Postdoctoral Research Associate in Food Systems Evaluation - Grade 7

This post offers an exciting opportunity for an ambitious post-doctoral researcher with knowledge and understanding of food systems, food policy, and/or public health, and skills in applied mixed methods research. The post will contribute to the delivery of a five-year research programme that aims to systematically generate evidence on urban food system transformation, informing the achievement of a healthier, more sustainable, more equitable and economically viable food system.

This post is funded via a consortium grant from UKRI as part of its £47m Strategic Priorities Fund initiative ‘Transforming the UK food system for healthy people and a healthy environment’. The ‘Mandala’ consortium has academic collaborators across the University of Liverpool, University of Cambridge, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University College London, and the Universities of Birmingham, Exeter, and Warwick. Further details of the Mandala Consortium can be found here. The setting for the transformative programme is the City of Birmingham, where a range of stakeholder organisations across all sectors relevant to the programme’s vision are also engaged in the research.

The postdoctoral researcher will support evidence synthesis, data collection and analysis, and evaluation of interventions. Evaluation will involve both qualitative and quantitative methods. The postdoctoral researcher will have experience conducting applied public health research and/or evaluation, and knowledge of food policy, dietary inequalities, food insecurity, and applied systems thinking. Because the research focuses on the City of Birmingham, the post holder will be required to travel to Birmingham and elsewhere in the UK regularly to undertake fieldwork and participate in research and other meetings.

The postdoctoral researcher will:

• Contribute to evidence syntheses using a range of methods (including solution scanning, causal criteria analysis, rapid evidence assessments and systematic reviews) to review evidence on theoretical underpinnings and effectiveness of interventions to achieve food system transformation for people and planet.
• Develop theories of change for prioritised interventions and present these in meaningful ways to underpin evaluation plans (WP3).
• Design and carry out evaluation(s) of selected food system interventions using randomised and quasi- and natural experiment methods and including process evaluation(s).
• Report methods and findings of the research orally and in writing via a range of media to a variety of audiences, both scientific and lay, including:
• Drafting scientific papers and contributing to the overall preparation of research for publication.
• Presenting scientific work at seminars within the Department and Institute and at external meetings.
• Contribute to further grant applications as necessary to support evaluation studies.
• Work closely with the principal investigators, work package leads and other researchers in University of Liverpool and in partner universities to deliver the programme of work collaboratively as an interdisciplinary, scientific team.
• With the rest of the team, contribute to knowledge exchange activities to maximise the societal impact of the research.
• Contribute to teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in line with Institute of Population Health policy.
• Assist in the training of PhD and MPhil students as appropriate, and to develop supervisory and management skills.
• Undertake personal development appropriate to their role and career stage, including undertaking training when required.

Any applicants who are still awaiting their PhD to be awarded should be aware that if successful, they will be appointed at grade 6, spine point 30. Upon written confirmation that they have been successful in being awarded their PhD, they will be moved onto grade 7, spine point 31 from the date of their award.

The post is available on a fixed term basis until 31 December 2025.

For full details and to apply online, please visit: recruit.liverpool.ac.uk