ESRC
Salary: £46,743 per annum
Band: UKRI Band E
Contract Type: Open ended
Hours: Full-time/ Part Time (minimum 0.8 FTE)
Location: Polaris House, Swindon, Wiltshire - Hybrid working available
Closing Date: 23rd March 2026
About the role
This is an exciting opportunity to join a new Situational Awareness Function (SAF) within the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The SAF is designed to enhance ESRC’s understanding of the UK’s social science research landscape, providing insight, horizon scanning, and timely intelligence to inform future strategic decision-making. The SAF will deliver broad, up-to-date evidence and analysis across the social science ecosystem, drawing on new and existing data sources, and will communicate its outputs to a range of audiences.
As an analyst within the Situational Awareness Function, you will play a central role in developing and delivering high-quality outputs which contribute towards ESRC’s overall strategic decision-making. You will deliver against the SAF’s priorities, working across ESRC and UKRI to gather, analyse, and communicate insights from a wide range of data sources. You will contribute to both ongoing monitoring and ad hoc intelligence needs, identifying emerging trends, knowledge gaps, and opportunities for deeper exploration.
Your responsibilities:
Lead and deliver analysis on the UK’s social science landscape, producing outputs tailored to a diverse array of audiences and decision-making needs, ranging from descriptive analytics to more interpretive and strategic insights. Outputs may include:
Personal Specification
The below criteria will be scored during Shortlisting (S), Interview (I) or both (S&I).
Essential
• Experience of using appropriate statistical methods when working with structured datasets (e.g. bibliometrics, HESA, UKRI grants). (S/I)
• Ability to synthesise and communicate complex information clearly and concisely (S/I)
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills (S/I)
• Familiarity with tools such as R, SQL, or Python for data analysis or the ability and willingness to adopt them quickly (S/I)
• Understanding of survey design and analysis (for one of the two roles only) (S/I)
• Ability to work independently and manage competing priorities (S/I)
Benefits
We recognise and value our employees as individuals and aim to provide a favourable pay and rewards package. We are committed to supporting employees' development and promote a culture of continuous learning!
A list of benefits below:
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
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.
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is the public sector organisation that invests £8 billion annually to support the entire research and innovation system. We strive for a society powered and empowered by research and innovation, with economic, social, environmental and cultural benefits for all.
We invest in people, places, ideas, innovation and impacts, empowering researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs to turn the many challenges we all face into opportunities, driving up prosperity and wellbeing across the UK and globally.
The impacts of our work are felt right across society. We enrich lives by increasing our understanding of ourselves and the world around us, supporting innovative businesses and public services, and creating high-quality jobs throughout the UK.
