Senior Research Associate, School and Community Connections Study: Co-production and School Engagement Lead

We welcome applications from researchers with a PhD in (or equivalent experience) in public health, social sciences, education, epidemiology, or a related discipline. You will develop and deliver co-production activities with pupils, teachers, and other stakeholders, that shape the design of study surveys, interviews, and dissemination materials. This will involve ensuring research tools and outputs reflect pupil and school preferences, needs, values and contextual factors. The role will also include synthesising outputs from the co-design process and the contact study to produce engagement materials for schools and support wider project dissemination.

Depending on experience, you may also contribute to project coordination and school liaison in a project management capacity.

The post is funded through Dr Leng's Wellcome Early Career Award 'Control without closure: school-level approaches for pathogen control within and between schools': wellcome.org/research-funding/funding-portfolio/funded-grants/control-without-closure-school-level-approaches

The contact study aims to improve our understanding of how and where school pupils interact, and how this relates to illness-related absences. Data collected will be used to parameterise transmission-dynamic models, in order to understand the potential impact of school-level infectious disease control strategies. We are co-producing the study to ensure the study addresses the priorities of pupils and teachers, and to encourage high levels of participation in participating schools. 

You will liaise with colleagues within Lancaster Medical School (Dr Jonathan Read and Dr Sam Moore) alongside external partners based at the Centre for Applied Education Research (University of Leeds) and the Department for Education's science team.

You will be expected to be based at Lancaster University, however, there is some opportunity for remote working. The role will require travel between Lancaster University and research sites (which are likely to be primarily in Bradford). 

You will join a top 10-UK university in the Complete University Guide 2026 situated in a vibrant research environment. Lancaster Medical School, within the Faculty of Health and Medicine (FHM) at Lancaster University, provides a friendly research environment that strongly supports the individual needs of each employee and which actively promotes a healthy work-life balance. FHM is committed to family-friendly and flexible working policies and has held a Silver Athena SWAN award since 2014 in recognition of its good employment practice undertaken to address gender equality in higher education and research.

For more information, please contact Dr. Trystan Leng, t.leng@lancaster.ac.uk

chicas.lancaster-university.uk/people/leng.html

The post is available from 11^th March 2026. 

We welcome applications from candidates seeking flexible working requests.

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