What does it take to keep a charity like ours running? What sits behind every support call answered, every research database accessed, every fundraising campaign delivered? Infrastructure. And the people who build, protect and evolve it.
As a Senior Infrastructure Engineer, you'll play a central role in shaping, operating and maintaining our predominantly Microsoft cloud environment — keeping it strong, secure and ready for what comes next. Reporting to the Infrastructure Services Manager, you'll support, maintain and enhance our enterprise infrastructure across Azure cloud, Microsoft 365, identity, endpoint, network and core platform services.
You'll lead on complex incidents, drive root-cause analysis, and bring the kind of calm, expert thinking that keeps services running and colleagues confident. This is a hands-on, cloud-first role with real scope to influence how we design, govern and optimise cloud services and our infrastructure for the long term.
This role would particularly suit someone who has moved beyond traditional, on-prem infrastructure into operational Azure and Microsoft 365 engineering and is confident owning cloud platforms end to end.
This is a 12 month fixed term contract.
About you:
You're an experienced infrastructure professional who brings both depth of technical knowledge and the mindset of a trusted colleague. You understand that the work you do has real consequences for real people, and that motivates you to get things right. You're equally comfortable diving into a complex incident at pace and stepping back to think about how we build more resilient, secure and cost-effective cloud services over time.
You take security seriously, communicate with clarity across technical and non-technical audiences, and you thrive in environments where collaboration and accountability go hand in hand. You're someone who keeps learning, shares what you know, and makes the team around you better.
You'll have:
- Proven, demonstrable experience in Microsoft cloud technologies, including in-depth hands-on Azure experience (cloud platforms, virtual compute, storage, networking and the governance principles that keep it all accountable).
- Experience administering and optimising Microsoft 365 services, including identity, security and collaboration tooling.
- A grounding in enterprise infrastructure — servers, directory services, hybrid identity — and the hands-on experience to back it up.
- Experience managing and supporting Disaster Recovery services to address continuity of vital business functions.
- A security-first mindset, with practical knowledge of MFA, conditional access, privileged access management and vulnerability remediation.
- Proven networking foundations across WAN, VPN, firewalling and secure remote access.
- The discipline to work within ITSM frameworks and the rigour to maintain accurate configuration and asset data.
- Experience working alongside a Managed Service Provider as part of an augmented team, including managing service quality and accountability.
- A track record of producing documentation that works for diverse audiences — runbooks, procedures, service improvement write-ups.
- Genuine curiosity about the infrastructure landscape and a commitment to staying sharp as it evolves.
What you'll focus on:
- Owning, evolving and maintaining our hybrid (predominantly Microsoft cloud platform) infrastructure — secure, stable and performing, day in, day out, and under pressure when it counts.
- Owning complex incidents from first response through to root-cause analysis and lasting fixes.
- Working shoulder-to-shoulder with our Security team to embed good practice across everything we build and run.
- Helping us get more from what we have — through cost optimisation, service rationalisation and smarter configuration.
- Being a dependable partner to suppliers and managed service providers, holding them to the standard our users deserve.
- Championing modern identity protection across the organisation.
- Bringing energy and expertise to a team that genuinely wants to do good work together.
The infrastructure you build here will help us reach more people living with dementia, more quickly, more reliably. If you're ready to bring your infrastructure skills and wider technology expertise to a role with real purpose, we'd love to hear from you.
Important Dates
- Application deadline is 23:59 on Sunday 31st May 2026
- Interviews begin week commencing: 8th June 2026
About Alzheimer's Society
Dementia is the UK's biggest killer. One in three people born in the UK today will develop dementia in their lifetime.
At Alzheimer's Society, we're the UK's leading dementia charity and the only one to tackle all aspects of dementia by giving help and hope to people living with dementia today and in the future. We give vital support to people facing the most frightening times of their lives, while also funding groundbreaking research and campaigning to make dementia the priority it should be.
Together with our supporters, we're working towards a world where dementia no longer devastates lives.
Our values make sure that our focus is clear for the challenges and opportunities ahead and remind us of what we all stand for.
Our commitment to Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
We need to ensure the voices around our table better reflect and understand the communities we exist to serve. We strongly encourage individuals to apply who have a disability, impairment or health condition or individuals who identify as Black, Asian or from another minority ethnic background, as these groups are currently under-represented at Alzheimer's Society.
We want everyone we work with, as a colleague, volunteer, supporter, or someone we support, to feel included and that they belong at Alzheimer's Society.
Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy here along with our internal employee forum and Employee Lived Experience network groups help us promote inclusion and belonging, becoming an engaged and inclusive organisation for all our people.
Our hiring process
During your recruitment process we want to make sure that you bring your whole self and can be at your best. We are working hard to ensure our recruitment process is as inclusive as possible, so please do inform us of your experience and anything you think we could do better by completing our candidate survey when you apply. Please also contact Alzheimer's Society Talent Acquisition Team via [email protected] for application support or any adjustments you might need.
To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed. We recognise the benefits of AI, but if you're considering using it to submit your application, we encourage you to reflect on the value it truly adds. AI tools often lack the personal touch and authenticity that set candidates apart. We want to hear your unique perspective, experiences, and skills, so we encourage you to showcase them in your own voice.
We try to avoid closing roles early where possible, however if we receive a high volume of applications, we may close earlier than the advertised closing date. Should this occur, we will aim to provide you with at least 48 hours' notice.
We are committed to safer recruitment and ensuring the welfare of those we work with, due to the nature of some of our roles, we might need to carry out a Criminal Record Check at the relevant level. You can read more information via our Website.
Giving back to you
Our employees work hard every day to make a true difference in people's lives. We are proud to support them with a range of benefits, recognition and many options for working agilely, all contributing to a strong work life balance. We also have various learning programmes to support you in your development and help you grow to realise your potential and shape a career with Alzheimer's Society.
You can also visit our Working for Us pages, which give you more information about what it's like to be an employee at the Society.
Today, 12 children and young people will be diagnosed with cancer. We’ll stop at nothing to make sure they get the right care and support at the right time.
- Directorate: Innovation, Policy & Systems Change
- Reporting into: Associate Director of Research, Learning and Systems Change
- Colleagues reporting into role: No direct reports at present. However, coaching and managing of volunteers and/or consultants is expected.
- Location: You can be home-based anywhere in the UK, with travel for meetings. You can also choose to work from our Bristol or London offices.
- Closing date: Monday 8 June at 12 midday
- Interview dates: Monday 15 June and Tuesday 16 June (please tell us in your application if you cannot attend interview on one of these days)
Change lives in a life-changing career
When a child or young person is diagnosed with cancer, their whole world can feel like it’s falling apart. Independence is taken and confidence is stolen. Stability no longer exists. The future suddenly feels uncertain.
The impact of cancer on young lives is more than medical. And that impact can be felt by entire family. That’s why we exist. Our specialist social workers help children and young people with cancer and their families navigate the emotional and practical impact of cancer.
We remove barriers, solve problems and prioritise well-being. And we stop at nothing to make their voices heard and their unique needs understood, so they can get the right care and support at the right time.
About the role
We’re looking for a Head of Research & Evidence to join our ambitious Research, Learning & Systems Change Team.
Young Lives vs Cancer has a strong and growing commitment to changing the system for children and young people with cancer, and their loved ones. Our North Star vision and Time is Now Strategy focus on influencing how the wider system works – from services and policy to practice on the ground – so that families get the support they need.
The Head of Research and Evidence sits in the Research, Learning & Systems Change team, within our Innovation, Policy & Systems Change Directorate. The role is responsible for ensuring our work is grounded in strong, credible and useful evidence, and that learning is actively used to shape decisions, practice and change across the system.
This is a leadership role within a small but ambitious team. You will set direction and provide thought leadership, but you will also be hands on – designing, commissioning, managing and using research alongside colleagues and partners.
Building trusted relationships and using evidence to influence thinking and action are central. You will work with colleagues, children and young people, families, and partner organisations (such as the North Star Cancer Collective) to learn, strengthen credibility and create change.
This role is subject to a Criminal Record Check. In the event of a successful application, a Basic Criminal Record Check will be completed. A previous conviction is not necessarily a barrier to employment. We encourage qualified applicants to apply, and we will consider each case individually.
What will I be doing?
No two days are the same at Young Lives vs Cancer. So, summarising your ‘day to day’ isn’t easy. You’ll work as part of a strong internal team, collaborating closely with colleagues across the organisation and with key external partners to generate, use and apply evidence that supports learning, influence and system change. Here are some of the main things you’ll be doing, but you’ll find more details in the job description and pack:
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You’ll be setting the direction for research and learning, leading a clear and purposeful research programme focused on the psychosocial experiences of children and young people with cancer. You’ll ensure research is high‑quality, ethical and impactful, including commissioning work with partners and contributing to research funding bids.
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You’ll be understanding needs and experiences to grow a strong, credible evidence base, building and using robust evidence on need, inequality, impact and progress to inform strategy, services, policy and system change. You’ll ensure children, young people and families meaningfully shape research and that insight is shared in clear, practical ways.
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You’ll be providing system insight and leadership, analysing how the system works, identifying trends and pressures, and using evidence to guide where change is most needed. You’ll build trusted relationships across the voluntary sector, NHS and research community, sharing learning and strengthening our credibility and influence.
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You’ll be turning learning into action and influence, helping teams apply research to real‑world practice and supporting testing, learning and improvement over time. You’ll put feedback and learning loops in place and assess how research‑informed change is affecting practice and outcomes.
What do I need?
Diverse perspectives and unique skill sets are at the heart of Young Lives vs Cancer. If you're passionate about making a positive impact and eager to learn, we encourage you to apply, even if you don't meet the criteria and person specification fully. Your potential is what matters most to us, and we’re committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive work environment to help you develop.
The key skills we’re looking for in this role are:
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Experience leading and delivering research, including setting direction, choosing methods, commissioning or carrying out research, analysing data, and ensuring high quality and ethical practice.
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Strong research and analytical skills, with confidence working with both qualitative and quantitative data and evidence, and turning insight into practical action.
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Experience using evidence to support change, such as shaping strategy, influencing policy, improving services or supporting system change.
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Experience working across organisations, building trusted relationships with colleagues, partners, and where appropriate, children, young people and families.
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Ability to communicate complex research clearly and accessibly to different audiences, in writing and in conversation.
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A collaborative way of working, with strong people skills, curiosity and a learning mindset, and a clear commitment to equity, inclusion and anti‑oppressive practice.
What will I gain?
For people to reach their full potential, they need the right environment. As a member of Team Young Lives, you’ll be made to feel supported, valued and appreciated. Here’s how we do it:
- Flexible working: we’re open to working hours outside of 9 - 5 and we can talk through your flexibility requirements at interview stage
- Well-being, Thinking & Growth Days: four days a year to to step back from the day-to-day and focus on your own learning and development
- Generous annual leave allowance
- Great family/caring leave entitlements
- Enhanced pension
- Access to our employee savings scheme
To find out more about our benefits package, have a look on our website.
Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging
At Young Lives vs Cancer, we recognise that opportunities for too many people remain a condition of their sex, ethnicity, class, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation – or a combination. This has never been acceptable to us as an organisation. We don’t just accept difference, we value it, celebrate it, nurture it and we thrive because of it.
We’re on a journey to be reflective of the diverse children, young people and families we support. We know we aren’t there yet, and we’re passionately committed to taking actions and making changes to be a truly diverse, inclusive and equitable organisation. This includes taking anti-oppressive action and removing barriers in our recruitment practices. Our Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Belonging strategy will tell you more.
To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed. We recognise the benefits of AI, but if you're considering using it to submit your application, we encourage you to reflect on the value AI adds. AI tools often lack the personal touch and authenticity that set candidates apart. We want to hear your unique perspective, experiences, and skills, so we encourage you to tell us about your skills and experiences in your own voice.
Accessibility
We’re committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we’ll always aim to be as accommodating as possible. Please let us know in your application form of any adjustments or access requirements we could make to help you with the application process and interview.
To hear more about this role, please sign up to one of our informal drop in sessions taking place at 12:30pm on Tuesday 26th May and 17:30pm on Monday 01st June.
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