Research Fellow - School of Social Policy Grade 7

Job Description Position Details

School of Social Policy

Location:

University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,636 to £46,049 with potential progression once in post to £48,822

Grade: 7

Part Time (18.75 hours per week)

Fixed Term contract up to February 2030

Closing date: 6th September 2026

Please note:

We are advertising for both a Research Fellow Grade 7 (107826) and a Research Fellow Grade 8 (107812), however there is only 1 post available.

The post is situated in the Intellectual Disabilities Research Institute (IDRIS) in the School of Social Policy and Society. IDRIS is an applied cross-University research institute established in October 2024 with the appointment of Professor Richard Hastings as 125th Anniversary Chair and Professor of Psychology Health and Social Care. IDRIS also includes, in Social Policy and Society, three other professorial staff, an associate professor, two senior research fellows, a full-time administrator, and a number of research fellows, research associates, and PhD students.

Most staff are employed on/funded through external research grants, including those funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Other members of IDRIS are based in Schools and Departments across the Colleges of the University. IDRIS works in close co-productive relationships and with people with intellectual disabilities, family carers, and with disability advocacy and professional organisations. IDRIS’s research and policy/practice impact is across the lifespan and across sectors (education, health, social care).

IDRIS staff are engaged mainly in research on the development and evaluation of interventions and services to support individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families.

The successful applicant will be employed to work on the BEAMS trial which is a multicentre two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial with internal pilot that seeks to assess the clinical and cost-effectiveness of an adapted psychological therapy for people with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities who have anxiety disorders. The intervention was previously tested within a feasibility study ( https:// ).

The trial is led by Professor Peter Langdon together with the Cardiff Centre for Trials Research (CTR).

• Plan, design and help co-ordinate the BEAMS- in collaboration with Cardiff CTR and our Trial Manager
• Work within specified research grants and projects and contribute to writing bids
• Operate within area of specialism
• Analyse and interpret research findings and results
• Contribute to generating funding
• Capturing data from participants and their families
• Contribute to licensing or spin out deals with demonstrated commercial success (such as revenues, asset or company sales, IP generated) and/or public understanding of the discipline or similar

The responsibilities may include some but not all of the responsibilities outlined below.

• Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with assistance of a mentor if required
• Contribute to writing bids for research funding
• Analyse and interpret data
• Apply knowledge in a way which develops new intellectual understanding
• Disseminate research findings for publication, research seminars etc
• Supervise students on research related work and provide guidance to PhD students where appropriate to the discipline
• To supervise research associates working on the trial both within and out of the university
• To capture data from participants and their families
• Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods
• Undertake management/administration arising from research
• Contribute to Departmental/School research-related activities and research-related administration
• To work collaboratively with our trial statistician and health economist and undertake data analyses with guidance
• To help drive participant recruitment and data capture
• Provide expert advice to colleagues and students within discipline
• Deal with problems that may affect research objectives and deadlines
• Contribute to enterprise, business development and/or public engagement activities of manifest benefit to the College and the University, often under supervision of a project leader
• Collect research data; this may be through a variety of research methods, such as scientific experimentation, literature reviews, and research interviews
• Present research outputs, including drafting academic publications or parts thereof, for example at seminars and as posters
• Provide guidance, as required, to support staff and any students who may be assisting with the research
• Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines
• Promotes equality and values diversity acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.

• First degree in area of specialism and normally, a higher degree relevant to research area or equivalent qualifications
• High level analytical…