Patient Involvement and Inclusion Lead

Job overview

The post holder will be central to the development, implementation, and oversight of the Clinical Research Facility (CRF) Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) strategies for the period 2026 – 2029.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be the primary contact for researchers and other CRF staff members who wish to involve members of the public in their work or research. They will respond to enquiries of this nature and meet with researchers to discuss and understand their needs, providing expert advice on PPIE and coordinating meetings with public members. The post holder will signpost to and provide training, support, and resources to make sure researchers and staff have the skills, knowledge, and confidence to involve PPIE members at different stages of the research cycle.

The post holder will be responsible for the coordination and management of the CRF PPIE group. They will answer questions from new and existing members, organise training and events (including quarterly online group meetings), facilitate interactions between researchers, CRF staff members, and public members, and oversee the process of obtaining meaningful involvement opportunities. The post holder will be responsible for consistent communication with the CRF PPIE group and maintaining relationships via the biannual PPIE newsletter, regular emails, telephone calls, and face-to-face catchups when required. They will promote and raise the profile of the CRF, the PPIE group, and the recruitment of new members by working with the Trust Communications Team to produce high-quality promotional materials, and by working with the Trust EDI Team to participate in outreach work to engage seldom-heard communities.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The post holder will be responsible for the development and oversight of the CRF EDI working group, which also consists of public members. They will organise and chair meetings and establish a programme of staff training on core EDI topics. The post holder will be responsible for correspondence with group members and producing reports based on evaluation surveys following training and events. They will act as the first point of contact for community outreach initiatives such as the CRF’s work experience and school engagement programmes. They will respond to enquiries and coordinate work experience students' timetables, allocate their placement mentors, and liaise with schools to complete the required documentation.  They will lead on school open day and outreach events, managing the relationships between teachers and career counsellors, CRF staff, and researchers.

The post holder will be responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of all of the CRF’s PPIE and EDI activities by producing quantitative and qualitative evaluation surveys and written reports. They will sit on the CRF Management Board and provide written and verbal reports to the CRF Manager, Director, and other stakeholders.

The post holder will be responsible for developing a systematic approach to measuring the impact of PPIE and EDI activities. They will be responsible for external reporting on this to the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The post holder will maintain records of important information such as PPIE group contacts and PPIE staff contacts across King’s Health Partners (KHP) and the UK CRF Network.

The successful candidate will have experience working in a healthcare or research setting and will possess excellent communication and administrative skills. Excellent interpersonal skills and experience in organising public engagement events are also essential.

The post holder will be delegated a high level of responsibility, manage their own work and use their own initiative taking key decisions within broadly defined administrative policies, frequently without reference to the CRF Director/Management team.