Policy Programmes Lead

The British Academy – the UK’s national body for the humanities and social sciences – is seeking a Policy Programmes Lead to join our Public Policy Team, providing key support in the strategy and delivery of the Academy’s public Policy Programmes.

The role

The Policy Programmes Lead works closely with the Head of Public Policy and members of the Public Policy Team and builds strong working relationships with colleagues across the British Academy, its Fellowship, and its wider network of stakeholders and strategic partners. The Public Policy Team is a growing team, with strong ambitions to improve the UK policy ecosystem in a way that is championing our SHAPE disciplines and their knowledge and expertise. We are a collaborative team, working on the basis of mutual trust and responsibility, striving together to achieve our goals. We value leadership that creates leaders, where every individual is empowered to think and make decisions, and where great ideas can come from anyone, anywhere.

This will be an exciting and varied role, taking a lead in developing strategically important and cross-cutting policy work, including maximising success of existing programmes and designing and taking forward new activities and external partnerships, with the aim of building the reputation and impact of the Academy’s public policy work against the organisation’s strategic aims.

You will be a strategic thinker, who can plan and deliver complex projects across a range of challenging policy areas, being able to manage people and resources within them carefully and effectively. You will have a strong understanding of the landscape of UK public policy and how to engage and work with a range of stakeholders within the policy environment. You will thrive in a fast-paced and creative working culture, where professionalism and innovation work hand-in-hand.

About the Academy

The British Academy is the UK’s national body for the humanities and social sciences, established by Royal Charter in 1902. We mobilise these disciplines to understand the world and shape a brighter future. Today’s complex challenges can only be resolved by deepening our insight into people, culture, and societies. With a Fellowship of around 1,400 leading national and international academics, the Academy invests in researchers and projects across the UK and overseas, engages the public with fresh thinking and debates, and brings together scholars, government, business, and civil society to influence policy.

The Academy currently has five directorates: Communications & Marketing, Development, Policy, Research, and Resources, plus a small Governance & Fellowship Team. We have increased staffing in the last 12 months and expect to continue to grow this year.

Working at the Academy

Our senior management team have worked with staff to foster a culture of collaboration, respect, and empathy, in which all contributions are recognised as we work towards our common goals. Our people strategy and working practices focus on building strengths and sharing insights, with learning and development, wellbeing, and equality, diversity and inclusion at the centre of how we operate as an organisation. Investing in our staff and encouraging a healthy work/life balance is central to our success as we move forward and continue to grow.

Terms and conditions

The British Academy is based at 10–11, Carlton House Terrace, London SW1, a Grade 1 listed building. We offer a competitive benefits package, including a 35-hour working week, with hours and location worked flexibly under our hybrid-working policy; 34 days’ annual leave plus Bank Holidays; a subsidised canteen and an excellent occupational pension.

How to apply

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, in line with our commitment to create a diverse and inclusive working environment, promote equal opportunity, and address under-representation. We will make reasonable adjustments to support disabled job applicants and offer an interview to those meeting the minimum selection criteria.

To apply, and to see the full job description and our workplace values, please follow the Apply link to access the Applied recruitment platform.

Please contact the HR team at hrteam@thebritishacademy.ac.uk if you have any questions. 

Applications must be received no later than 12:00 noon on 19 February 2024.