Research Fellow (Dietary Inequalities, Process Evaluation)

FTE: 1.0 FTE working 37 hours per week (job-share considered)

Duration of Contract: Fixed term ending 31^st March 2028

Salary: UH7 £38,249 pa to £45,413 pa dependent on skills and experience

Annual Leave: 35 days plus standard public holidays and an additional 4 days including the closure of our office between Christmas and New Year

Location: College Lane Campus, Hatfield 

In the UK, people living in less affluent neighbourhoods and circumstances tend to have less healthy diets. As a result, they also suffer more from diet-related ill health and are more likely to experience food insecurity. Evidence-based interventions are required to identify place-specific solutions to dietary inequalities.  

We are seeking a highly motivated qualitative researcher to conduct a process evaluation of a systems thinking Group Model Building (GMB) intervention to address dietary health inequalities at the local level. This is an exciting opportunity for applicants to work within CRIPACC, which is a vibrant and supportive environment for research staff.

Day-to-day, the role is largely remote and online. The fieldwork, however, will involve in-person observations in local authorities around the country. So, periods of travel and possibly some overnight stays will be required. Additionally, the successful candidate must be prepared to attend in-person team meetings as required and come on to campus for departmental meetings and administrative tasks connected to the project. There may be occasional evening (remote) working. 

Main duties and responsibilities

You will take a lead on the qualitative process evaluation work. You will be expected to:

• Contribute to protocol development, including observation proformas and topic guides
• Lead on ethics application and any required amendments
• Recruit participants from local government and community settings
• Lead on qualitative data collection (both remote and in-person)
• Analyse data from semi-structured interviews and observations
• Write-up results in the form of peer-reviewed publications and reports, and support publications as part of a wider writing team
• Disseminate results to academic and non-academic audiences

Skills and experience required

You will have proven experience of qualitative research including recruiting, working with, and maintaining relationships with diverse groups and communities. You must have skills in advanced qualitative methods with experience of undertaking coding, analysis, interpretation and synthesis of diverse qualitative data. Experience of working with local authority public health teams would be an advantage. 

Qualifications required

You must hold A degree (or equivalent) in a relevant discipline (i.e. public health, sociology, geography, social policy, psychology, anthropology or a related subject) and A PhD (or equivalent qualification), or close to completion of PhD (no more than 3 months prior to viva) in a relevant subject area, or equivalent experience

Please view the job description and person specification for a full list of the duties and essential criteria. Please complete the application questions detailing how you meet each of the essential and desirable criteria. For guidance, please see attached ‘Tips for Application Questions Section’.

An appointment to this role may require an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate.

This post cannot be visa sponsored unless the applicant has a PhD / Doctorate.

Contact Details/Informal Enquiries: Claire Thompson, Reader in Food, Inequalities, and Health c.thompson25@herts.ac.uk

Closing Date: 16 June 2025

Interview Date: To be confirmed

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