Research manager jobs

The Youth Endowment Fund

Senior Research Manager (SRM)- Youth Justice

Reports to: Head of Guidance and Policy 

Salary: £54,320 

Contract: 13-month maternity cover (fixed term contract) 

Location: Central London, hybrid* (see p.6) 

Closing date for applications: 9pm Monday 6th July 

  Interview dates: 22nd and 23rd July

About the Youth Endowment Fund 

We’re here to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence. We do this by finding out what works and building a movement to put this knowledge into practice. 

Violence continues to shape the lives of too many teenage children. In the past year, nearly one in five said they had been a victim, one in eight admitted to carrying out violence themselves, and half told us they had witnessed violence being committed against someone else. This violence takes many forms— from physical and sexual assault to robbery and threats with weapons. And the consequences are often severe. Nearly three in ten victims, equivalent to 5% of all teenage children in England and Wales, needed medical treatment from a doctor or a hospital. 

At the Youth Endowment Fund, we work to prevent this violence. To do this, we aim to build the evidence base on what works, and then use this to change policy and practice.

In the first instance, this means producing strong, relevant evidence through research, data analysis and insights into young people’s lives. But evidence on its own isn’t enough. We must use this evidence to promote real change in day-to-day practice and ambitious system reform to better protect children.

About the role  

This role is a hugely exciting opportunity to change practice and policy in the Youth Justice sector. Using the vast body of evidence YEF has compiled (including four new research projects that are currently underway), the Senior Research Manager (SRM) for Youth Justice will spend the year writing two reports: 

1. A Practice Guidance Report (publishing in May 2027). 
2. A System Guidance Report (publishing in September 2027). 

Practice Guidance Report 

The Practice Guidance Report will provide 5-8 evidence-based recommendations on how individual Youth Justice Services can prevent children’s involvement in violence. It will be similar in style and approach to previous YEF Practice Guidance in other sectors (such as the education practice guidance, and youth sector practice guidance report). It will likely recommend a range of evidence-based strategies including:

• The importance of commissioning evidence-based interventions (detailed in the YEF Toolkit). 

• How to meet the health needs of children in the Youth Justice System. 

• How to respond to serious violence and weapons carrying. 

• How to support the sentencing process. 

• How to support children in and after custody.

• How to ensure effective diversion takes place. 

The SRM for Youth Justice will lead the development and writing of these recommendations.

System Guidance Report 

Targeted at policy makers and system leaders (including national government and the inspectorate) this guidance report will make 5-8 policy recommendations on how the Youth Justice sector can be reformed to better protect children from involvement in violence. While the practice guidance will focus on day-to-day changes that Youth Justice services can make, the system guidance will focus on how the system itself should be changed to make it easier for Youth Justice services to do ‘what works’. It will be similar in style to the education system guidance. It will likely recommend a range of evidence-based reforms, including: 

• How to use funding, training and inspection to improve the provision of evidence-based interventions in the Youth Justice System.

• How to ensure that other agencies and sectors (such as health and education) effectively collaborate with Youth Justice Services. 

• How to improve responses to the most vulnerable children and young people, and how to improve sentencing, custody and resettlement.

The SRM for Youth Justice will also lead the development and writing of these recommendations. 

Both guidance reports will include as a priority recommendations that will reduce the racial disproportionality currently evident in the Youth Justice System, and you will work closely with a Race Equity Advisor who will play a vital role as a critical friend.

You will also be supported by a brilliant internal YEF Youth Justice Change Team (former Youth Justice practitioners who work within YEF to change practice and policy across the sector), in addition to external expert input from the leading sector experts. This will include liaising closely with the Ministry of Justice in producing both reports. You will also be able to draw from the practice and system guidance reports that YEF has already produced on diversion.

This role is a unique opportunity to change the Youth Justice System and YEF will invest significant resource in making the recommendations that you write happen. For instance, we published our Education System Guidance Report in May 2025. Three of the eight recommendations included in it have already been enacted. We intend to push for practice and system change at pace and will use the work you produce to do so.

The Senior Research Manager will be part of YEF’s Research team. The Research team is at the heart of our efforts to learn what works and put it into practice. We do this by developing the YEF’s funding strategy and creating free, highly accessible research summaries and actionable recommendations for policy makers, commissioners and practitioners. We’re a high-performing team which values intellectual rigour and getting to the truth, compassion for children, ambition about what we can achieve and humility about what we know. We love to discuss the latest developments in research methods, but we’re not just interested in research for its own sake. We want research to lead to actual changes in outcomes for children. 

Key responsibilities 

You’ll... 

• Write a practice guidance report for the Youth Justice Sector. This will use the best available evidence (including a range of research that YEF has funded, commissioned, and synthesised) to provide evidence-based recommendations to Youth Justice Services on how to prevent children’s involvement in violence. You will work closely with the internal YEF Youth Justice Change Team, an external expert panel and the Ministry of Justice to produce high quality guidance.

• Write a system guidance report for the Youth Justice Sector. This will use the best available evidence (including a range of research that YEF has funded, commissioned, and synthesised) to provide evidence-based recommendations to Youth Justice policy makers and system leaders on how the sector can best protect children from involvement in violence.You will work closely with the internal YEF Youth Justice Change Team, an external expert panel and the Ministry of Justice to produce high quality guidance.

• Become the YEF’s expert on Youth Justice. You’ll make sure we understand the key issues, stay on top of the latest research and are connected to the right people. 

• Read, comment on, and support the publication of four research projects focused on the Youth Justice system concluding in late 2026.These projects, which are currently underway, are reviews of current practice that focus on: Youth Justice responses to serious violence, VAWG and weapons; a review of how community sentences and court orders are used for children involved in violence; a review of custody aftercare and resettlement programmes for children and young adults; and a review of whether the youth justice system is currently meeting the health needs of children within it. Alongside YEF’s existing research (particularly the YEF Toolkit), these reviews will support the development of guidance.

• Develop great relationships with experts and represent YEF in external meetings and events. You’ll promote evidence-based policy and practice by speaking at conferences and events. 

• Work with our Change Team to produce resources and accessible summaries for Youth Justice colleagues on the evidence. This will also include supporting the Youth Justice change team in producing a self-assessment tool based on your practice guidance report.

About you 

You are this sort of person: 

• You want to play a significant part in reducing the level of violence affecting children and young people. You care about having an impact. This might mean you’ve worked directly with young people at risk of becoming involved in crime, for organisations that fund or deliver relevant programmes, or have conducted research on this topic. 

• You share our belief that an evidence-based approach is our best hope of 

preventing violence. You’re fascinated by research, but you’re not just interested in research for its own sake. You want to achieve actual changes in outcomes for children. 

• You know a lot about Youth Justice. You know the key ideas and debates, recent policy developments and key people. You’re comfortable talking about Youth Justice with experts. There are many ways to acquire this knowledge. You might have worked in Youth Justice, in associated organisations, or learnt about it during a degree. 

• You take ownership of your work. You demonstrate ownership and agency and can take the leading role on a project. You can take broad objectives and deliver a concrete workplan to make them happen.

• You’re a confident reader of research and have strong critical appraisal skills. You know when research can be trusted and when it can’t and can confidently articulate your views on the strength of research. You might have gained this expertise through your academic studies, research or professional experience. 

• You have at least three years’ experience working in a role that required you to think about research. This could include a range of roles in policy, academia, funding or practice. 

• You write in a way that people easily understand. You have that rare skill of writing in plain English. You have experience of translating complex research findings into plain writing that everyone can understand. 

• You have excellent project and time management skills. You can work independently, quickly and to a high standard.

• You are good with people. You’re comfortable working with a wide range of people, including senior academics and other research experts, children and their families, practitioners and policy makers. You’re able to provide constructive challenge when required. You care more that good things happen than who gets the credit. You support your colleagues to produce excellent work. 

• You learn fast but remain humble. You like learning. You’re very good at synthesising information. You know how much you don't know and that you can always learn more. 

• You’re committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. You believe and act in a way that celebrates and encourages a range of experiences, views and values.

While it’s not a criterion, we’re especially interested to hear from applicants 

who have lived experience of youth violence. 

It’s also important to us that the people we hire do not discriminate. We believe in being inclusive and giving everyone an equal chance to succeed. Applications are welcome from all regardless of age, sex, gender identity, disability, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, race, sexual orientation, transgender status or socio-economic background. 

Additional benefits include 

£1,000 professional development budget annually, 28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays, four half days for volunteering activities. 

Hybrid working details 

The office is based in Central London. Those living in and around London are expected to be in the office a minimum of 2 days per week. If you live outside of London and work remotely, you’ll be expected to work from the London office 2 days per month.

To apply: 

To apply, please send a CV, cover letter and the monitoring form via our application page by 9:00 pm Monday 6th July.  

When applying for this role, ensure you complete our Monitoring Form and attach your CV. Additionally, please submit a supporting statement that answers the following questions. Your response to each question should be no longer than 400 words: 

1. Why do you want the job? 
2. Can you give an example where you’ve had to summarise evidence on a specific topic that was highly contested? How did you manage the process and communicate the result? 
3. Please provide an overview of your experience in relation to Youth Justice and explain why this experience makes you a good fit for this role. 

You will also be required to provide proof of your eligibility to work in the UK. As part of our commitment to flexible working, we will consider a range of options for the successful applicant. All options can be discussed at interview stage. 

Interview process 

Interviews will take place on 22nd and 23rd of July.  

There will be a task to prepare for in advance. 

Personal data 

Your personal data will be shared for the purposes of the recruitment exercise. This includes our HR team, interviewers (who may include other partners in the project and independent advisors), relevant team managers and our IT service provider if access to the data is necessary for performance of their roles. We do not share your data with other third parties, unless your application for employment is successful and we make you an offer of employment. We will then share your data with former employers to obtain references for you. We do not transfer your data outside the European Economic Area. 

This is a hands-on role that moves between two registers: structured qualitative research with proper analytical underpinning, and fast-turnaround reactive policy work. You will need to be genuinely comfortable in both able to run a multi-month thematic publication and turn around a tight briefing or consultation response within 48-72 hours when a policy window opens.

The role will lead The Difference's qualitative research and insight function, including research workstreams tied to the Difference Schools Partnership's annual thematic priorities, and our Harmful and Abusive Behaviours (HaB) workstream convening a sector council to build a shared framework for how schools understand and respond to peer-on-peer harm. You will produce briefings, evidence submissions and publications, manage external research partners, and work with the CEO, Head of Policy and Communications team to launch research with real impact. The role reports to the Head of Policy and works closely with colleagues across Strategy, Research and Programmes.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead The Difference's qualitative research and insight function, running research workstreams tied to annual DSP thematic priorities and emerging strands on MAT inclusion and LA working
• Design and deliver qualitative research with schools, MATs and local authorities interviews, focus groups, school visits and thematic analysis  translating findings into evidence and policy recommendations
• Lead the Harmful and Abusive Behaviours research workstream, convening a sector council, producing briefing material and managing the route from convening to publication
• Produce timely, citable evidence for policy influence  including drafting briefings, consultation responses and evidence submissions on fast turnaround
• Project manage publication cycles from scoping through to launch, working with coalition and media partners to maximise reach and tracking policy traction post-launch
• Brief, manage and integrate the outputs of external research partners where commissioned (e.g. FFT Datalab, Pro Bono Economics)
• Capture and develop case studies from DSP schools and the wider Difference network

About The Difference

• Every day, the equivalent of 5,500 children are suspended from England's schools, doubling their likelihood of being NEET by 24. The Difference is a young education charity founded to change this story through whole school inclusion. We train school leaders, carry out our own research, and turn frontline insights into policy recommendations lobbying Ofsted and the Department for Education to improve funding and support for inclusion. Our vision is to see lost learning falling nationally by 2030.

About You

Essential

• Dual capability across reactive and structured research : comfortable producing tight briefings on a 48–72 hour turnaround and running multi-month qualitative publications
• Experience in education research, policy research or applied social research, with examples of published, commissioned or internally-influential work
• Strong qualitative research skills : interview and focus group design, thematic coding, framework development, synthesis across multiple sources
• Persuasive writing for mixed audiences : able to write clearly and concisely for policymakers, school leaders, the press and the sector, and comfortable ghost-writing for senior colleagues
• Project management discipline : able to run multiple workstreams in parallel, manage your own deadlines, and keep colleagues and external partners on track
• Comfortable working at pace in a fast-moving environment where priorities shift as policy windows open and close : self-directed, flexible and able to make good judgement calls under pressure
• Shared values with The Difference and personal commitment to improving life outcomes for young people

Desired

• Strong working understanding of UK education policy, particularly around inclusion, exclusion, SEND, accountability and school improvement
• Confident data literacy and basic quantitative analysis : comfortable interrogating population-level datasets and translating findings into accessible policy language
• Understanding of why language matters when writing about behaviour, exclusion and vulnerability, and the ability to frame behaviour as a signal of unmet need consistently across all work
• Lived experience or insight into the school experiences of marginalised young people
• Experience of working in or with schools, multi-academy trusts or local authorities
• Existing relationships in education research, policy or sector organisations

Please see the attached Job Description for full role details and person specification.

We are committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups in the charity sector. As part of our commitment to fairer recruitment, all applications will be assessed with names and protected characteristics redacted.

Thank you for your interest in this role!

Greenwich Hospital is the lead charitable funding organisation for the Royal Navy and wider Royal Navy Community. As such, we are able to facilitate the identification of needs and the setting of strategic priorities, build capacity, deliver significant impact and encourage enhanced collaboration within the Naval charity sector.

We have undertaken significant reform in order to generate increased income for grant making – which has risen from £5m in 2023 to £10m in 2026.

Part of this revision has been the implementation of a new grants strategy in 2024, which seeks in particular to evidence need in order to guide the current and future funding of charitable support, with the expansion of our proactive and preventative funding to support education, young people and families. Our grants now encompass more preventative and wellbeing-enhancing education delivery not covered by public funding. 

Following a review of our education and employment funding strategies, we are now focussing on widening our funding support beyond the longstanding bursary scheme for the Royal Hospital School. We are funding new educational programmes (such as free tutoring support) and developmental extra-curricular programmes with varied activities for children in order to enhance social mobility, compensate for the disadvantages of service life and enhance retention in service. This is undertaken in partnership with the Naval Children’s Charity, Royal Naval Sailing Association and Andrew Simpson Foundation. These funding streams also include increased focus on supporting partners of serving personnel with life opportunities and employability programmes.

Engaging with the research community to fill knowledge gaps has been key to the identification and balancing of current against future need, enabling accurate financial forecasting and income generation. We have recently completed our first long-term study of the welfare needs of the RN/RM community with granular demographic and qualitative data running through to 2040, and have now developed a sustainable funding strategy out to then.  

This work has been led and overseen by our current Research and Education Grants Manager over the last two years. She will be going on maternity leave in mid-September, so we seek to recruit maternity cover for a fixed-term period of 14 months to join our charity team of four. The expected start date will be the beginning of September, but we hope the successful candidate will be able to meet with the current Manager occasionally before then.

Working alongside strategic partners, we will keep our grant priorities under regular review and adjust according to evidenced need. The Research and Education Grants Manager plays a significant role in this life enhancing work.

It is expected that the current Research and Education Grants Manager will return to work, therefore this maternity cover role will be made redundant at the expiry of its term.

JOB DESCRIPTION AND PERSON SPECIFICATION:

RESPONSIBILITIES

· Assist in the delivery of GH’s charitable output to RN/RM beneficiaries in accordance with the Hospital’s objectives, governing legislation, policies and budgets.

· Help shape GH’s charitable work in education and the Life Opportunities programme. This will include direct delivery of support and delivery with/through others in order to ensure high impact and effectiveness. This will also include the development of new projects and programmes together with funding strategies to tackle unmet need.

· Strengthen current charity partnerships and establish new ones.

· Strengthen and assure impact monitoring and reporting across the applied grants, using best practice in current research methodology.

· Coordinate available research to identify gaps and focus GH spend.

KEY TASKS

1. In consultation with the Director of Grants and Finance staff, commission, track and manage the Hospital’s Education and Life Opportunities grants programme and budget, making sure it keeps within approved limits, reflects agreed payment schedules, and ensures the budget is spent in year or agreed as part of a roll over plan.

2. Oversee a portfolio of grants at various stages of the grant life cycle, including assessment of new applications, issuing Grant Agreements and managing awarded grants, applying established policies and processes. The process includes presenting grant applications and their assessment to our Charity Scrutiny Panel and Charity & Education Committee.

3. Ensure grants awards are authorised, paid and reviewed promptly.

4. Oversee and manage educational bursaries and grants, liaising and co-ordinating with the relevant educational organisations, applying established policies and processes. This includes bursaries for children attending the Royal Hospital School and university bursaries for serving personnel, working closely with the RN Learning and Development Organisation.

5. Collect, evaluate and report on the impact and effect of charitable giving and outcome of awards and, as required, collate and submit appropriate data and information to partner organisations.

6. Undertake the co-ordination and administration of cross-charity groups and meetings chaired and hosted by GH; represent GH in discussions and negotiations with stakeholders and other charitable partners and beneficiaries and represent GH at internal and external meetings.

7. Work alongside the Director of Grants to develop and implement GH’s new funding stream focused on supporting the naval charity sector in strengthening organisational capacity building and implementing effective impact measurement frameworks.  

8. Identify, co-ordinate and where necessary scope commissioning of new research to inform present and future grants planning and spend, liaising with FiMT, MoD, SCiP Alliance and other appropriate bodies.

9. Work with the Communications Manager to ensure suitable publicity is given to GH charity activity internally, on the GH website and social media, in national publications and by grant recipients.

10. Assist the Director of Grants in the production of impact reporting to inform the GH Advisory Board and Charity & Education Committee.

11. Ensure and promote adherence to good charity governance practice; assist in the periodic review of funding guidelines/ policies and delivery.

12. Develop and apply good understanding of RN ethos, personnel and beneficiaries.

13. Assist in the development and delivery of a Communications Strategy for the Hospital’s charitable activities including website and social media.

14. Draft appropriate contributions to the Annual Review/Impact Report.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Expertise and experience

1. In-depth and evidenced knowledge and experience of charitable and financial support to beneficiary groups; ability to empathise with and advocate imaginatively on behalf of beneficiaries.

2. Knowledge and experience in grant-making processes.

3. Evidence of working effectively in co-operation with other charities and organisations.

4. Evidenced ability to imagine and develop vision into designed, costed, project-managed and delivered programmes.

5. Understanding of the research landscape and ability to make it work for GH.

6. Familiar with introducing new, improved processes and developing joint working and grant giving mechanisms.

7. Excellent proven communication skills, written and oral.

8. Stakeholder management skills are essential; proven ability to develop creative and sustained collaborative relationships; ability to navigate multiple stakeholders who sometimes may have entrenched positions.

9. Familiarity with the Royal Navy and the Service charity sector would be an advantage but is not essential. Empathy with the military community essential.

10. Confident using IT including Microsoft Office, charity management and HR software; knowledge of a grants or other CRM would be desirable.

Personal qualities

· Adherence to GH’s values.

· Integrity, honesty and professionalism at all times.

· A strong ambassador with the ability to make internal and external contacts.

· Able to treat all people with respect and dignity.

· Willing to take responsibility for actions and remain accountable.

· A team player.

REPORTING TO Director of Grants

This job description is not contractual. Tasks may change over time by negotiation with the postholder.

Clinical Research Manager

The Clinical Research Manager will play a key role in advancing ARUK’s drug prioritisation activities as part of the Clinical Accelerator Programme. Working closely with the Senior Clinical Research Manager, this role will drive the identification, evaluation, and progression of high-potential drug candidates toward clinical trials, delivering tangible impact for people affected by dementia.

This role is vital in advancing Alzheimer’s Research UK’s research objectives and organisational strategy and will be key to delivering impact for people affected by dementia. The Clinical Research Manager will manage the planning and delivery of ARUK’s drug prioritisation activities working collaboratively with external stakeholders and various departments across the organisation, including the wider Research, Fundraising and Policy, Communications and Involvement Teams to develop the programme and ensure successful delivery and measurable impact.

This role sits within the Clinical Research team in the Research Directorate, an ambitious, proactive and growing team that is driving forward initiatives to bring more clinical trials to the UK for people living with or likely to develop dementia. With the first generation of disease modifying treatments recently approved, this is an exceptional opportunity for an individual with strong research experience who understands the clinical research environment in the UK, to contribute to groundbreaking work in dementia research, aligning with and advancing on the Government's new investment initiatives in the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals.

Key Responsibilities:

1. ARUK Drug Prioritisation Programme Delivery and Development

· Lead on the identification of therapies with the potential to be prioritised for clinical trials in Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia through literature search and communication with the clinical research community and key external partners, with support from the Senior Clinical Research Manager.

· Lead the development and drafting of high-quality scientific dossiers that directly inform prioritisation decisions and progression of drug candidates.

· Lead the translation of recommendations from external advisory panels into actionable next steps.

· Work with the Senior Clinical Research Manager and the Senior Clinical Programmes Operations Officer to plan drug prioritisation activities, including meeting logistics, panel engagement, feedback and to track and evaluate progress.

· Identify, evaluate, and drive forward high-impact opportunities for drug prioritisation and clinical development in consultation with Partnerships, Evidence and Funding teams.

· Design and embed scalable processes to proactively monitor the global drug development landscape, utilising databases, conference intelligence, and literature to curate a dynamic intelligence log that tracks therapeutic candidates, development progress, and emerging opportunities across industry and academia.

2. Driving the advancement of the Clinical Accelerator Programme and delivery of key components of its strategy

· Drive planning and implementation of new activities as relevant to continually develop and advance the clinical research strategy

· Collaborate in mapping the clinical research ecosystem, identifying gaps in research and recommending actions to address them.

· Keep abreast of developments and trends in dementia clinical research to influence ARUK's strategies and decisions.

· Support and continuously strengthen internal reporting mechanisms, ensuring timely, high-quality updates to Senior Leadership and relevant boards that enable effective governance, informed decision-making, and strong organisational coordination

· Work closely with the Research Involvement Manager to integrate best practices in involvement and co-production to ensure our research is relevant for and supported by people affected by dementia

· Ensure effective information-sharing across internal stakeholders, including Research, Fundraising, Finance, Policy, Communications and Involvement teams, to maximise the visibility, uptake and strategic use of Clinical Accelerator Programme outputs.

· Aid in the planning, production, and communication of clinical research-related content with the ARUK Communications and Fundraising teams.

3. Strengthening Relationships with External Stakeholders

· Foster and nurture relationships with clinical leaders and research funders in the UK to build the profile of ARUK’s clinical research and help us to accelerate research towards a cure.

· Work closely with our Research Partnerships manager to maintain and build partnerships that further our clinical research objectives.

· Support the Senior Clinical Research Manager and Head of Clinical Research in enhancing ARUK’s external profile through active participation in meetings and collaborations with key stakeholders.

Knowledge, skills and experience needed:

· PhD in a relevant biomedical field or equivalent experience in clinical or scientific research

· Strong ability to critically interpret and evaluate pre-clinical and clinical data

· Familiarity with the drug development process of taking a therapy from pre-clinical studies to regulatory approval.

· Excellent stakeholder management skills.

· Demonstrable commitment to collaborative and inclusive working.

· Proven experience in project management with the ability to adhere to deadlines and prioritise tasks.

· Understanding of research programme management.

· Experience or understanding of preparing scientific dossiers or evidence summaries to inform research prioritisation, funding, or strategic decision-making.

· Understanding of dementia research and funding landscapes.

· Experience working with biotech and pharmaceutical companies

· Exceptional scientific communication skills (written and verbal).

· Detail oriented

· Good IT skills.

· Commitment to ARUK’s vision, mission and values.

· Values the involvement of people with lived experience in research.

· Highly self-motivated with the ability to work across different teams and departments.

· Solution-focussed with the ability to problem solve creatively.

· Able to work independently.

· Collaborative approach with ability to build strong relationships with a range of stakeholders.

· Good communicator with the ability to tailor communications to a range of audiences.

Additional Information:

Ways of working:

As part of our Agile ways of working you will be required to work approximately 2 days a week from the office, which is subject to the requirements of the role and the business needs. Flexibility on where you work can be split between working from home and our office.

Roles that are classed as part of the Agile ways of working are not able to claim any costs for Mileage/Travel on Public Transport, Accommodation and/or Meals.  This includes when attending the office for various meetings/events.

Our Office: Our office is at 3 Riverside, Granta Park, Great Abington, Cambridge, CB21 6AD. 

Salary: Circa £46,000 per annum, plus benefits.

Please download the Vacancy Pack on our website for more information.

The closing date for applications is the 28th June 2026, with interviews being arrange once shortlisting has been completed. Please indicate in your covering letter if you are unable to attend an interview on a certain date. We would encourage you to submit your application at the earliest opportunity, as on occasion we may have to bring forward the interview date and/or the closing date based on the needs of the business. Although a possibility, this will only happen in exceptional circumstances. Please indicate in your covering letter if you are unable to attend an interview on a certain date.

We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone can be themselves and reach their full potential.  We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, particularly from those in the global majority, those with disabilities, men and those from the LGBTQIA+ community. Any offer of employment is however subject to you having the right to work in the UK.

As part of our commitment to being an inclusive employer and ensuring fairness and consistency in our selection process, we will handle your CV and application with the utmost confidentiality. Should you require any adjustments at either the application or interview stage, please contact us at via our website. 

How to apply: Please create an online account using our Online Recruitment Platform which can be accessed through our Job Vacancies page. You will be able to attach your CV to your application and track the status of your application.

About Alzheimer’s Research UK: Alzheimer's Research UK is the UK's leading dementia research charity. Our mission is to accelerate progress towards a cure.  Today 1 in 2 people will be impacted by dementia, either through caring for a loved one, developing it themselves or tragically both. But there is hope. 

• Location: Cambridge
• Salary: £39,640
• Contract period: Permanent
• Start date: As soon as possible

This is a pivotal moment to lead Fauna & Flora’s Research & Insight function as the organisation grows its global fundraising ambition and expands high-value activity across philanthropic, trusts & foundations and private sector income streams.

You will provide strategic leadership across donor intelligence, due diligence, CRM insight and analytical processes, ensuring these systems are applied with integrity, consistency and real impact across Fauna & Flora’s fundraising efforts.

Working closely with fundraising and wider organisational teams, you will develop and drive insight-led approaches, strengthening fundraising pipelines, embedding evidence-based decision-making and enabling long-term organisational growth.

In return, we offer the opportunity to work for a ground-breaking organisation at the frontline of global conservation, with a generous pension contribution, attractive leave allowance and life insurance.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who thrives on leading high-performing teams, shaping organisational practice and using insight and analysis to drive ambitious fundraising growth.

Please visit our website and download the job application pack for further details on how to apply.

The closing date for applications is Sunday, 28 June 2026. Interviews are likely to take place during the week commencing 6 July 2026.

This role is not eligible for sponsorship for a Skilled Worker Visa.

Research and insights manager

When registering to this job board you will be redirected to the online application form. Please ensure that this is completed in full in order that your application can be reviewed.

About the role

Sense has a fantastic opportunity for someone to join our team as our Research and insights manager. This is a full time, hybrid role, working 37.5 hours per week based at our offices in Kings Cross, London.

This is an exciting time to join Sense, as we develop and embed our new organisational strategy and strengthen our approach to evidence-led decision making. The role will play a central part in ensuring that insight, data and stories are brought together into a coherent, trusted and accessible evidence base, supporting learning, influencing, bold communications and decision-making across Sense and driving our purpose to break down barriers alongside disabled people with complex needs.

The successful candidate will join a team that is ambitious about using insights, lived experience and stories to drive change, alongside disabled people with complex needs. This is a pivotal role in strengthening how Sense understands what is happening for disabled people with complex needs and their families, and in ensuring that this insight consistently informs strategic decisions across the organisation, as well as providing a bedrock for our influencing work.

Key responsibilities

• Manage Sense’s research, insight and evidence work, setting clear priorities and ensuring delivery against organisational objectives.
• Line manage and develop research and insight staff (where applicable), creating a high-performing, collaborative and inclusive team, working closely with teams across social change.
• Build strong working relationships across Sense, ensuring insight and evidence informs strategy, services, influencing, fundraising and communications.
• Work with external partners, research agencies and sector bodies to strengthen Sense’s evidence base and credibility, as well as design fundable insight projects with colleagues.
• Ensure delivery of high-quality, ethical and inclusive insight, drawing on quantitative data, qualitative research and lived experience.
• Commission and manage surveys, research and evaluations through external agencies and partners, from brief development through to final outputs.
• Manage Sense’s insight, evidence and story assets, including research, surveys, evaluation findings and lived experience insight.
• Work with team members to develop and maintain systems and processes that enable insight, data and stories to be stored, accessed, shared and reused across the organisation.
• Synthesise insight from multiple sources into clear themes, narratives and messages that support strategic decision-making.
• Ensure that Sense takes a stewardship approach to storytelling, so that lived experience stories are not repeatedly extracted for individual outputs, but are cared for, contextualised and built into a growing, reusable body of organisational insight

Key skills and experience:

• Significant experience in insight, evidence, research, evaluation or learning roles, with a strong focus on how insight is used to inform organisational decision-making and social change.

• Demonstrable experience of working with lived experience insight, including gathering, analysing and applying qualitative insight in ethical, inclusive and empowering ways.

• Experience of commissioning and managing external research, surveys or evaluations through agencies or consultants, from brief development to final outputs.

• A passionate commitment to take on the barriers disabled people face in society

• A demonstrable commitment to delivering positive change in the lives of disabled people and their families. 

• Knowledge of data protection, consent and ethical standards, particularly in relation to lived experience and storytelling.

• Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills, with the ability to influence and support senior leaders and teams to use insight confidently and appropriately.

For a full Job Description and Person Specification please see the link on the left hand side.

About Sense

Sense is here to break down barriers alongside disabled people with complex needs. That's why we're committed to increasing the number of disabled people working across our organisation and creating an environment where everyone can thrive.

We actively encourage disabled people to apply for our vacancies and believe that a diverse range of perspectives, experiences and talents makes us stronger.

We know there's always more we can do to become a truly inclusive employer, and we're working together to achieve that. Join us and help create the change thousands of disabled people with complex needs and families told us they want to see: a world without limits.

If you need us to adjust our recruitment process to help you access our vacancies, then please get in touch with a member of the talent acquisition team. We are a Disability Confident Leader and commit to interviewing disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for a role. More information on this can be found here Our commitment as an employer | Sense Careers

Our Values

Our values shape the way we behave and work alongside disabled people with complex needs to break down barriers:

• We’re creating change
• We’re always learning
• We’re better together

To apply:

Please use the link below to complete your application. Managers will use your application to shortlist candidates for interview; in relation to the Personal Specification. Therefore, it is very important you complete this section thoroughly.  We would recommend that you read the candidate guidelines, job description and person specification (found at the base of this advert) before applying.

Please note to avoid disappointment, we advise you to submit your application as soon as possible as we reserve the right to close posts at any time.

Sense is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable children and adults and expects all employees to share this commitment. Therefore, all offers of employment, where appropriate, are subject to a DBS check; level dependent on the nature of the role.

For this role we particularly welcome applications from candidates from underrepresented ethnic minority backgrounds and candidates with disabilities. Sense is committed to equality of opportunity, and to promoting and celebrating the diversity of staff, volunteers and the people we work with. Everyone's contribution is valued and we ensure they're given the opportunity to realise their potential. We welcome applications from talented people from all sections of the community who share our values and belief that no one, no matter how complex their disabilities, should be isolated, left out, or unable to fulfil their potential. 

No agency submissions please: any submissions without prior authorisation from the Sense Recruitment Team will be treated as our own and as such no fee will be payable.