Research Involvement Lead

Job Title:  Research and Impact Lead

Location: Hybrid with minimum 8 offices days per month in either London or Leeds office 

Contract: Full time, permanent   

Salary: £46,000 – £53,000 per annum depending on experience

BookTrust is the UK's largest children's reading charity. We get millions of children reading, especially those from low-income families or vulnerable backgrounds. Children who choose to read and who read regularly are happier and healthier. They form stronger bonds and relationships.  They do better at school and are more creative. They enjoy more success in life. This is why we work with families, supporting them to start sharing stories and books together from the earliest possible age. Our carefully selected books and well-researched programmes are delivered by thousands of local partners, bringing the magic of reading to children in every community in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. 

The Research and Impact Lead role brings scope for dynamic collaboration across the organization, and creativity in applying research and evaluation expertise to a range of opportunities. The Research and Impact Lead will shape, drive and deliver a range of learning activities. They will be a voice for evidence-based decision making within BookTrust, ensuring that we put the needs of children, families, and our delivery partners at the heart of our work.

In this role we are looking for an experienced mixed methods researcher to oversee our MEL approach, develop and deliver new learning and funding partnerships and contribute to our portfolio of cross departmental learning activities – working to deliver research activities or supporting our team of in-house researchers through providing steer and quality assurance.

We will provide excellent opportunities for the postholder to further develop their research, leadership and partnership skills in support of a fast changing, purpose driven national charity. We offer a flexible and supportive working environment and provide on-the-job learning and formal training.

To apply please send a copy of your CV to us on our website along with a covering letter showing how you meet the person specification and your motivations for applying for the role. Your covering letter should not be longer than two sides. Please also answer these questions in your cover letter:

BookTrust has a new Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning framework to understand the impact of our work with low-income children and families. What are some of the principles of good evaluation that BookTrust should incorporate into its MEL work?  

Please also attach one or two examples of research, evaluation or learning outputs you have produced and also specify if you are applying to be based from our Leeds of London office.

Closing date: 4th June 2024 12.00pm

Interviews: Interview will be in two stages - 1st stage interviews will be on 20th June 2024, via Teams   

Our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusivity

We aim to provide an inclusive recruitment process and actively welcome applications from diverse talent pools: minority ethnic candidates, candidates with disabilities and long-term conditions and candidates from underrepresented communities.

We are committed to equality of opportunity and want to ensure we have an accessible application process for all candidates. If you need any reasonable adjustments or would like us to do anything differently during the application process, please contact our HR team to discuss your requirements further.

BookTrust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The recruitment and selection process reflect our commitment to safeguarding therefore, the suitability of all prospective employees will be assessed during the recruitment process in line with this commitment, and pre-employment checks.