tools to help you prepare your application. However, we encourage you to make sure your application reflects your own voice and experiences. We often see similar AI-generated writing styles, which can make applications less distinctive. As a charity, we're particularly interested in hearing why our mission matters to you and how your values align with ours.

Please specify any access or other requirements of which we need to be aware for the online interview.

The deadline for applications is 5pm on Thursday 30th July.  

The interviews will take place in early August on Microsoft Teams. Details of an interview task and interview questions will be emailed to you in advance.

We are committed to diversifying our team in order to broaden the insight and experiences we can draw on, and to do our work more credibly. In particular, we would welcome applications from older people, disabled people and people who have experienced socioeconomic inequality. Our offices are fully accessible and we are a Disability Confident and an LGBT+ friendly employer.