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Job requirements
Essential
10 listedRequirements the employer expects applicants to meet.
- Other
Commitment to inclusivity and valuing diversity.
- Experience
Able to manage engagement projects from beginning to end, including defining objectives, designing an appropriate approach to meet these, making this happen, reporting on progress, and using the outputs to inform change.
- Experience
Experience of engaging with people and organisations about health and social care research policy and/or issues in research.
- Qualifications
Experience of engaging with people about policy issues in any sector and a strong theoretical understanding of how to do this well. This should be equivalent to at least a post-graduate diploma level of training and experience, but we recognise and welcome that you may have taken very different routes to this.
- Interpersonal skills
Able to apply insights to engage with people and organisations in a way that works for them so that you can build and maintain great relationships with stakeholders.
- Interpersonal skills
Confident to engage with people who may have different and conflicting points of view and use diplomacy and sensitivity to find a way to move forward together.
- Interpersonal skills
Proactively ask for and use feedback to inform your actions, even if it means you need to change your approach.
- Knowledge, Skills and Expertise
Good analytical and judgement skills, with the ability to apply these to independently manage competing priorities on your time and to be flexible and adaptable when needed to make these happen.
- Knowledge, Skills and Expertise
A good communicator, both in person and in writing, with the ability to convey complex information in a clear and accessible way to different audiences.
- Analytical and judgemental skills
Able to proactively find, interpret, and define information about issues and stakeholders that are important to the HRA’s work, analyse and identify what this means for the HRA, and share these insights with colleagues.
Desirable
3 listedAdditional qualities the employer would prefer.
- Experience
Experience of supporting committees or stakeholder groups, including liaising with members and writing minutes.
- Knowledge, Skills and Expertise
Understanding of health and social care research policy.
- Knowledge, Skills and Expertise
Understanding of the policy-making process, including the role of government and parliament.
Job overview
The Senior Engagement Officer helps the Health Research Authority (HRA) to make change happen. This is a key role within the Policy and Partnerships Directorate, supporting projects and engagement activities that form part of the Policy and Partnerships Directorate’s busy work plan.
Main duties of the job
- Work with colleagues develop and implement communications and engagement plans for different HRA projects, reporting on these where relevant.
- Plan and deliver events with external stakeholders and members of the HRA community, including workshop sessions and webinars, that support the HRA’s policy development and increase our influence to deliver our mission.
- Monitor issues affecting our stakeholders, and developments in the wider health and social care research environment. Share this information, showing how this impacts the HRA.
- Support collaboration with stakeholders including patients, the public and research professionals through projects and forums.
- Represent the HRA at events and meetings with stakeholders.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
This role sits within the Policy and Partnerships directorate which is made up of three teams: policy and engagement, communications and public involvement. We provide support and advice across the organisation on communicating with staff and external audiences, engaging with stakeholders and involving patients and the public in our work. To find out more and to understand the full duties of the role, please refer to the job description attached. In submitting your application with us, please note the following: We currently do not accept applications via recruitment agencies. We do not hold a sponsorship licence and are unable to offer employment under any sponsorship arrangement. Where applicants fail to demonstrate how they meet any one of the essential criteria of the person specification, the application will not be shortlisted. You will be considered based only on the information in your application form. CVs will not be considered. The HRA reserves the right to close this vacancy early should it receive a sufficient number of applications.
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Applying for this NHS job
This advert is for Senior Engagement Officer with Health Research Authority in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is listed as a Band 6 Communications officer role. The advertised salary is £39,959 - £48,117 per annum. The contract type is Permanent. The application deadline is 27 Sep 2026.
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