Public and Community Partnerships Manager

Salary: £47,389.00 - £53,301.00 per annum with progression to 56,535.00 Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits . We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you. Closing Date: 04 June 2026 The Role The NIHR aims to increase the generation and use of public health research in non-NHS settings and has made substantial investment of >£22M to Newcastle University as part of a larger £30M NIHR Research Support Service Specialist Centre for Public Health to support this. This Specialist Centre has a national remit and is hosted in the Population Health Sciences Institute at Newcastle University along with an NIHR Research Support Service Hub (RSS). Our vision is to develop the infrastructure, capacity and capability to support practitioners and researchers to carry out high quality public health research, outside the NHS, to produce robust evidence to improve population health and reduce health and care inequalities. We will achieve our aim by meeting these strategic objectives: Building capacity and capability in public health research to enable diverse communities of practitioners and researchers to design, access research funding for and deliver the high-quality research needed to generate evidence on how to influence the wider determinants of health. Working collaboratively and brokering relationships with partners nationally across NIHR infrastructure and public health systems, policy and practice including Local Authorities, Association of Directors of Public Health, Local Government Association, Academia, Office for Health Improvement & Disparities, UK Health Security Agency, voluntary and community sector organisations and members of the public. Developing and sharing best practice and resources for the design and delivery of systems for governance of public health research outside of the NHS. This is a key role in the NIHR RSS Specialist Centre for Public Health and will involve, playing a part in the development and delivery of this NIHR investment to support public health research in settings outside of the NHS. You will be responsible to the Chief Operating Officer, to the Centre Director and Deputy Directors and to stakeholders across England. The post holder will contribute to and work to realise the Centre’s Public and Community Partnership (PCP) and Research Inclusion (RI) strategic aims and objectives and will be the Centre’s first point of contact for PCP/RI. The role requires an extensive understanding, and experience of Public Involvement and Community Engagement and/or Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement; of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and ensuring that research is inclusive. This post offers an exciting opportunity to be part of this new team and to lead on key elements of the strategic direction and delivery of this new Centre. You will work with partners nationally; NIHR infrastructure including the NIHR Research Support Service (RSS) across England and the RSS network; and with external stakeholders including Local Authorities, universities, public organisations and voluntary and community sector partners. Key Accountabilities Work across the NIHR RSS nationally, through the RSS Network to support the implementation of the NIHR RSS PPIE and RI Strategies. Work collaboratively with RSS Newcastle and partners and other regional NIHR Infrastructure to develop and implement an institutional PCP Strategy, that is synergetic with others in the Region, in accordance with NIHR requirements. Adapt the national and institutional strategies to develop and implement the Centre’s Public and Community Partnership and Research Inclusion action plans, to ensure that PCP/RI is embedded in all of the Centre’s activity. Work with the Centre’s Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer to support the development and co-ordination of a diverse national Public Advisory Board to ensure that PCP/RI underpins the centres activities and that there is equitable access to the Centre’s service. Work with the Centre’s Satellites and across the NIHR RSS nationally, to lead and coordinate a programme of public and community engagement activity, focused on public health outside of the NHS, building on existing networks and partnerships with community and voluntary groups and developing new opportunities for involvement in both the centre’s capacity building programme with Local Authorities and the design and delivery of public health research. Work with the Centre’s Training Manager and Research Inclusion lead to develop and co-ordinate a programme of national events, training and capacity building activities and resources around PCP/RI for researchers, local authority colleagues, public health professionals, the Centre’s methodologists, and public partners, including horizon scanning to identify priority areas. Work with the Centre’s Communications Manager to promote events and resources through appropriate communication channels. Manage the Centre’s overall Public Involvement and Engagement Resource support including access by researchers to funding for public involvement and EDI activities both to inform the development of funding applications. Develop and manage a Public and Community Partnership fund to allow local authorities to trial new approaches to public involvement and community engagement. Ensure that learning and evidence of impact is captured and shared across local authorities and with VCSE colleagues. Develop and implement resources to facilitate reporting, monitoring and evaluation of PCP and RI activities including appropriate data capture systems to monitor requirements and activity with a particular focus on demonstrating and recording impact. Represent the Centre at a national level pertaining to PCP/RI and deliver presentations at events, conferences, and meetings to promote the centre to a wide range of stakeholders. Remain up to date with RSS and NIHR national developments on PCP/RI, sharing details with researchers, local authority colleagues, public health professionals and RSS colleagues. The Person (Essential) Knowledge, Skills and Experience (Essential) Experience of successfully developing and implementing Public and Community Partnership and/or Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement strategies. Experience of leading successful PCP projects ideally in or transferrable to a public health setting. Experience of working with public contributors and a diverse range of marginalised groups to develop processes and practices to achieve agreed objectives. Experience in developing, facilitating and delivering training on topics related to PCP/PPIE/RI for researchers and/or the public. High level of decision making and problem-solving skills, and a demonstrable ability to lead initiatives, prioritise and plan appropriately within a strategic framework. Strong communication and interpersonal skills including diplomacy, motivation, negotiating and influencing. Success in developing effective working relationships with colleagues at all levels, across a range of disciplines and with the public contributors. Experience of training public contributors. Excellent organisational and time management skills to manage and deliver a range of initiatives and projects to tight deadlines. Experienced financial manager. Ability to work independently, and to make decisions on complex or overlapping matters. Ability to understand and interpret complex ideas and communicate these simply to broad audiences, whilst maintaining meticulous attention to detail. Knowledge, Skills And Experience (Desirable) Knowledge of public health or applied health related research field. Experience of working in or with local government and/or voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSE) or evidence of an understanding of local government and VCSE. Attributes and Behaviour Able to effectively collaborate and communicate with a variety of colleagues and stakeholders. Acts in a collaborative, inclusive, transparent and open manner, acting with integrity and able to build high levels of trust. Able to see the “big picture”, to think strategically and to consider the detail in complex situations, including where there are conflicting priorities. Ability to think creatively to come up with new ideas, good problem-solving skills and ability to imagine beyond the status quo. Ability to track and analyse data, identify trends, and present insights to inform decision-making. An articulate, confident and politically adept communicator, ready and able to deal with difficult situations and to challenge where necessary. Works collaboratively with others, plays a positive role in teams and establishes and grows relationships across the organisation where different skills, expertise and opinions are valued. An energetic and “can do” approach which will inspire and enthuse others, ready to take the lead in driving forward initiatives. Qualifications Degree or equivalent level qualification plus experience in a similar role or significant vocational experience, demonstrating development through progressively more demanding, relevant roles. Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution. We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population. At Newcastle University we hold a Gold Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme. In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. Requisition ID: 29335