Job description

The post-holder will bring together their lived experience of using health and/or social care services with research and project management skills to coordinate patient and public involvement (PPI) for King’s Improvement Science (KIS). KIS is a King’s Health Partners funded applied research and evaluation programme, hosted within the Centre for Implementation Science (CIS) at King’s College London.   

This post is a job-share and the post-holder will work closely and collaboratively with the existing KIS PPI Co-ordinator. The post-holder will work with members of the King’s Improvement Science team, members of the public, and staff in partner organisations, to embed the involvement of public members within KIS projects. The post-holder will also be involved in research activities including the planning, delivery and dissemination of research and evaluation projects. 

Further information about King’s Improvement Science can be accessed via:   www.kingsimprovementscience.org 

Further information about the Centre for Implementation Science can be accessed via:   https://www.kcl.ac.uk/research/cis  

We welcome and encourage applicants from diverse communities and backgrounds, including those with disabilities, lived experience of ill health and neurodivergent individuals.   

Work adjustments can be provided through the Department of Work and Pension’s Access to Work programme to support the post-holder with any access requirements, including advice, equipment, financial support, a range of assistive technologies, and coaching and mentoring for staff. 

This post will be offered on a fixed-term contract until 30/09/2024 

This post is available as part-time or full-time: 60% - 100% full time equivalent 

This post allows for some flexibility in working hours and patterns. We are in the process of returning to our offices following the relaxation of social distancing rules. Providing the context of the COVID-19 pandemic allows, the post holder will be expected to work from our offices in Denmark Hill, south London for around 40-60% of their time, and will be able to work remotely from home for the remainder of their time if they wish to do so.  

Key responsibilities

• Ensure patient and public involvement is present in KIS work where possible
• Co-ordinate patient and public involvement within KIS projects and activities
• Arrange meetings and events to be attended by a diverse group of patients/service users, carers and the public
• Arrange payment and expenses for public members who are involved in activities
• Maintain frequent communication with and provide updates to our patient and public involvement group via different modes of communication, e.g., through email, phone calls or video calls
• Work closely with patient and public involvement leads across partner organisations, including a close collaborative relationship with the Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) South London PPI Co-ordinator
• Learn about improvement and implementation science and work with the team to apply this knowledge within research projects
• Contribute to study design, data collection and analysis – in partnership with researchers, health and social care staff and PPI colleagues
• Disseminate KIS work through presentations and reports and collaborate on peer reviewed publications
• Contribute to and attend appropriate meetings and events, as required
• Contribute to teaching, training and other learning activities
• Communicate regularly and effectively with relevant colleagues and stakeholders from King’s College London/Health Service & Population Research Department/Centre for Implementation Science, Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) South London, King’s Health Partners (KHP) and other stakeholders
• Deal with problems effectively as they arise
• Contribute to decisions affecting the team
• Demonstrate appropriate time management techniques
• Ensure compliance with protocols, guidelines and research governance
• Demonstrate initiative, autonomy and self-motivation
• Seek help and guidance where necessary
• Attend relevant training to enhance skillset

The above list of responsibilities may not be exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such tasks and responsibilities as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the post.

Skills, knowledge, and experience 

Essential criteria 

1.       Good quality (upper second or above) undergraduate degree in a field with relevant or transferable research skills 

2.       Personal experience of using or having used health and/or social care services 

3.       Experience of liaising with patients / service users / carers / the public and coordinating their involvement in projects  

4.       Training in research methods at either undergraduate degree level or via a suitable training course including data collection and analysis skills 

5.       Demonstrable interest in evaluation of health and social care services, quality improvement and improvement and implementation sciences 

6.       Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with proven ability to develop and maintain collaborative relationships both within and across organisational boundaries 

7.       Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office suite, including proficiency in using Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Ability to conduct work meetings virtually using Microsoft Teams and Zoom 

8.       Excellent organization and time-management skills with the ability to manage a varied workload, comfortable with changing agendas and re-prioritisation of workloads whilst meeting performance targets and milestones 

Desirable criteria 

9.       MSc in a relevant subject, such as in a health or research-related field 

10.   Experience of working in health or social care provider organisations or experience of working within a higher education institution, for example as a lived experience worker 

11.   An understanding of the ethics of involving patients / service users, carers and the public in research and why this is important 

12.   A demonstratable understanding of accessibility requirements, inclusive involvement practices and sensitivity to different ways of working  

Further information

Please note this role is not eligible for sponsorship for a Skilled Worker visa.  

The interviews for this role will take place approximately the week commencing 8th or 15th November.