Summary
- The role requires the ability to work flexibly, including evenings and up to five Saturdays a year.
- A Basic DBC check is required for this role.
- Educated to A-Level standard or equivalent.
- An interest and passion for welcoming visitors, excelling at engaging with stakeholders and event attendees.
- Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.
- An excellent grounding in event co-ordination and diary management.
- Ability to think creatively and work collaboratively.
- A salary of £34,801, plus age-related pension contributions between 8-15% of salary. We will also match any pension contributions you make up to an additional 3% of your salary.
- 25 days annual leave (increasing to 30 days within 5 years) plus eight bank holidays and three additional days (pro-rated if working part-time).
- We welcome all flexible working arrangement requests. This is looked at in a case-by-case scenario and if this fits within the department's needs. We try to be as flexible as we can in your work pattern to support you with other commitments, and to give a good work-life balance.
- We offer many services and initiatives under our Family Friendly Programme, some of these include enhanced Maternity Leave initiative, Adoption leave, Paternity Leave, & Shared Parental Leave. Structured induction programme and access to a range of development opportunities including apprenticeships.
- Automatic enrolment and access to Medicash (one of the UK's leading health cash plan providers), providing you with many services including reimbursements of routine dental treatment, optical, specialist consultations, and therapy treatments. Unlimited access to virtual GP & Private prescription service and health & Stress related helplines.
- Access to Occupational Health, and an Employee Assistance Programme
- Access to the Department of Education Restaurant and Westminster Abbey with a plus-one guest.
- Apply for eligibility for an Eyecare voucher.
- Opportunity to join the Civil Service Sports & Social Club, and get involved in a range of staff networks, groups and societies.
- Strive for Excellence
- Show Compassion
- Respect others
- Collaborate
- Act with Integrity
Registered Charity
101 - 500
The Church of England’s vocation is and always has been to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ afresh in each generation to the people of England.
Thank you!
About us
The King’s community is dedicated to the service of society. King’s Strategic Vision 2029 sets out our vision for the future, shaped around five priority areas: educate to inspire and improve; research to inform and innovate; serve to shape and transform; a civic university at the heart of London; and an international community that services the world. Our ambitious Education Strategy sets out the actions that we must take to transform how we teach, how and where our students learn and how we support them during their time with us.
Within the Social Mobility & Widening Participation Department we believe all young people should be able to have high expectations for their future. This means equal access to education and career opportunities. We run programmes that aim to empower young people from underrepresented backgrounds to access and succeed at university.
We are part of the Students & Education Directorate, a collection of wide-ranging professional services in place to support King’s students and their education. As a directorate we manage the student lifecycle from application to graduation and beyond, to ensure a coherent and seamless student experience and effective administrative processes, working closely with King’s faculties to do so.
About the role
The Senior Research and Evaluation Adviser will work to position King’s College London as a sector leader on conducting institutional evaluation and research to understand how we can support students from underrepresented groups to access university and succeed at university. Our team generates causal evidence either through Randomised Controlled Trials or Quasi-experimental designs, as well as correlational and qualitative evidence.
This is an exciting opportunity for candidates looking to work in research and evaluation in an applied context, and who wish to use their skills and expertise in quantitative and qualitative methods. This is an opportunity to grow your skills in generating and applying evidence to practice.
We encourage applications from candidates who have experience from both within and outside of the Higher Education sector where they can demonstrate the skills needed to succeed in this role.
Key responsibilities:
- Lead on a range of research & evaluation activities, including synthesis of secondary research; conducting qualitative, quantitative and/or survey designs; developing and delivering randomised controlled trials (and other experimental trials as appropriate)
- Convey research findings, including complex quantitative information, in a clear and actionable way
- Develop and maintain expertise in research and evaluation methodologies
- Work with academics and practitioners to test and trial new approaches to widening participation and student success
About you
To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:
Essential criteria
Qualifications & Training
- Relevant work experience and/or education: We think a wide range of different work and educational experiences could support you to be successful in this role. Relevant work experience might include work in any research or evaluation job. Relevant educational experiences might include higher education in a related discipline, professional qualifications or other training
Skills & Experience
- Ability to select appropriate research designs and use qualitative and quantitative methods, including surveying, interviewing and running focus groups
- Ability to establish causal inference using experimental methods (e.g quasi-experimental methods, randomised controlled trials)
- Confident in conducting data analysis and statistical testing using relevant software (such as Power BI, R, Stata or SPSS) and presenting findings in various formats
- Ability to manage multiple research projects and deliver work to deadline
- Confident and clear written and verbal communication, including report-writing and presentation skills
- Ability to work with others to deliver project aims and overcome challenges
- Ability to coach or train others on how to undertake specific tasks and give clear direction on desired outcomes
- Ability to decide own pattern of work and manage workload and resources over a long period
Desirable criteria
Qualifications & Training
- Postgraduate degree or qualification in research methods, statistics, analytics or a related field and/or relevant experience.
Skills & Experience
- Interest in using behavioural insights in a research or policy context to positively influence behaviour
Knowledge
- Interest in the widening participation agenda and the role of higher education in social mobility
Further information
We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.
Closing date: 30 January 2026.
Interviews are due to be held on 19th and 20th February 2026.
Thank you!
The Organisation
The Royal Parks (TRP) is a charity created in March 2017. We manage over 5,000 acres of diverse parkland, rare habitats and historic buildings and monuments in eight Royal Parks across London. These are Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, The Green Park, St James’s Park, The Regent's Park and Primrose Hill, Greenwich Park, Richmond Park and Bushy Park.
We also manage other important public spaces, including Brompton Cemetery and Victoria Tower Gardens. Our eight Royal Parks and other public spaces are among the most visited attractions in the UK, with tens of millions of visits every year.
We are now looking for a Sport & Leisure Development Officer to join us on a full-time, permanent basis, working 36 hours per week.
The Benefits
- Salary of £33,666 - £36,500 per annum, depending on experience.
- 26 days' annual leave plus public holidays, increasing to 29 days after three years’ service
- Pension scheme (3% employee contribution; up to 10% employer contribution
- Private medical insurance and healthcare cash plan
- Employee assistance programme and access to mental health first aiders
- Learning and development opportunities
- Cycle to work scheme
- Offices in a beautiful park location
This is a standout opportunity for an individual with experience in sport development, community engagement, or participation growth to join our mission-led organisation.
In this highly rewarding role, you will have the chance to make a real impact on the sports that take place across the Royal Parks, positively influencing the lives of Londoners and further developing your career in an engaging area.
What’s more, you’ll discover a dynamic and exciting environment where there is plenty of room for growth and a host of rich rewards that will ensure you are equipped and enabled to thrive in your role.
The Role
As our Sport & Leisure Development Officer, you will lead initiatives that grow participation in sports activity across our organisation, with a strong focus on inclusion and access for underrepresented communities.
Working closely with on-site tennis facility leads and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), you will design and deliver participation programmes, seeking to increase engagement and court usage, and maximise programme capacity.
You’ll build strong partnerships with clubs, schools, local authorities, and community organisations, helping to remove barriers to participation and ensure sport within the parks is welcoming, affordable, and sustainable.
Additionally, you will:
- Shape diverse and inclusive sports programmes
- Create opportunities for underrepresented groups
- Monitor and evaluate participation data to guide decision-making and report on outcomes
- Represent us at meetings, forums and events
- Support coach-led sessions and wider health and wellbeing activities
- Assist with reporting, usage records, and business plan delivery
About You
To be considered as our Sport & Leisure Development Officer, you will need:
- Experience in sport development, community engagement, or participation growth
- Experience of managing partnerships and stakeholder relationships
- A strong understanding of inclusion and barriers to participation in underserved communities
- Knowledge of the UK tennis landscape and/or experience working with or alongside the LTA
- Strong organisational skills with a data-informed, outcome-focused approach
- Confident communication skills and a genuine passion for social impact through sport
We want to put everyone in the best possible position to succeed and use the Recite-me accessibility software. At the top of the application page, there is an “Accessibility Tools” button, which you can use to complete the application form in a way that works for you. If you think that you may need more support to complete our application process, please do get in touch.
Other organisations may call this role Sports Development Officer, Participation Development Officer, Project Officer, Engagement Officer, Community Sport Officer, or Leisure Development Officer.
The Royal Parks is strongly committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace and is an equal opportunities employer. We value diversity and encourage applications from candidates from all backgrounds. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.
Registered Charity
101 - 500
We provide free access to London’s beautiful, natural and historic green spaces, to help improve everyone’s quality of life and wellbeing.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.