We are looking for a friendly and confident person to engage our local communities in Lambeth and Southwark with our cutting edge research. The post will work as part of the Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Medical Engineering (CME) and MITHRAS Project. The postholder will be responsible for developing new partnerships with a range of organisations, focusing on people currently not engaged with science. The postholder needs to be a visible and accessible team member, advocating for and building engagement with the Centre.

The CME focuses on the science and engineering of medical imaging and is one of the largest centres for medical imaging research in Europe. 

With the CME’s Public Engagement team and academic leads, the post-holder will develop and implement an engagement strategy to raise the profile of our research with priority local groups, aligned with the #KingsLocal approach. The focus will be on engaging communities with opportunities to be involved in meaningful ways in setting research agendas, as part of King’s commitment to being a civic university at the heart of London. 

The Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Medical Engineering (CME) focuses on the science and engineering of medical imaging. The Centre is one of the largest centres for medical imaging research in Europe and is based within the School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences at the St Thomas’ Hospital campus and also includes the Department of Neuroimaging (IOPPN). 

The CME aims to improve outcomes for patients with neurological, cardiovascular and oncological conditions by bringing together over 400 world-class scientists, engineers, clinicians and healthcare professionals to deliver impactful research. The CME provides innovative and inspiring opportunities for people to engage with our work.

This post will also form part of a £6.4 million EPSRC-funded Programme Grant on Next Generation Molecular Imaging and Therapy with Radionuclides (MITHRAS), based at the Department of Imaginv Chemistry and Biology at King’s College London, Imperial College and the University of Southampton. The aim of MITHRAS is to develop new chemistry for fast, accessible synthesis of radiopharmaceuticals, and translate this into clinically translatable products for imaging and radionuclide therapy.

The post-holder will work closely with the CME’s Public Engagement team and MITHRAS Public Engagement leads and will have explicit responsibility for developing new partnerships with a diverse range of organisations in Lambeth and Southwark. They will lead on all community engagement for the CME and MITHRAS, with a particular focus on people currently not deeply engaged with science. The postholder needs to be a confident, visible, friendly and accessible team member, advocating for and building engagement with the Centre.    

In collaboration with the CME’s Public Engagement team, the post-holder will develop, own and implement an engagement strategy to raise the profile of the CME and MITHRAS with priority local groups, aligned with the #KingsLocal approach. The focus will be on engaging communities with opportunities to be involved in meaningful ways in setting research agendas, as part of King’s commitment to being a civic university at the heart of London. 

The post-holder will initiate new projects based on mutually beneficial activities between communities, the CME, and MITHRAS; map potential partners for CME activity; and work with the PE team to prioritise key groups to work with.

This role will involve some work outside of normal working hours, with an expectation to participate in community activity in order to build relationships locally.