Research Fellow - Information & Evidence Synthesis Specialist

The University of Plymouth is seeking an experienced Information & Evidence Synthesis Specialist. You will work on the NIHR-funded Mental Health Research Group (MHRG) at the University of Plymouth which brings together researchers from the School of Psychology, Cornwall Intellectual Disability Research Centre (CIDER) and the Community and Primary Care Research Centre (CPCRC). You will work with researchers and partners of the MHRG, retrieving and collating information, synthesising evidence and supporting the capacity building of colleagues within the group through information skills, methodological guidance and knowledge exchange.

About the role

This appointment comes at a pivotal moment for the South West Peninsula (SWP), a region with high mental health needs and historically limited research capacity. Over the past decade, the University of Plymouth has built strength in applied mental health research, combining innovative theoretical and methodological approaches to address how health services and systems can better meet population needs. Now, we are looking to accelerate our success after acquiring a significant £11m research grant from the NIHR to grow our mental health research capacity and capability.  Our research vision is deeply rooted in collaboration and impact, working within systems, with people with lived experience and staff to generate immediate benefits for local communities while contributing to nationally relevant, high-quality research.

You will:

• Play a key role in the MHRG by providing information and evidence synthesis expertise to support the research, engagement and capacity building activities of the group
• Support the core team mission of improving equity in mental health care systems
• Support individual researchers and teams on specific projects to locate and curate evidence and working across the mental health research group to source and understand evidence related to the broad issue of system balance, which is the focus of the mental health research group
• Carry out and develop your own focus of work and research alongside other experts from within the University of Plymouth and the supporting universities at King’s and Exeter.

The MHRG team and the wider CPCRC, alongside the NIHR South West Peninsula Applied Research Collaboration, will provide support for engagement in intellectual endeavour and personal capacity building.

For more information on Peninsula Medical School please visit our dedicated webpage at https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/schools

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

For an informal discussion to find out more about the role then please contact Lorna Burns lorna.burns@plymouth.ac.uk

This part-time position working 14.8 hours per week on a fixed-term basis for 5 years until 31st March 2031.

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

Closing date:  12 midnight, Monday 27 April 2026

Our Offer

We have a wide range of staff benefits available to employees, depending on eligibility:

A summary of our comprehensive benefits can be viewed here.

Additional Information

Please visit our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion webpages.

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