Job Description

UK Research & Innovation

Salary: £58,589 per annum

Band: UKRI Band F

Contract Type: Open ended

Hours: Full-time/ Part Time (minimum 0.8 FTE) (flexible working available)

Location: Polaris House, Swindon, Wiltshire - Hybrid working available (Min 3 days per week in the office)

Closing Date: 15th April 2026

About the role

The Insurance Lead works as part of the Risk and Assurance team, with the Head of Risk & Assurance, supporting senior leaders within the directorate and across UKRI to ensure that UKRI operates best practice throughout its insurance arrangements.

The Insurance Lead is responsible for comprehensive review of all UKRI Insurance arrangements ensuring the development and implementation of appropriate long-term arrangements.

The postholder will join the team working within the directorate to form a joined-up Risk & Assurance function, working closely with all teams within the directorate. This role will support delivery of changes and new ways of working, leading by example through changes to ways of working that will reduce siloed working and increase collaboration in how we manage risk and assurance across the organisation, with our senior forums, Executive Committee and Board.

As a member of the team the role will work to support delivery of all the Directorate’s responsibilities.

Success Factors

• Increased engagement with senior leaders, councils and committees on insurance requirements.
• Appropriate assurance on the identification of insured and self-insured risk.
• Proactive identification, escalation, and resolution of concerns before they become issues.
• Insurance arrangements that benchmark favorably against best practice and are applied in practice to meet Managing Public Money requirements.
• Acceptable level of assurance on insurance arrangements to external collaborators e.g., internal, and external auditors; UKRI Audit and Risk Assurance Committee.
• Improved efficiency and effectiveness of insurance processes and elimination of duplication.
• Increased use of team in an advisory capacity.
• Fewer surprises (using risk and assurance management to proactively identify risks at an early stage and before they become issues).

Management and Leadership Role

The Insurance Lead reports to the Head of Risk & Assurance.

The role requires line management or supervision of support team members.

This role will support the Head of Risk & Assurance to provide professional leadership and support across the Risk & Assurance Network across UKRI.

The Insurance Lead is a visible member of the team and of the UKRI Chief Finance Officer Group and is required to build strong and effective relationships across a diverse group of stakeholders internally and externally as appropriate.

The role will support the Head of Risk & Assurance to ensure that Risk & Assurance activity helps to influence and drive decision making in the organisation at all relevant levels in pursuit of organisational objectives.

The role will also need to support and at times deputise for the Head of Risk & Assurance at a variety of fora, internally and externally, to work closely with external auditors and other external organisations, to build trust and increase the profile and reputation of UKRI.

Financial Responsibilities:

This role does not have direct financial responsibilities.

Your responsibilities:

Assurance Management

• Evaluate current arrangements and advise on the optimum future arrangements taking a risk-based approach.
• Lead on the review of all UKRI insurance ensuring value for money.
• Lead on the re-tendering of contracts for insurance brokerage and provision, acting as an intelligence customer internally and externally
• Support contract management for insurance services and maintain relationships with brokers and providers
• Maintain the UKRI insurance policy and recommend future management arrangements.
• Review requests for ad hoc Insurance and advise on optimal approaches.
• Supervise and evaluate claims handling and record keeping, and recommend improvements.
• Analyse claims and advise on lessons learned
• Lead the insurance working group
• Be an active member in the team culture of continuous improvement in all areas and champion professional standards and good management practice across all the diverse areas of UKRI business.
• Provide balanced professional support and challenge to all business areas at a variety of levels as appropriate
• Administration of key documents and a good understanding of data and information management within assurance activities
• As a team member, lead by example, helping the overall team to develop skills and make a positive contribution to the work of the directorate
• Engage with all relevant risk and assurance activities as needed to deliver a professional service to the organisation and a joined up and cohesive team approach
• Requirement to travel sometimes to visit relevant locations or attend training or events
• Provide high quality written and verbal advice suitable for executive and senior level decision makers

Key Skills

• Experienced broker or insurance professional
• Excellent people skills, able to influence and build and maintain strong working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders at all levels, both internally and externally.
• Enthusiastic, motivated, adaptable, and proactive with the ability to work flexibly in a changing environment and respond to shifting priorities.
• Ability to innovate and challenge established thinking in self and others, and to offer insights and ideas with practical application coupled with the ability to inspire change.
• Insightful business awareness with the ability to understand and analyse changing business context and landscape to assess and manage risk, capitalize on emerging opportunities, make sound evidence-based judgments, promote the interests of UKRI and research and innovation.
• Ability to instil confidence within stakeholders at the most senior levels, acting as a trusted advisor.
• Excellent communication skills including good experience of writing reports to a high standard
• Strong analytical skills
• Excellent attention to detail and good system based and general administration skills

Additional Information

• Understanding of Government procurement framework for Insurance and Insurance Brokers.
• Experience of undertaking Insurance review for a large complex organisation.

Knowledge

Strong understanding of a wide range of insurance areas as well as government standards and public sector rules including but not limited to:

• Managing Public Money.
• HM Treasury and Cabinet Office standards and rules, particularly in relation to: Corporate Governance; Risk management; Spending Controls; Regularity and Propriety (conflicts of interest, gifts and hospitality, ethics).
• FRC Corporate Governance Code and its public sector equivalent.
• Government Functional Standards.

Personal Specification

The below criteria will be scored during Shortlisting (S), Interview (I) or both (S&I).

Essential

• Appropriate Insurance Qualification (S).
• Strong insurance management experience, including supporting and implementing effective insurance management frameworks in an organization (S/I).
• Experience collaborating with business areas and being a trusted advisor providing expert professional advice to senior management (S/I).
• Ability to innovate and challenge established thinking in self and others, and to offer insights and ideas with practical application coupled with the ability to drive change (S/I).
• Experience of attending Committees and Boards (S/I).
• Proven reporting experience (S/I).
• Experience of working with insurance brokers and/or providers (S/I).

Benefits

We recognize and value our employees as individuals and aim to provide a favorable pay and rewards package. We are committed to supporting employees' development and promote a culture of continuous learning!

A list of benefits below:

• An outstanding defined benefit pension scheme.
• 30 days' annual leave in addition to 10.5 public and privilege days (full time equivalent).
• Employee discounts and offers on retail and leisure activities.
• Employee assistance programme, providing confidential help and advice.
• Flexible working options.

Plus many more benefits and wellbeing initiatives that enable our employees to have a great work life balance!

For further information on our benefits please see:

Benefits of working at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

UKRI is an Equal Opportunity & Disability Confident Employer.

Please apply online, if you experience any issue applying, please contact Recruitment@ukri.org

Please note, if you will require sponsorship to work in the UK, as part of your sponsorship application, you and any dependants travelling with you, will be required to pay costs directly to The Home Office for the application before you start your role with us. UKRI is normally able to reimburse some, or all of these fees after you have become an employee and this can be discussed with the Hiring Manager. For more information, please visit https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/how-much-it-costs or contact Recruitment@ukri.org

UKRI - UK Research and Innovation

UKRI is an organisation that brings together the seven disciplinary research councils, Research England and Innovate UK. Together, we build an independent organisation with a strong voice and vision ensuring the UK maintains its world-leading position in research and innovation.

Supporting some of the world’s most exciting and challenging research projects, we develop and operate some of the most remarkable scientific facilities in the world. We are pushing the frontiers of human knowledge through fundamental research and delivering benefits for UK society and the economy through world-class research, skills and business-led innovation.

More information can be found at www.ukri.org

Choosing to come to work at UKRI means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement, access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme. For more details, visit benefits of working for UKRI

How we support EDI in the workforce

At UKRI, we believe that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be provided with equal opportunities to thrive and succeed in an environment that enables them to do so. We also value diversity of thought and experience within inclusive groups, organisations and the wider community. For further information, please visit ‘How we support EDI in the workforce’.

Disability Confident Employer

As users of the disability confident scheme, any candidate who opts into the scheme and best meets the essential criteria, will be shortlisted for interview. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

How to apply

Online applications only preferred for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for UKRI and the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the ‘experience’ section of the application.

UKRI seeks to ensure it creates and maintains a system of openness, fairness and inclusion – a collaborative, trusted environment, which is attractive to and accessible to everyone who is interested in developing their career with us.

As part of the pre-employment checks there is a requirement to undergo Baseline Personnel Security Screening. BPSS is a pre-condition of employment and failure to achieve it may mean that the employment offer is rescinded. UKRI reserves the right to run, or re-run, security clearance as required during the course of employment.