Reporting to: Public & Patient Involvement Officer
Location: Hybrid working – home/Leeds office
Salary: £10,250 (£25,000 pro rata)
Part time: 15 hrs/week
Fixed term post (1-year) initially with possibility of renewal

To apply:

If you are interested in the opportunity, please send your CV and a covering letter to recruitment@heartresearch.org.uk outlining how you meet the person specification by end of the day Friday 6th June 2025.

Formal Interviews to take place in Leeds on Friday 20th June 2025.

About Heart Research UK
Every five minutes someone dies from heart diseases in the UK, and it is likely that we will all be affected one day. At Heart Research UK we are tackling this problem head on. Our work focuses on developing lifesaving medical research to find new treatments and cures, delivering ground-breaking training and education, and helping communities to improve their heart health. We won’t stop until there are no more deaths from heart diseases.

Our values:

Trustworthy – We do what we say we will and explain why if we can’t. When people choose to give us their money, we ensure we spend it wisely on projects that are most important to those affected by heart diseases. We are clear about what we expect from our people, and we support them in work and life.

Ambitious – We want to bring an end to all heart diseases and on our journey, we want to help as many people as possible to live healthier and longer lives. We want to raise more so we can do more. We know that as a smaller organisation some people will stay with us for the ride while others will move on – we support the development of our teams so they can achieve their goals. We encourage new ways of doing things and know that we won’t always get it right, but we will learn from everything we do.

Passionate – We believe in what we are doing, no one should die from heart diseases. We are doing everything we can to help save lives. We embrace emotion! We want to support everyone – to have innovative ideas that bring change and promote growth. Our people can be confident that we have their back, and they can enjoy their time with us.

Job Description
Heart Research UK is a leading non-profit organisation dedicated to stopping people dying from heart diseases. The Research team advances the treatment, prevention and cure of heart diseases through the medical research projects we fund. We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) Community Outreach Coordinator who will be responsible for growing the PPI activities of the charity at the community level.

Be part of an energetic and vibrant team who are driven by the desire to improve the lives of people living with heart disease, until no more deaths from heart diseases. Situated within the charity’s Research Team, you will support the delivery of our research strategy, building trust and confidence in heart research and the wider work of Heart Research UK among patients and their families.

You will work closely with the PPI Officer to embed meaningful involvement where people affected by heart diseases shape our work and inform our decision-making – putting the patients and public voice at the heart of what we do.

In this role you will develop partnerships to help Heart Research UK, and researchers listen to the patient voice – identifying, establishing, and cultivating cooperative relationships with community-based programs, organisations, and leaders, with a special focus on historically underrepresented stakeholders (including communities of colour and faith-based communities).

Reporting to the Patient and Public Involvement Officer you will encourage people affected by heart diseases to join our Patient and Public Network, deliver clear messaging and demonstrate the benefits of involvement. You will drive and promote innovative ways of involving and hearing from patients, carers, and the public, challenging traditional methods, particularly ensuring growing involvement from currently underrepresented and underserved groups and communities to enhance our engagement, understanding, and cohesion with people from all backgrounds affected by heart diseases.

This role will support the delivery of our growing portfolio of PPI activities which enables us to embed the patient and public voice at all stages of our work. It is an exciting opportunity for someone who is committed to seeking and using the views of the public to shape and influence research and the work of the charity.

A key target of this important project is to work collaboratively to ensure that our patient and public involvement activities are increasingly accessible and relevant to any person who wishes to join.

Key responsibilities

• Acting as a point of contact for the Patient and Public Network members involved in our PPI activities.
• Working with underrepresented and underserved communities to recruit people with lived experience to be part of the HRUK Patient and Public Network.
• Develop and implement community outreach programs and initiatives.
• Offer insight to the PPI Officer on promotional materials to engage people with lived experience, particularly those from underrepresented and underserved communities.
• Maintain a calendar of outreach activities, including events, workshops, appearances and other communication opportunities.
• Representing the organisation at meetings, events, and public speaking engagements.
• Build and maintain relationships with community leaders, organisations and partners.
• Advocating for community needs within HRUK.

Attributes

Education

Essential:

• Experience working within the health, community, social care, criminal justice, or other specialist setting
• ONC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent experience
• Willingness to travel within the community.

Desirable:

• UK Driving Licence.

Knowledge and Experience

Essential:

• Experience in a similar community support role
• Experience of building and maintaining relationships with key community leaders and organisations.

Desirable:

• Previous experience of working in the charity sector
• Experience of living with or caring for someone with a heart condition.

Communication skills

Essential:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Able to disseminate information clearly and concisely
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail
• The ability to recognize and value the diversity of different community groups and be sensitive of cultural, linguistic, and religious differences
• Avoid assumptions, stereotypes, and biases.

Attitude and work ethic

Essential:

• Enthusiastic and highly motivated with a positive attitude
• Responsible and reliable.

Team working

Essential:

• Excellent team player with experience of working collaboratively with colleagues in a supportive way.
• Ability to work with members of the general public.

Organisational skills

Essential:

• Excellent organisational skills.
• Able to work to deadlines and be flexible and adapt to changing needs and time pressures.

Computer literacy

Essential:

• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office programmes.
• Competent in using complex computer software, with an ability to learn new systems quickly.

Reporting to: Director of Research

Salary: £30,000

Hours: Full time 37 hours

Fixed term post (1 year) initially with possibility of renewal

To apply:

If you are interested in the opportunity, please send your CV and a covering letter to recruitment@heartresearch.org.uk outlining how you meet the person specification by end of the day Friday 9th May 2025.

Formal Interviews to take place in Leeds on Friday 23rd May 2025.

About Heart Research UK

Every five minutes someone dies from heart diseases in the UK, and it is likely that we will all be affected one day. At Heart Research UK we are tackling this problem head on. Our work focuses on developing lifesaving medical research to find new treatments and cures, delivering ground-breaking training and education, and helping communities to improve their heart health. We won’t stop until there are no more deaths from heart diseases.

Our values:

Trustworthy – We do what we say we will and explain why if we can’t. When people choose to give us their money, we ensure we spend it wisely on projects that are most important to those affected by heart diseases. We are clear about what we expect from our people, and we support them in work and life.

Ambitious – We want to bring an end to all heart diseases and on our journey, we want to help as many people as possible to live healthier and longer lives. We want to raise more so we can do more. We know that as a smaller organisation some people will stay with us for the ride while others will move on – we support the development of our teams so they can achieve their goals. We encourage new ways of doing things and know that we won’t always get it right, but we will learn from everything we do.

Passionate – We believe in what we are doing, no one should die from heart diseases. We are doing everything we can to help save lives. We embrace emotion! We want to support everyone – to have innovative ideas that bring change and promote growth. Our people can be confident that we have their back, and they can enjoy their time with us.

Job Description

Heart Research UK is a leading non-profit organisation dedicated to stopping people dying from heart diseases. The Research team advances the treatment, prevention and cure of heart diseases through the medical research projects we fund. We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Grants Officer who will be responsible for successfully delivering our medical research grants lifecycle. As a member of the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC), our rigorous grants-selection process ensures that we only fund the highest-quality research projects. The role is responsible for the grant award processes, from application, selection and award stages, through to post-award processes including invoicing and reporting.

The role will involve processing grant applications received through our online application system and coordinating our rigorous selection process, which involves assessment by panel and external reviewers. We are looking for someone with excellent organisational, administrative and communication skills.

The role will involve advising and supporting grant applicants, grantholders, external peer reviewers and members of our medical review panels, to help ensure the efficient, smooth-running of the grants processes.

Key responsibilities

General

• Supervise the Grants Administrator role

• Keep up-to-date with legislation and best practice in grant-giving, and attend relevant training courses
• Be the point of contact and knowledge-expert for the grants management system FlexiGrant®

• Be proficient in the use of the grants management system FlexiGrant® and supporting applicants and reviewers to use the system
• Collate information about grants for other departments and external parties, including AMRC
• Ensure up-to-date and accurate administrative records for applications and grants awarded are maintained
• Verify and authorise invoices submitted for grants and advise Finance Department if discrepancies are identified
• Maintain records for research contacts and medical grants
• Manage any issues/problems with grants in consultation with members of Medical Review Panels

Grant applications

• Set the grant timelines and ensure promotion
• Review application forms and grant information and ensure up-to-date versions are available
• Support applicants by answering enquiries about eligibility and the grant application process
• Review applications submitted to ensure they are full and complete
• Manage post-award processes

Expert review

• Manage the expert-review process
• Contribute to the selection of, and communicate with, external peer reviewers
• Communicate with panel members to secure their expert-review contributions
• Liaise with the PPI Officer to incorporate the views of people with lived experience
• Organise and attend Medical Review Panel meetings
• Liaise with and provide support for the Medical Review Panel members
• Liaise with reviewers to ensure that reports are submitted

Person specification

Essential:

• Educated to ‘A’ level (science subjects an advantage)
• Interested in medical sciences, especially heart disease.
• Knowledge of processes for grant-awarding.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Enthusiastic and highly motivated with a positive attitude.
• Responsible and reliable.
• Excellent team player with experience of working collaboratively with colleagues in a supportive way.
• Ability to work with members of the general public.
• Excellent organisational skills.
• Able to work to deadlines.
• Methodical approach to work.
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office programmes.
• Competent in using complex computer software, with an ability to learn new systems quickly.

Desirable:

• Knowledge of the FlexiGrant Grant Management System
• Previous experience of working in the charity sector.