Academic development manager jobs in Manchester

Title:     Engagement Manager

Salary:     £42,000–£52,000 (depending on experience)

Contract:     Permanent

Hours:     37.5 per week (Monday to Friday) 

Holiday:     25 days per year plus bank holidays 

Location:     Home based with regular travel within / to London and across the UK

Probationary Period:     3 months

Reports to:     Head of Department 

Benefits:     An additional 3 days holiday between Christmas and New Year, Flexitime policy, 5% pension contribution

Line Management:     Depending on experience, may line-manage the Senior Engagement Coordinator. 

We are River Action

We are a small and agile campaigning organisation on a mission to rescue Britain's rivers from a toxic cocktail of agricultural, sewage and industrial pollution and water shortages. We support community action, galvanise and mobilise public opinion, influence government policy, take legal actions and call out destructive industrial practices to incentivise changes that end river pollution and secure freshwater. 

We are building a talented team of positive disrupters and stakeholder mobilisers to deliver our strategy to urgently protect and restore our rivers for the benefit of communities, rivers and wildlife.

Britain’s rivers are our life support system and they are dying. We need urgent action to bring them back to life.

Who we are looking for

As River Action’s profile, influence and policy impact continue to grow, we are expanding our Public Affairs function to strengthen engagement with decision-makers, regulators, businesses, NGOs, strategic partners and local communities.

The Engagement Manager will play a critical role in helping River Action influence change by developing high-level relationships, building strategic partnerships and providing strategic leadership across River Action’s engagement programmes to advance our policy, legal and campaigning objectives.

This is a senior engagement leadership role responsible for providing strategic oversight of both stakeholder engagement and community engagement activity, ensuring River Action’s grassroots campaigning and external influence work are mutually reinforcing

What you’ll be doing

The Engagement Manager will lead River Action’s overall engagement strategy, providing strategic oversight of both stakeholder engagement and community engagement activity across the organisation.

Building and managing relationships with senior leaders across government, regulators, NGOs, businesses, financiers, academia and civil society, the postholder will identify opportunities to increase River Action’s influence, support policy and advocacy objectives, and help position the organisation as a leading voice on river protection and environmental reform.

The role will provide strategic direction and oversight to River Action’s community engagement work, including the River Rescue Kit, Community Toolkit and catchment-based campaigning activities, working closely with the Senior Engagement Coordinator who will lead day-to-day delivery, community support and programme implementation.

Working closely with colleagues across Public Affairs, Campaigns, Communications, Legal and Development, the Engagement Manager will ensure engagement activities contribute directly to organisational priorities and campaigns and that community insights help shape River Action’s policy, legal and campaigning work.

Main Responsibilities:

Strategic Stakeholder Engagement

• Develop and deliver River Action’s stakeholder engagement strategy.

• Manage relationships with senior stakeholders and decision-makers.

• Develop and implement engagement or public affairs strategies.

• Identify, map and prioritise key stakeholders across government, regulators, business, NGOs, academia and civil society.

• Build and maintain productive relationships with senior external stakeholders.

• Create opportunities for strategic collaboration that advance River Action’s mission and objectives.

• Monitor stakeholder developments and identify opportunities and risks.

Managing Stakeholder and Community Engagement

• Provide strategic leadership and oversight of River Action’s stakeholder and community engagement programme.

• Ensure effective delivery and continuous development of the River Rescue Kit and Community Toolkit as key resources supporting grassroots campaigners and community groups.

• Oversee catchment-based engagement strategies that strengthen community-led action, advocacy and campaigning.

• Work closely with the Senior Engagement Coordinator to identify opportunities to expand and strengthen River Action’s network of stakeholder and community groups, campaigners and partners.

• Ensure insights, evidence and priorities emerging from stakeholders and local communities to inform River Action’s public affairs, policy, legal and campaigning work.

• Monitor the effectiveness and impact of community engagement activities and ensure learning is shared across the organisation.

• Support the development of engagement frameworks, systems and processes that enable effective community mobilisation at scale.

Public Affairs and External Influence

• Support the delivery of River Action’s Public Affairs strategy.

• Build relationships with parliamentarians, political advisers, local authority leaders and relevant government officials.

• Support engagement with regulators including the Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales, Ofwat and other relevant bodies.

• Represent River Action in external forums, roundtables, conferences and stakeholder meetings.

• Coordinate stakeholder engagement around key campaigns, policy initiatives and legal actions.

Strategic Partnerships

• Develop partnerships with environmental NGOs, think tanks, academic institutions, financiers and businesses.

• Identify opportunities for joint initiatives, campaigns and advocacy activity.

• Strengthen River Action’s position within the wider environmental and public policy landscape.

• Convene strategic partnerships to support policy and campaigning objectives.

Organisational Leadership

• Work closely with the Head of Public Affairs to support delivery of organisational objectives.

• Provide strategic direction, support and oversight to the Senior Engagement Coordinator, ensuring community engagement activity aligns with organisational priorities and objectives.

• Provide stakeholder intelligence and strategic advice to senior leadership.

• Contribute to organisational planning and public affairs priorities.

• Support cross-team working between Public Affairs, Campaigns, Communications, Legal and Fundraising.

• Ensure strong integration between River Action’s community engagement, public affairs, campaigns, communications and legal work.

Communications and Representation

• Act as an ambassador for River Action externally.

• Support media opportunities through stakeholder engagement and relationship building.

• Prepare briefings, stakeholder reports and engagement plans.

• Help identify influential voices and advocates who can amplify River Action’s work.

Monitoring and Reporting

• Maintain stakeholder engagement plans and CRM records.

• Monitor engagement outcomes and report against agreed KPIs.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of stakeholder engagement activity and recommend improvements.

What you’ll bring

Essential Experience

• Significant experience in stakeholder engagement, public affairs, external affairs, partnerships or advocacy.

• Experience managing relationships with senior stakeholders and decision-makers.

• Experience developing and implementing engagement or public affairs strategies.

• Experience overseeing or managing community engagement, organising or grassroots campaigning programmes.

• Experience translating community priorities and local evidence into policy, advocacy or campaigning objectives.

• Experience working across complex stakeholder environments.

• Experience representing an organisation externally.

Essential Knowledge

• Understanding of UK water-related political, regulatory and policy-making processes.

• Understanding of stakeholder engagement and influence strategies.

• Understanding of community engagement, organising and mobilisation approaches.

• Knowledge of environmental, sustainability or public policy issues.

Essential Skills

• Exceptional relationship-building and networking skills.

• Strong influencing and negotiation abilities.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

• Strong strategic thinking and political awareness.

• Ability to balance strategic stakeholder engagement with community-led campaigning and mobilisation.

• Strong understanding of how grassroots engagement can support policy, legal and public affairs objectives.

• Ability to develop engagement strategies that connect local action with national influence and impact.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities and complex stakeholder relationships.

• Excellent project management and organisational skills.

Desirable

• Knowledge of water policy, environmental regulation or agricultural policy.

• Experience engaging with Westminster, Whitehall or devolved administrations.

• Experience developing partnerships with businesses and financiers.

• Experience supporting policy or advocacy campaigns.

• Experience working with community-led environmental campaigns or citizen science initiatives.

Why join us?

• Be part of a mission-driven organisation working to restore and protect the UK’s rivers.

• Work at the heart of political and environmental change, influencing decision-makers at the highest levels.

• Work in an agile, supportive and happy work environment where your ideas and expertise will have real impact.

• Opportunities for professional development and growth within the organisation.

Diversity and inclusion

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies show that women and people of colour are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single criteria. We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace. So if you like the look of this role but your past experience does not align perfectly with everything in the job description, we’d still love to hear from you. You may be just the right person for this role.

How to apply

To apply, please submit to jobs at riveractionuk dot com with the subject ‘Engagement Manager’:

• your CV (2 pages), 

• a cover letter (2 pages) explaining why you want to work for River Action and how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role, and 

• a written submission (2 pages) as described below. 

Only applications including all three documents will be accepted. Please provide your documents in pdf format. 

Written submission

The Government is expected to bring forward a Clean Water Bill in Parliament. River Action wants to influence the Bill to secure stronger protections for rivers, hold polluters to account, and deliver measurable improvements in river health.

In no more than 750 words, set out how you would approach this challenge. Your response should explain:

• Which stakeholders you would prioritise engaging with, and why.

• How you would use partnerships, community groups and grassroots evidence to support your objectives.

• How you would measure the success of your approach.

• One significant challenge or risk, and how you would address it.

We are interested in your ability to think strategically, prioritise effectively, and demonstrate how engagement can help deliver policy and environmental change.

Application process

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until 5pm on Wednesday 15th July.

Should your application be selected during sift, the next stage will involve an initial 15-minute interview. You may then be invited to attend a second interview with a panel. 

Interviews will be held in the weeks commencing 19th July and 26th July via video conference. 

Please indicate in your covering letter or in a covering email your availability for interviews.

If you have any questions about the role or your application, please contact us on jobs at riveractionuk dot com.

Title:  Head of Campaigns

Salary:        £60,000

Contract:      Temporary

Hours:  37.5 per week (Monday to Friday) 

Holiday:  25 days per year plus bank holidays 

Location:  Home based with regular across the UK

Probationary Period:  3 months

Reports to:  Chief Executive

Benefits:  An additional 3 days holiday between Christmas and New Year

Flexitime policy

5% pension contribution

Anticipated contract duration:  9th November 2026 - February 2028 

We are River Action

We are a small and agile campaigning organisation on a mission to rescue the UK’s rivers from a toxic cocktail of agricultural, sewage and industrial pollution and water shortages. We support community action, galvanise and mobilise public opinion, influence government policy, take legal actions and call out destructive industrial practices to incentivise changes that end river pollution and secure freshwater. 

We are a talented team of positive disrupters and stakeholder mobilisers delivering our strategy to urgently protect and restore our rivers for the benefit of communities, rivers and wildlife.

Our rivers are our life support system and they are dying. We need urgent action to bring them back to life.

Who we are looking for

We're looking for an exceptional campaigner to lead an ambitious environmental campaigning  programme for just over a year to cover maternity leave. This is an exciting opportunity for an inspiring leader who can develop bold, strategic campaigns that shift public debate, influence decision-makers and deliver tangible environmental outcomes.

You'll be an experienced campaign strategist who understands that lasting change rarely comes from a single tactic. You'll know how to bring together compelling communications, evidence and investigations, grassroots mobilisation, political engagement, legal interventions and partnerships into integrated campaigns capable of changing policy, behaviour and corporate practice.

We're looking for someone who combines strategic vision with practical delivery. Someone who is comfortable making decisions in a fast-moving environment, spotting opportunities as they emerge and adapting campaigns to maximise impact.

Experience in environmental campaigning would be highly valuable, but above all we're looking for someone with an outstanding track record of leading successful campaigns that have shifted opinion, influenced policy or held powerful institutions to account.

We’re looking for someone who brings energy, creativity and courageous leadership. Someone who is excited by building campaigns that challenge the status quo, comfortable navigating complexity and able to combine bold thinking with sound judgement. You'll know when to disrupt, when to collaborate and how to inspire others to believe that together we can restore the UK’s rivers. 

If you're motivated by creating change, thrive in a dynamic environment and want to lead campaigns that make a genuine difference to one of the UK's greatest environmental challenges, we'd love to hear from you. 

What you’ll be doing:

As Head of Campaigns, you will be developing and delivering bold, integrated campaigns that drive lasting change for the UK's rivers. You'll lead and inspire a talented team of campaigners, helping them to develop innovative, impactful campaigns while fostering a collaborative, ambitious and supportive culture. You'll work closely with colleagues across communications, policy, legal, fundraising and research, ensuring our work is strategically aligned and greater than the sum of its parts.

Leading River Action's Campaigns Team, you will shape the organisation's campaigning strategy, ensuring our work is innovative, evidence-led and designed to influence public opinion, hold polluters to account and secure meaningful political and systemic change. You'll create campaigns that connect compelling storytelling with community mobilisation, strategic communications, political advocacy, legal action and partnerships, ensuring every part of our work contributes towards our mission to rescue the UK’s rivers.

You'll provide strategic leadership across the full campaign lifecycle, overseeing campaign planning, delivery, budgeting, resourcing and evaluation. You'll ensure our campaigns are informed by robust evidence, guided by clear objectives and measured against meaningful outcomes, using insight and learning to continually strengthen our impact.

You will lead River Action's communications and public profile, ensuring our campaigns cut through the national conversation, inspire public action and strengthen our reputation as one of the UK's leading environmental campaigning organisations. You’ll oversee media, messaging and campaign communications that amplify our voice and build public support for change.

Internally, you'll work in close partnership with the Head of Public Affairs to ensure our public campaigns reinforce and accelerate our political influencing work, while ensuring community campaigns and grassroots action inform our national priorities. You'll also work alongside the Head of Legal to develop campaigns involving strategic litigation to achieve change within and outside of court and legal processes, using legal action as a catalyst for wider public awareness, policy change and industry accountability.

As a member of River Action's Senior Management Team, you'll help shape the strategic direction of the organisation and contribute to organisational leadership beyond your own department. You'll work alongside the CEO and fellow Heads of Department to deliver our organisational strategy, embedding collaboration, innovation and impact across all areas of our work.

You'll also play a key role in securing the resources needed to deliver our ambitions. Working with the Head of Development, you'll help develop compelling funding proposals, inspire funders with our vision and demonstrate the impact of our work through robust monitoring, evaluation and reporting. Working with the Finance and Operations Manager, you'll oversee campaign budgets, ensuring resources are managed effectively and strategically.

Main Duties 

• Provide strategic leadership as a member of the Senior Management Team, supporting the CEO to deliver River Action's organisational strategy, theory of change and long-term vision.

• Lead the development and delivery of River Action's integrated campaigning strategy, ensuring our public campaigns drive measurable environmental, political and societal change.

• Develop and oversee a portfolio of ambitious national campaigns, identifying opportunities to influence public opinion, policy, regulation and industry practice through innovative and impactful campaigning.

• Lead River Action's communications, media and public engagement strategy, ensuring compelling storytelling, strong brand visibility and effective use of traditional, digital and social media to grow our influence and supporter base.

• Lead the planning and delivery of River Action’s creative interventions and actions, from polling, petitions and shareholder actions to public protests and high-profile actions.

• Serve as a senior public representative and spokesperson for River Action, building the organisation's profile and influence through media engagement, public speaking, stakeholder engagement and high-profile external events.

• Oversee River Action's digital campaigning platforms, including the strategic development of our website and digital engagement tools.

• Work closely with the Head of Public Affairs  to ensure campaigns and political advocacy are fully integrated, maximising opportunities to influence government, regulators and decision-makers.

• Work closely with the Head of Public Affairs to ensure grassroots action informs national campaigns, and national campaigns empower and amplify community action.

• Work with the Head of Legal to identify, develop and deliver strategic legal interventions that strengthen campaigns, increase accountability and drive systemic change beyond the courtroom.

• Build and maintain influential relationships with campaign partners, coalitions, NGOs, academics, community organisations, funders and other key stakeholders to maximise collective impact.

• Lead campaign planning, governance and delivery, ensuring campaigns are effectively resourced, managed and evaluated against agreed objectives, budgets and monitoring, evaluation and reporting (MER) frameworks.

• Lead, inspire and develop the Campaigns Team, fostering a collaborative, creative and high-performing culture that enables colleagues to thrive and deliver exceptional work.

• Work with the CEO, Head of Development and senior colleagues to secure funding for campaign activities, contributing to funding proposals, donor engagement and impact reporting.

• Work with the Finance and Operations Manager to develop, monitor and manage campaign budgets, ensuring resources are used effectively and strategically.

• Support organisational reporting by contributing to Board papers, quarterly and annual reports, organisational planning and performance monitoring.

Other Duties & Responsibilities 

• Adopt a positive approach to personal and professional development; engaging in one to one meetings and relevant training.

• Be aware of, and act on, relevant health and safety responsibilities as an employee of River Action and adhere to these wherever you are working.

• To maintain confidentiality in all areas of work at River Action.

• UK travel will be required. Training & operational activities may require overnight stays away from home, in which case standard River Action procedures apply.

• Demonstrate a strong commitment to creating an inclusive, equal and diverse workplace and a positive organisational culture.

• Work collaboratively with colleagues across River Action to collectively deliver our ethos and mission.

What you’ll bring

The position will suit a strategic, well organised, energetic, passionate and dedicated person. The ideal person will be an excellent leader, a people person, and thrive within a dynamic and fast-paced environment. The person will have a passion to protect and restore our waterways and hold those responsible for environmental destruction to account.

• Ability to think strategically to deliver campaigns that are positively disruptive and meet River Action values.

• Line management experience of highly experienced professionals, bringing out the best in your team.

• Creative attitude and skills for solving problems and raising awareness of problems and solutions.

• A head for organisation and excellent time management, bringing others along with you in planning and delivering interventions and projects at short notice and under pressure.

• Experience in public and/or political campaigning either within or outside the environmental sector.

• Experience and contacts in communications and PR. 

• An understanding of the issues that are impacting our rivers, and their solutions.

• The ability to establish and maintain effective contacts and relationships with senior and influential external individuals and bodies.

• The ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with a wide range of people both verbally and in writing including the media, community groups, other NGO representatives, government, industry leaders, supporters and followers on social media.

• Exceptional IT literacy and a head for figures and budgeting.

• Ability to work independently and take initiative to solve problems.

• Ability to work flexible hours as necessary.

• A good team player with a willingness to muck in as and where required.

• Ability to think clearly even when working under pressure.

• A passion for River Action’s mission and vision.

Diversity and Inclusion

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies show that women and people of colour are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single criteria. We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace. So if you like the look of this role but your past experience does not align perfectly with everything in the job description, we would still like to hear from you. You may be just the right person for this or other roles. 

How to apply

To apply, please submit to jobs at riveractionuk dot com with the subject ‘Head of Campaigns’’:

• your CV (2 pages max), 

• a cover letter (2 pages max) explaining why you want to work for River Action and how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role, and 

• a written submission (2 pages) as described below. 

Only applications including all three documents will be accepted. Please provide your documents in pdf format. 

Written submission

River Action is looking to develop a campaign around water security in the UK to launch in 2027. Please put together a campaign brief setting out the challenges faced, how we would develop and deliver this campaign including campaign asks; campaign outcomes; public, political and legal tactics; routes for funding and resource requirements.

Your campaign brief should be no longer than 2 sides of A4. 

Application process

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until 23:59 on 19th July.

Should your application be shortlisted, the next stage will involve an initial 30 minute interview on 28th July via video conference. You may then be invited to attend a second interview with a panel on 3rd August. 

Please indicate in your covering letter or in a covering email your availability for interviews on these dates.

If you have any questions about the role or your application, please contact us on jobs at riveractionuk dot com.

Hours: Full time

Pay: Up to £27,980 GBP gross per annual (dependent on experience)

Duration: Permanent

Right to work: Applications for work in the UK can only be accepted from people with an existing right to work in the UK

Location: UK-Med Office, Manchester, UK with hybrid working available

Programme Assistant to support coordination of capacity building and training for Emergency Medical Teams, and humanitarian and academic partners.

The key objective of UK-Med’s training and capacity building capability is to work with colleagues, members, partners, stakeholders and national health staff to strengthen response skills in order to enable Emergency Medical Teams and wider health services to be better prepared for emergencies. Integral to this is to ensure that the professionals who deliver UK-Med’s responses are well prepared, know what to expect, and deliver the best possible responses, resulting in positive health outcomes for the patients and communities we serve.

The Programme Assistant plays a vital role in supporting the delivery of high-quality Capacity Building and Training to internal and external audiences, with a key focus on supporting activities to ensure that preparation and training of UK-Med’s global workforce, comprising Core Staff and a Register of approximately 1,400 healthcare professionals worldwide runs smoothly.

Working under the guidance of the Programme Manager and closely with the rest of the Learning & Capacity Building team, the Programme Assistant will support and coordinate the delivery of high-quality capacity building and training interventions in line with UK-Med’s vision for our digital, in-person and simulation-based training capability.

The ideal candidate for Programme Assistant is someone passionate about Learning and Development and capacity building for humanitarian programming with excellent attention to detail, strong administration skills as well as skills in training coordination and effective communication. The role requires an organised and consistent approach to meeting team priorities and deliverables.

We offer a competitive salary and benefits in a supportive work environment, with the opportunity to contribute significantly to humanitarian efforts through your role.

How to apply

We strongly recommend that you read theCandidate Information Pack - Programme Assistant - Training before applying for this role.

To apply, please submit a current CV and answer the application questions

Please apply through our online jobs portal, as soon as possible no later than Wednesday 15th of July 2026

This role is based in the UK, and applications are accepted only from candidates with the right to work in the UK.

UK-Med is committed to safeguarding of our personnel and beneficiaries and has a zero-tolerance approach to sexual exploitation and abuse. We conduct thorough vetting before any appointment is confirmed.

UK-Med is committed to the principles of diversity, equality, and inclusion. We strive to provide an inclusive and supportive environment where employees feel respected and supported to be able to fulfil their potential.

Head of Course Development – Self-Paced Learning

Remote (UK) | Full Time | 12-Month Fixed-Term Contract | £60,000–£70,000

Help build something entirely new with a global leader in education.

Marble Mayne Recruitment is delighted to be supporting a world-leading international education group in the appointment of a Head of Course Development for an exciting new strategic initiative.

This is a genuinely unique opportunity to join an organisation at the forefront of premium education and play a pivotal role in launching a brand-new self-paced learning offering. Rather than stepping into an established function, you'll have the rare opportunity to build an innovative educational product from the ground up, shaping how high-quality GCSE and A-Level courses are designed, developed and delivered for students across the world.

This is a fully remote role, open to candidates based anywhere in the UK, offering the flexibility to work from home while collaborating with an ambitious international team.

The Role

As Head of Course Development, you'll lead the creation of a new portfolio of self-paced GCSE and A-Level courses. You'll recruit and manage the course development team, establish quality standards and production processes, oversee instructional design, content development and assessment, and ensure delivery to ambitious project timelines.

Working closely with colleagues across product, operations and marketing, you'll help shape a market-leading online learning experience from concept through to launch. This is a rare opportunity to leave your mark on a completely new educational offering.

As the new product grows, there is also the potential for this role to evolve into a longer-term leadership position within the organisation.

About You

We're looking for an experienced education leader with a strong understanding of curriculum development and pedagogy, ideally across GCSE and A-Level. You'll bring experience leading course or curriculum development, managing educational teams, delivering complex programmes to fixed deadlines, and be someone who thrives in a fast-paced, build-from-scratch environment. Experience of online or asynchronous learning would be highly advantageous.

If you're excited by the prospect of building something from scratch, leading a talented team and helping shape the future of online education within a globally recognised organisation, we'd love to hear from you.

Closing date

Ongoing / ASAP – the new postholder will ideally start the role for the new academic year in September 

For over 60 years the National Children’s Bureau (NCB) has been building a better childhood for all.

Research and Development Officer
Contract: Permanent
Work Pattern: Part Time, 28 hours per week (0.8 FTE)
Salary: £34,408 per annum, FTE (£27,526 per annum for 28 hours per week), with annual salary increments for the first three years
Location: Homebased – however NCB and RiP has offices in Sheffield, Newton Abbot, London and Belfast that staff can work from should they choose.

The Vacancy

We are looking for a talented Research and Development Officer to join our children and families team at Research in Practice. In this role you will develop and deliver accessible content and learning activities that promote evidence-informed practice and policy across child and family social care, youth and family justice as part of our annual delivery programme for our partners. You will also be involved in the delivery of commissioned project work.

The successful candidate will have experience designing and delivering resources, workshops, webinars, and events for a range of audiences, including senior leaders.

This is a fantastic opportunity for someone with strong written and editorial skills, excellent facilitation skills and who is confident distilling complex information into accessible learning materials. While the position requires engagement with and understanding of research, it is not a primary research role.

Key responsibilities are:

• Producing evidence-informed practice and policy resources in a range of formats (e.g. publications, videos, podcasts, animations). This includes evidence scoping, content development, commissioning, project management, editing, writing and quality assuring resources from inception to publication.
• Leading the development and delivery of concise, accessible content and learning activities to enable the development of evidence-informed practice and policy in the sector.
• Developing and facilitating learning sessions and events with a range of participants, including senior leaders across the sector.
• Working on a range of commissioned project work, from development/design through to analysis; presenting findings on completion and representing Research in Practice in project teams with academic and practice partners.
• Building strong relationships with sector experts and effectively managing relationships with authors, facilitators, people with lived experience and those working in research, policy and practice.

Research in Practice

Research in Practice is part of the National Children’s Bureau (NCB) family. For over 60 years, the NCB has been building a better childhood for all.

Research in Practice works with organisations across the adults and children’s social care, health and criminal justice sectors, supporting them to develop an evidence-informed approach to their work. Our focus is on using evidence from research, practice and lived experience, to provide resources that improve policy and services, in order to achieve positive outcomes for people of all ages.

About NCB

For more than 60 years, the National Children’s Bureau has championed the rights and amplified the voice of children and young people in the UK. We interrogate policy and uncover evidence, blending in lived and learnt experience to shape future legislation and develop more effective ways of supporting children and families.

Bringing people and organisations together is fundamental to how we improve the systems that babies, children, young people and their families rely on to thrive. We push boundaries, even looking beyond childhood itself to consider transitions into adulthood and the impact of childhood issues on an entire lifespan. We are united for better childhoods and brighter futures.

The Benefits

• 30 Days Annual Leave
• Generous Pension Scheme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Flexible Working
• Winter Holiday Closure & Break
• Employee Assistance Programme

Closing date: 8am, Wednesday 8th July 2026
Please note that we reserve the right to close this vacancy early should we receive a high volume of applications. We encourage interested candidates to submit their applications as soon as possible.

Interested?

If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application for this position.

We are actively seeking to broaden the diversity of our staff group and warmly welcome applications from candidates underrepresented in the charity sector, including those from Black and Global Majority communities, disabled people, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with lived experience of the issues NCB works on.

No agencies please.

Role Purpose

To lead on day-to-day delivery of the advice centre provision at the Students’ Union and line manage front facing student staff at the information point. The role primarily involves the delivery of a high-quality impartial, independent, advice service to individual student members of the Students’ Union, through information, advice, guidance, signposting and referrals and working with the Head of Student-Led Change and Advice on expanding advice provision. The role-holder will also be expected to work collaboratively with colleagues across the organisation as well as the university to identify and recommend solutions to issues and concerns affecting the wider student body to improve the student experience.

Main Responsibilities and Activities

• Develop the advice centre provision ensuring it delivers a service that is appropriate for the needs of University of Salford students.
• Work to maintain and develop the skills and knowledge levels within the student-staff team, through upskilling and training where necessary.
• Assist in the development of evidence-led approaches to understand student priorities and collaborate with the Student-Led Change Lead where trends indicate that collective student action is needed.
• Line management of Student Staff, including Student Advisor and Information Point staff.
• Provide leadership and direction to student staff, ensuring they are supported to provide excellent service delivery.
• Embed a coaching culture within the student staff team to empower staff to thrive.
• To lead on day-to-day delivery of the advice centre provision and work alongside the Head of Student-Led Change and Advice to expand the service where desired.
• To undertake detailed, specialised casework related primarily to academic matters and housing issues, but more broadly on other concerns affecting student experiences.
• This will be on a one-to-one basis delivered via various methods as appropriate including telephone, email, live chat, video calling, and in person.
• To maintain accurate, confidential, and legally compliant records of student client and casework details
• To approach student casework in a holistic manner, recognising that students may require support for a range of issues both academic and non-academic.
• Signposting and referring where appropriate, ensure that students are dealt with in a supportive and wellbeing-focused manner.
• To be familiar with relevant legislation as it affects student issues and respond accordingly.
• To produce information, case studies and feedback related to student issues for the Union’s communication channels, ensuring a pro-active approach to areas of concern for the student body.
• Develop and maintain relationships with colleagues throughout the Union, University and other advice providers.
• Build effective relationships with colleagues at other students’ unions to share best practice.
• Assist with the promotion of the advice service throughout the University and to external organisations.
• Provide support to student-led groups and student leaders that provide information or advice.
• Ensure compliance with the Union’s policies, University policies and all relevant legislation – including Health and Safety, 1992 Education Act and Data Protection.
• Help our Full Time Officers achieve their manifesto commitments.
• Actively engage in student-facing projects and activities of all kinds as required.
• Be an enthusiastic advocate for student leadership and the organisation’s values.
• Maintain your own professional networks and promote the Union on a local and national level.

Person Specification

Knowledge and Experience

• Experience of providing advice and managing casework, including keeping accurate and confidential records.
• Experience of line managing staff and/or volunteers and taking a coaching approach towards their development.
• Demonstrable knowledge of and/or an appreciation of the issues currently impacting students in Higher Education

Skills and Abilities

• Ability to manage difficult or sensitive situations in a calm and empathetic way.
• Ability to demonstrate effective communication skills in a variety of situations and with diverse stakeholders.
• Ability to use Microsoft Office effectively as well as other technology such as case management systems and digital collaboration tools.
• Able to manage own caseload and to prioritise work effectively.
• A demonstrable understanding of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and the challenges faced by students from minoritised backgrounds
• Able to demonstrate flexibility and agility in response to changing priorities and challenging situations.

Values and Behaviours

• A demonstrable commitment to Salford SU’s values, mission and purpose.
• A strong commitment to championing equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Comfortable working in a democratic, student-led environment and being an enthusiastic advocate for student voice and representation.

As Principal Policy Adviser (interim), you will collaborate with Uplift’s team and key partners to drive the design, development and delivery of work that generates influential policy and ideas addressing the challenges of a rapid and fair transition away from oil and gas production in the UK.

From proactively setting the agenda, to responding to policy announcements, to ensuring our team has a sound understanding of the future of the North Sea, this is a diverse role at the heart of our work pushing for a rapid and fair transition.

The successful candidate will have exceptional policy skills, an ability to think politically, and a keen interest in climate and energy-related policy and campaigns. A strong commitment to Uplift's mission and core values is also required.

This role is a 9 month long contract to cover a secondment within the team.

Core responsibilities will include:

• Policy: Lead Uplift’s policy work, spearhead the development and testing of innovative policy initiatives, and identify and work through knowledge gaps relevant to Uplift’s strategy.

• Coordination and Strategy Delivery: Work with teams to set and execute policy priorities, provide in-house policy support, contribute to the management of the Research Policy and LEgal Tea, and develop systems for quality assurance and knowledge management.

• Advocacy and Network Support: Build capacity amongst other Uplift teams to understand the intersection of their work with policy topics and represent Uplift to policymakers and partner organisations.

Please see the job description for the full core responsibilities.

About You

Our ideal candidate will have: 

• Experience in a similar or related role.

• Strong knowledge of UK climate and energy policy (direct expertise in just transition, fossil fuels or renewables would be a significant advantage).

• Excellent research and analytical skills, with the ability to synthesise complex information quickly and accurately and a demonstrable ability to provide compelling and novel analysis.

• Exceptional writing and communication skills, with strong attention to detail and political nous.

• Motivation, initiative, exceptionally high standards, a collaborative approach, and associated qualities are needed to work in a dynamic organisation with an ambitious agenda.

• A strong commitment to Uplift’s mission and core values of equity and climate justice.

About Adolescent Health Study

The Adolescent Health Study (AHS) is an ambitious new UKRI-funded initiative to establish a prospective, longitudinal population study that will generate a globally leading open science data platform and research resource. AHS aims to recruit at least 100,000 young people aged eight to 18 years from across the UK and to follow their mental and physical health and wellbeing over at least 10 years. It plans to collect data through questions and measures; to obtain bio-samples for a wide range of genomic and other high-throughput assays; and to capture linked data relevant to health and wellbeing from participants’ health, education and other administrative records. Recruitment will take place mainly through schools. There will be a strong emphasis on engaging with and involving young people, schools, parents and other relevant stakeholders in the design and delivery of the study, as well as on including young people that represent as wide as possible a range of backgrounds, experiences and characteristics. AHS will focus on enabling a wide range of research, including studies of the critical biological and social developments that occur during the transition from childhood to adulthood and the determinants of both mental and physical health and wellbeing in adolescents and young adults.

Purpose of the post

The HR Officer plays a key role in delivering an effective, professional, and compliant HR service across the organisation. Supporting both operational HR processes and employee experience, the post holder will contribute to attracting, developing, and retaining talent in a collaborative and values-driven research environment.

Main responsibilities

HR Operations & Administration Support

• Lead recruitment campaigns in consultation with hiring managers, including drafting job adverts, short-listing and coordinating interviews.
• Manage employee life cycle process, including background checks, onboarding and offboarding.
• Maintain accurate and confidential employee records in compliance with GDPR and organisational policies.
• Administer HR systems, contracts, and employment documentation.
• Manage relationship with 3rd party suppliers including HR consultancy and DBS check providers.
• Support payroll preparation including monthly absence reporting and ensuring accurate data submission and coordination with Finance/Payroll.
• Support the wider central administrative team as required.

 Employee Relations

• Provide first-line HR advice to managers and staff on policies, procedures, and employment matters.
• Support casework relating to absence, performance, disciplinary, and grievance processes.
• Support managers and the COO with complex people cases, working with the external HR partner as required.
• Promote a positive and inclusive working culture aligned with the organisation’s values.

Learning & Development

• Coordinate training activities and support professional development initiatives for research and support staff.
• Some delivery of internal people-related training
• Assist in identifying skills gaps and contributing to workforce development plans.

Policy & Compliance

• Ensure HR practices comply with employment legislation, charity sector regulations, and best practice.
• Monitor and assist with the development, review, and implementation of HR policies and procedures, including handbook updates.
• Support equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) initiatives across the organisation.

HR Projects & Continuous Improvement

• Contribute to HR projects such as staff engagement, wellbeing initiatives, and organisational development.
• Support the implementation of HR systems improvements and process efficiencies.
• Collect and analyse HR data to inform decision-making and reporting.

Knowledge, skills and experience 

Essential

1. Experience in an HR administrative or officer-level role.
2. Sound knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practice.
3. CIPD Level 3 or equivalent.
4. Experience of supporting payroll and finance processes.
5. Proven ability to establish and evolve people processes in a growing organisation.
6. Proficiency in HR systems, such as BreatheHR or equivalent, and Microsoft Office applications.
7. Experience of working in organisations with multiple staffing arrangements i.e. direct employees, secondees, contractors etc.
8. Strong organisational and administrative skills with excellent attention to detail.
9. Ability to handle sensitive information with confidentiality and professionalism.
10. Strong interpersonal and communication skills.

Desirable

1. CIPD Level 5 qualification (or working towards).
2. Experience working in the charity, academic, or research sector.
3. Experience supporting EDI and wellbeing initiatives.
4. Familiarity with public funded and/or project-based staffing environments.
5. Experience supporting or negotiating secondment arrangements, particularly within academic, charity or research environments.

Dimensions

• This is a full-time role, 37.5 hours per week, offered initially as an 18-month fixed-term contract with potential route to permanency.
• Flexible working across several geographical locations in the UK.  Travel may be required to AHS locations and partner organisations.
• AHS is a national organisation, and our activities take place across the UK.

Application Process

All candidates are required to complete the application form which can be found when clicking 'Apply Now' via Charity Job. 

Please refer to the ‘How to Apply’ section of the downloadable application form.

Please note that only applications submitted directly to Gravitate HR will be accepted for this position.

The closing date for applications is 11:00pm on Sunday 5 July 2026.

Interviews are currently expected to take place on Wednesday 5 and Thursday 6 August 2026.

Equal Opportunities Policy Statement

 AHS is an equal opportunities employer, and as such aims to treat all employees, consultants and applicants fairly. It is our policy to provide employment equality to all, irrespective of:

• Gender, including gender reassignment
• Marital or civil partnership status
• Having or not having dependants
• Religion or belief
• Race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins)
• Disability
• Sexual orientation
• Age

We are opposed to all forms of unlawful and unfair discrimination.  All job applicants and employees who work for us will be treated fairly and will not be unfairly discriminated against on any of the above grounds. Decisions about recruitment and selection, promotion, training or any other benefit will be made objectively and without unlawful discrimination. 

Values

It is an exciting time for the Adolescent Health Study (AHS) as we establish our senior leadership team and begin to plan the pilot studies. As the senior executive team evolves, the AHS values will be grounded in inclusivity, integrity, accountability, and collaboration.

Global Programs Events and Project Coordinator

Job Overall goal: Support the delivery of global events and the creation of a range of content, ensuring both align with the charity’s objectives, including activities designed for a global audience.

Job Location: Remote working, with the ability to attend on-site meetings in Milton Keynes (MK19) ideally once a month.

Hours: This is a full-time position (37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday) offered on a 12-month fixed-term contract.

Overview
The Maclellan Giving Together Foundation (MGTF) is a UK Christian charity connected to the longstanding international Maclellan Foundation, who describe their focus as: “establishing and strengthening the local church, promoting discipleship and leadership development, sparking community transformation, promoting the power of prayer, advocating for generosity, and increasing access to Scripture”. Based in the UK, MGTF rolls out key global initiatives that focus on equipping local Christian ministries and releasing local resources to foster sustainable Kingdom growth. These include Learning Communities, retreats, collaborative giving evenings and other resources.
This is an exciting opportunity for someone highly organised, eager to learn event production management, with a specialist interest in content creation for web, print, design, or moving image. They should be detail-oriented, quality-focused, and passionate about seeing the Kingdom flourish globally.

Job summary
We are seeking a highly organised and proactive individual to join our team. This role focuses on supporting the administration and delivery of events, ensuring smooth coordination, logistics, and a high-quality participant experience. It also includes stakeholder management, maintaining clear communication and strong relationships with attendees, partners, and internal teams. In addition, the role contributes to content development (both print and digital), and supports the contextualisation and translation of resources for global audiences.

Key Responsibilities:
Event Planning and Support

• Assist in the planning, coordination, and delivery of event logistics.
• Liaise with stakeholders, including vendors, venues, and service providers, to ensure high-quality event delivery.
• Manage delegate booking systems, taking ownership for providing prompt and professional support to attendees and stakeholders via phone, messaging and email, and delivering excellent delegate care throughout events.
• Maintain and regularly update registration systems and databases, ensuring high levels of accuracy and data integrity.
• Provide on-site event support, including set-up and liaising with AV and logistics teams to ensure smooth execution.
• Support campaign and project planning, including tracking content-related budgets for approval.
• Maintain and update event timelines and the global content calendar, ensuring progress is accurately reflected.
• Assist in the planning and delivery of special event elements (e.g. consultancy clinics).
• Monitor and track project costs, ensuring value for money.
• Process and input event-related receipts and expenses, supporting accurate and timely monthly accounting.
• Use initiative to flag any risks to project delivery, supporting timely resolution.
• Support wider projects across programmes and charity operations as required.

Communication & Content Delivery

• Assist in the creation of event materials, including digital resources, workbooks, email campaigns, websites, and related content.
• Provide administrative and practical support to event personnel in global locations as they deliver our programs.
• Assist in repurposing content into multiple formats to support wider reach and usability.
• Support the preparation and distribution of monthly comms emails.
• Assist with proofreading and formatting event content.
• Support the development and maintenance of an online training portal for specific programs.
• Follow established brand guidelines to maintain consistency in tone, messaging, and visual identity across all content.

Cultural Adaptation & Coordination

• Assist with the localisation of content to ensure materials are culturally appropriate, assisting communication with translators and stakeholders to help adapt resources for different cultural contexts.

Evaluation & Reporting

• Assist in tracking the performance of content and programs through data collection, feedback, and engagement analytics to support evaluation of effectiveness.
• Support the preparation of content and project reports, including metrics and evidence required for various audiences.
•  

General & Organisational

• Actively contribute to team meetings, planning sessions, and creative brainstorming.
• Occasional evening and weekend work and travel may be required for event support.
• Any other duties as required.

Occupational Requirement
The candidate must have an active Christian faith. By virtue of the job’s involvement in faith-sensitive work under Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010, the post-holder must be an active Christian with a genuine personal faith in Jesus, grounded in Scripture and reflected in their everyday life.

Experience (Essential):

• Have experience in a church/charity or professional environment.
• Strong understanding of and commitment to the Foundation’s mission, with an understanding of the Church scene.
• A genuine passion for advancing the gospel through the global Church, with a commitment to supporting both Christian givers and churches and charities.
• The ability to manage multiple tasks and deadlines simultaneously.
• High attention to detail and accurate.
• Highly administrative and customer service focused.
• Demonstrated creativity and the ability to translate ideas visually, demonstrated via portfolios, academic work, or volunteer projects.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team environment, with strong interpersonal skills.
• Professional in appearance and a desire to constantly improve and grow.
• Willingness to be flexible in working hours with occasional travel and overnight stays.

Experience (Desirable but not required):

• Some experience supporting events.
• Administrative and customer service experience.
• Some experience producing content creation across print and digital formats.
• Additional language.
• Experience using design software e.g. Adobe and Canva.

Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor's degree preferred or equivalent experience (Essential). We welcome applications from graduates who are eager to learn and develop in the role.
• Technical Skills: Familiarity with content creation software, CRM systems, and email marketing software (Desirable).

Benefits

• This is a full-time position (Monday-Friday)
• Start as soon as possible.
• This role is offered on a 12-month fixed-term contract, with the potential to become permanent subject to performance and business needs.
• Salary £27K-£30k depending on previous experience.
• Holiday entitlement is 20 days pro rata, per annum (plus bank and statutory holidays and 3 days Christmas closing).
• Pension contributions via auto-enrolment to NEST.
• Faith-based culture: Supportive Christian workplace with prayer, devotions, and spiritual development.