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Behind every research breakthrough, there is a process that makes it possible.
A conversation that helps shape an idea. A fair and thoughtful review. A decision that backs the right work at the right time.
As a Research Grants Officer, you will be part of that process.
You will help run a research funding programme that is not only efficient, but fair, inclusive and supportive. Working closely with the Research Grants Manager and colleagues across the Research and Influencing directorate, you will manage funding rounds and support a portfolio of active research projects.
You will be there from the very first question a researcher asks, through to the moment funding decisions are made, and beyond. Along the way, you will help create a positive experience for everyone involved, from early career researchers to leading experts, and the volunteers who bring lived experience into the process.
It is detailed work. But it is work that makes a real difference.
What you will do
You will be at the centre of the grants process, helping to keep things running smoothly and making sure people feel supported at every step. No two days will look exactly the same, but your focus will always be the same, helping great research happen.
In this role, you will:
- Manage grant applications from start to finish, making sure each stage runs smoothly and on time
- Be a friendly and reliable point of contact for applicants, answering questions and helping them submit strong proposals
- Coordinate peer review and lay review, bringing together expert insight and lived experience to inform funding decisions
- Prepare papers for funding panels, attend meetings and capture clear, accurate notes of what is discussed and agreed
- Share outcomes with applicants in a clear, respectful and timely way
- Support the management of funded projects, helping track progress and making sure reporting is up to date
- Build relationships with researchers, clinicians and volunteers, helping them feel valued and encouraging them to stay involved
Alongside this, you will look for ways to improve how we work. That might mean updating guidance for applicants, spotting trends in our data, or helping to shape a process that is simpler, fairer and more accessible.
You will also be part of the wider team, supporting events, responding to enquiries and stepping in to help colleagues when it matters.
About you
- You have experience in, or a strong interest in, science, health or policy, and are curious about dementia research and the difference it can make
- You build positive relationships with a wide range of people, including senior researchers, and enjoy working with others
- You communicate clearly and confidently, whether you are writing, speaking or explaining something complex in a simple way
- You are organised and reliable, with strong attention to detail and the ability to manage your time well
- You take initiative and are comfortable working independently, while knowing when to ask for input or support
- You work well as part of a team and are willing to step in and help when deadlines approach
- You care about inclusion and want to make sure the way you work is open, respectful and accessible to others
We know that people do not always apply for roles unless they meet every requirement. If this role interests you but you are not sure you tick every box, we would still encourage you to apply.
This position is offered on a fixed-term contract/secondment basis until June 2027.
Interviews for this role are provisionally scheduled to take place during the week commencing 1st 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.
Applicants must be located within 2 hours travelling distance of Cambridge City.
The Charity and Our Vision.
For over 15 years, Scotty's Little Soldiers has been supporting children and young people who have been bereaved of a parent who served in the British Armed Forces. We are about to embark on an exciting journey which will see the charity evolve to support anyone affected by a military-connected bereavement and ultimately empower a community of more than 25,000 bereaved individuals and their families by 2035.
Founded in 2010 by Nikki Scott following the death of her husband, Corporal Lee Scott, the charity currently offers a unique blend of emotional, practical, and educational support to over 750 young people.
We are proud of our vibrant, non-traditional culture, which puts the needs of bereaved children and young people at the heart of everything we do. We embrace innovative approaches, are committed to creating smiles, and believe in the power of community, resilience, and connection.
Role Mission.
To ensure that Scotty’s understands and demonstrates the impact of its work — through high-quality research, meaningful measurement, and clear reporting. You will lead the development of internal and external research projects, manage beneficiary insight gathering, and oversee the systems and frameworks we use to evaluate and share our effectiveness.
This role is central to helping us improve what we do and explain why it matters and ensuring that lived experience remains at the heart of everything we do.
The key responsibilities of this role are:
Impact Measurement
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Develop and maintain frameworks to measure the outcomes of all services and programmes.
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Ensure Success Measures (KPIs) and qualitative feedback tools are aligned to our Theory of Change.
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Work with the Families (service delivery) team to embed consistent and meaningful data collection across all services.
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Design simple, automated reporting processes to reduce manual admin and improve data use, making effective use of Scotty’s CRM.
Research & Insight
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Lead internal research projects using beneficiary data, surveys, and feedback loops.
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Scope and manage external research partnerships with academic institutions or sector bodies.
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Design and deliver surveys to beneficiaries and the wider bereaved military community
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Produce evidence to support service development, strategic decisions, influence national policy, and funding bids.
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Lead our existing advisory group (for children and young people) and establish new groups as required (e.g. for adult services).
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Ensure that lived experience remains at the heart of the charity’s focus on understanding the need.
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Ensure that Scotty’s have access to the most up to date research within the bereavement, military, Children & Young People and Family Support sectors.
Communication of Impact
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Create clear, accessible insight reports and data summaries for internal and external use
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Lead the delivery of the annual Impact Report (content, structure, coordination with teams).
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Develop quarterly insight packs for funders and stakeholders, with engaging visuals and stories.
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Work with the Outreach Squad to ensure impact is integrated into campaigns and storytelling.
Learning & Collaboration
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Act as the internal ‘voice of insight’ – bringing beneficiary perspective and data into key conversations.
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Contribute to team training on evaluation, feedback collection, and outcomes thinking.
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Participate in cross-functional planning, especially with the Service Delivery and Outreach Squads.
Policy (Light Touch)
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Track key developments in bereavement, the Armed Forces, and children, young people and families policy
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Produce brief summaries or ‘position snapshots’ where relevant to Scotty’s mission
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Build relationships with other research and impact professionals in the sector
The 30-day goals for this role are:
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Build a deep understanding of Scotty’s mission, our audience, the services we provide, and strategic direction.
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Develop a deep understanding of our current Success Measures, Impact measurements and Theory of Change.
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Reviewing research and data produced by the charity and related external research previously published.
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Understand the data structure and reporting capabilities of Salesforce (CRM).
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Understand existing commitments (e.g. funder report, impact reports etc).
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Taken ownership of our 2026 Community-wide survey (project will be handed over upon start).
The 60-day goals for this role are:
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Audit current data quality and gaps across the F-Team Programmes.
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Worked with the Families Team to develop the first adult lived experience advisory group.
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Reached out to relevant impact and research groups to introduce yourself, particularly those attached the military or bereavement charitable sectors.
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Identified 1-2 relevant conferences or forums for Scotty’s to present at.
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Build ideas, working with the Head of Service, that can help teams improve current Success Measures and Impact measurements.
The 90-day goals for this role are:
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Held at least 1 adult lived experience advisory group session.
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Created and shared the first quarterly Impact Review for internal use.
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Fully taken accountability for impact reporting and research projects within the charity and able to demonstrate a clear plan of action for the rest of the year.
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Proposed an outline for the Annual Family Feedback Survey in September.
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Start to co-ordinate the 2026 Impact Report
About You
Must-Have
Proven experience in research and impact evaluation, ideally in the charity or public sector
Strong skills in data collection, survey design, and analysis
Excellent written communication and reporting skills
Able to translate data into real-world insight
Experience of CRM databases and producing reports from them
Knowledge and experience of the principles of involving those with lived experience, including co-design and co-production
Nice-to-Have
Experience working with or around the Armed Forces community
Understanding of trauma-informed or bereavement support practices
Experience producing Impact Reports or funding insight packs
Familiarity with Salesforce or CRM data tools
Some knowledge of public policy or third sector trends
Additional Information
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The role may require occasional evening or weekend work
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Enhanced DBS check required
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Travel will be required to events and team training days
The Scotty’s Way
At Scotty’s, our personal performance is only 50% of what success looks like. Our culture is equally important. When you join our team, you sign up to The Scotty’s Way, rooted in our four core values:
Families Come First
Everyone a Supporter, Every Supporter a VIP
Love What You Do
Remember, Every Day
Our values are further supported by our four non-negotiable behaviours of Show Respect, Speak Up, Take Ownership and Actively Collaborate. We are looking for an individual who embodies these values and behaviours.
Closing date: 15th May 2026. Due to resource and time constraints, we are unfortunately unable to provide feedback for every application received and will only contact candidates shortlisted for interview.
Thank you for your interest in joining our team, we are an equal opportunities employer, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace where all employees are treated with respect and given equal opportunities for employment and advancement.
We do not discriminate based on race, colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability or any other protected characteristic.
We encourage all qualified individuals to apply for employment within our charity, and we provide a fair and inclusive recruitment process for all candidates.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
About the role
We are recruiting for a Research Participation Manager to join on a full-time, permanent contract working 35 hours per week. This is a home-based role, with occasional travel required for in-person stakeholder or team meetings.
As Research Participation Manager you will lead the operational delivery and support the strategic development of the Society’s research participation team. You will line manage and develop the Research Participation team and associated staff, overseeing programme performance and reporting, and ensuring all activity aligns with UK clinical research regulations, data governance requirements, and organisational priorities.
In this role, you will work collaboratively across the Society and with external partners. You will strengthen cross sector relationships, drive inclusive and culturally competent engagement, and enhance awareness of, and participation in, vital dementia research, particularly among underserved communities. Your role will also help to ensure the provision of high quality, safe, and compliant support for people accessing dementia clinical research opportunities.
You will provide leadership, expert guidance and robust programme management to maximise the reach, impact, and visibility of the Society’s research participation initiatives, increasing opportunities for people to become aware of, and participate in research; bringing forward the day when a dementia diagnosis no longer devastates lives.
About you
Joining us, you’ll have experience of working in clinical research, science or health sectors, with a good understanding of the processes and challenges facing the NHS. You’ll have experience of shaping and/or leading significant programmes of work with high exposure, with the ability to remain organised, prioritise effectively and meet deadlines.
Crucially, you’ll have good communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence others and build and maintain positive relationships with a range of internal and external stakeholders. You’ll be able to use your experience of leading and managing a team to inspire and motivate others, creating a positive and proactive work culture.
This position will play a vital role in helping us to end the devastation caused by dementia. To be successful you’ll need to be motivated by our cause and values, and you’ll be able to speak to people affected by dementia with emotional intelligence, empathy and compassion.
What you’ll focus on:
- Leading, line managing and developing the Research Participation team, in addition to managing allocated staff, resources and any assigned budget to ensure all agreed internal and external targets are met.
- Assessing and managing of interdependencies between internal and external stakeholders involved in the Research Participation programme.
- Ensuring all participation support plans and / or awareness raising initiatives comply with the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) rules and codes of practice.
- Developing and delivering inclusive and culturally informed initiatives that raise awareness of, and improve equitable access to, clinical research opportunities, with a particular focus on underserved and diverse communities.
- Collaborating with Communications colleagues across the Society to support wider communication activities related to research participation and public research awareness.
- Working with the Lead Research Nurse, Research and Innovation Business Manager, and Project Management Office to ensure robust programme and risk management, and to evaluate the impact of research participation activities.
- Building impactful and sustainable relationships with a range of internal and external stakeholders across the dementia clinical trials landscape, seeking opportunities to collaborate on initiatives to drive increased awareness of, and participation in, dementia clinical research.
About Alzheimer's Society - who are we and what’s our mission?
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 ground-breaking 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 part of a minority ethnic background, as these groups are currently under-represented at Alzheimer's Society.
Our hiring process
We want you to bring your whole self to the process. Applications are anonymised until interview stage, and we’re happy to support any adjustments. Share your feedback via our candidate survey when applying to help us improve. We may close early if we receive high interest (with 48 hours’ notice). Some roles may require a DBS check as part of our safer recruitment commitment. Thinking about using AI during the recruitment process? We know this can be helpful in many ways but remember to include your personal and authentic self too. Your voice and experience are what really set you apart.
Giving back to you
At Alzheimer’s Society, we value our people and take a total reward approach to pay and benefits. You’ll enjoy a generous double-matched pension scheme, 27 days’ annual leave (plus bank holidays and wellbeing days), and access to a free Health Shield Cash Plan, 24/7 EAP, Thrive mental wellbeing support, and virtual GP services. Our Society Plus platform offers exclusive discounts, wellbeing resources, and recognition schemes, while our flexible working, family-friendly policies, and life assurance provide peace of mind and work/life balance. We also offer a free Will-writing service and long service awards to recognise your ongoing commitment.