Research Assistant – Community Participation

About the job

Key information

• Take on a forward-thinking role that helps build local capacity for community participatory research and evaluation. This work will support evidence-based decisions around the wider determinants of health – the building blocks that shape people’s wellbeing, such as housing, education and skills, employment, transport, and the environment.
• This is a hybrid role, offering flexibility to work from home and from County Hall on selected days during the week.
• 37 hours per week fixed-term contract until 30th November 2026.
• 25 days’ annual leave (plus bank holidays).

What will I be doing?

We’re working to improve the lives of the Somerset population through community participatory approaches – and you’ll be a key part of that. Your day-to-day work will involve:

• Building strong working relationships with local communities, Somerset Council colleagues, Spark Somerset, and academic partners from the Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) to co-develop participatory approaches that reflect lived experience and local priorities.
• Supporting the use of community participatory research and evaluation approaches across different Council functions and services, helping teams understand and apply these approaches in their work to build knowledge and shape future research, policy and practice.
• Leading and contributing to both quantitative and qualitative data collection, analysis, and reporting.
• Coordinating ongoing evaluation of participatory processes and their impact, identifying areas for improvement.
• Taking initiative to develop tools, networks, and systems that support community participatory research and evaluation across Somerset.

You’ll also be responsible for mentoring and supporting Community Co-Researchers, as well as overseeing other participatory groups such as the Lived Experience Advisory Partnership and the Community Organisation Advisory Partnership. These groups play a key role in shaping research and evaluation by bringing in real-life experiences and community perspectives.

What kind of experience or qualifications do I need?

We offer ongoing support, training, and guidance to help you be the best you can be. But it will really help if you:

• Have a degree in Public Health or Community Development, or a related subject – or have equivalent professional experience.
• Have experience of working with community-participatory research and evaluation approaches.
• Have confidence using your own initiative to set up systems and networks that support community participatory approaches across Council functions, working in partnership with community groups and organisations.
• Can inspire others to use creative and practical ways to bring community voices into their work and strengthen participatory approaches.
• Know your way around Microsoft 365 (especially Word and Excel) and are familiar with using databases.
• Can manage changing priorities and deadlines (not everybody can, and that’s ok – but it’s super important in a role like this one).

We’re proud to be here for the people of Somerset. And that means everyone in Somerset. An important part of this is ensuring that we are as diverse and inclusive as the people and communities we serve.

We welcome applications from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences to enrich our team. You can always contact the hiring manager for a chat if there’s anything you want to talk about before you apply.

What is in it for me?

We are proud to offer an environment that is supportive and rewarding, working as part of a team who are passionate about the work they do to improve the lives of people in Somerset.

We offer great training and development opportunities, with supportive management. As well as this, we have some fantastic employee benefits available:

• We promote a healthy work-life balance and offer flexible working arrangements wherever possible, including working from home.
• Generous annual leave allowance, with the opportunity to purchase additional leave.
• Staff discounts in gyms.
• Employee Assistance for the times you may need some support and a variety of employee wellbeing services.
• Auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme and optional pension enhancement through our Additional Voluntary Contribution scheme.
• A Flexible Benefits Scheme via salary sacrifice to obtain a cycle for work and health screenings.
• My Staff Shop offering discounts in shops, online shopping, restaurants, cinema tickets, insurance benefits and more.

DBS check

This role requires a criminal background check via the Disclosure procedure.

Supporting documents and information

The salary for this Grade 11 role is £32,597 – £36,363 per annum.

For an informal chat about the role, please contact Frederick Marais at frederick.marais@somerset.gov.uk.

When completing your application/CV please provide your full employment history and ensure that any gaps in employment are explained. Please start with your current or most recent employment.

If you have all the information you need, just hit the apply button – we can’t wait to hear from you.

Apply on the Somerset Council website

Apply now