Co-ACTION Research Assistant

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Research Assistant to join the Community and Primary Care Research Group  (CPCRG) within the Faculty of Health. The CPCRG is intensively research active and has a strong proven track record of Health Services Research. Our research is conducted through the involvement of practitioners and the public, who are instrumental in helping to develop focused research questions and in designing projects.

About the role

You will work on CO-ACTION – a NIHR funded programme of work developing and evaluating a model of personalised support to help people with multiple long-term conditions live better lives in the community.

CO-ACTION:

In this programme of work, we will enhance health and well-being of people living with multiple long-term conditions (MLTC-M) by adopting a bio-psychosocial approach focussed on supporting social and self-management. We will design, evaluate, and implement a personalised multisectoral intervention called CO-ACTION employing a variety of mix methods and approaches. The work will focus on commonly experienced problems associated with MLTC-M, moving away from a narrow condition specific focus. The University of Southampton is the lead site for this project. The University of Plymouth is a partner site.

You will:

• Possess a relevant first degree in a social sciences field
• Have knowledge and experience of health-related research, including data collection, analysis and stakeholder engagement
• Need to demonstrate an ability to organise their own workload, plan research activities to a high standard and work to deadlines
• Have excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

Knowledge and understanding of personalised assessment; mixed methods research; realist approaches, and trial or implementation of initiatives in clinical practice, would be an advantage. You will be required to travel across Plymouth to collect data and conduct stakeholder events.

For more information on Community and Primary Care Research Centre please visit our dedicated webpage at https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/schools

For this role, you will need to be on site 1 day a week. Although we can accommodate working from home for this role, flexibility to be on-site will be expected due to business needs.

Due to the nature of this role, an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service Check plus an Adult’s Barred List check will be required.

For more information about the job and the person specification, please refer to the job description.

For an informal discussion to find out more about the role please contact Dr Hannah Wheat by email hannah.wheat-1@plymouth.ac.uk.

This is a part-time position working up to 22.2 hours per week on a fixed-term basis until 28 February 2029 due to funding. There may be some flexibility with contracted hours.

You must be prepared to travel for data collection purposes and have access to your own vehicle.

Application Process

Please apply online, demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria outlined in the knowledge, qualifications, training, and experience elements of the job description in your supporting statement.

Following the closing date of the vacancy, you will be notified on the outcome of your application in due course.

Anticipated Interview Date:  Friday 12 December 2025

Closing date:  12 midnight, Wednesday 3 December 2025

Advert information