Skip to main content

This job has expired

Head of HR

At the National Centre for Social Research, we're driven by the belief that social research has the power to make life better. Our research influences policy makers, practitioners, academics and the media, shaping our understanding of the world we live in and how it is changing.

We’re looking for a new Head of HR to lead, manage and develop our close-knit HR team, providing strategic support and advice to meet our business needs. This will include the full range of HR activity, from managing frontline process to developing, delivering and refreshing a people strategy that underpins NatCen’s strategic goals.

While you don’t need to have worked in a research context, it will be critical that you demonstrate an understanding of the business, our industry and our commitment to social purpose. A sound grasp of employment law is essential, as is a strong and collaborative management style. We make a living by challenging assumptions and demonstrating evidence-based findings, so your approach to working with us needs to be just as rigorous and creative. Finally, you need sufficient credibility and gravitas to work with an extremely able and busy senior team, and the resilience to offer the right advice to teams and a business which is changing and evolving.

Key requirements for the role are:

  • Successful track record as a senior HR professional
  • A rigorous approach to people management, with experience of building and leading high performing teams
  • Sound grasp of employment law
  • Strong and collaborative management style
  • Strong influencing, interpersonal and communication skills
  • Resilient and robust to offer the right advice
  • Member, CIPD
  • An understanding of NatCen’s commitment to social purpose
  • Excellent IT skills

For further information on the role, please click here.

About the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen)

NatCen is Britain’s leading independent social research institute.

Our research helps government, charities and public bodies make the right decisions about Britain’s big social issues: we’re passionate about ensuring its widest possible impact on the world around us and, as a charity and non-profit organisation, we are never compromised by commercial or political agendas.

Our portfolio of surveys includes major studies such as the Health Survey for England, the National Travel Survey, the Family Resources Survey and Growing up in Scotland. We are perhaps best known for the annual British Social Attitudes Survey - which has been understanding the beliefs and values of the British public for over 35 years.

As well as our face-to-face, telephone, postal and web surveys, we also conduct secondary analysis, qualitative research, and a variety of mixed-mode and mixed-methods research. Our reputation for delivering relevant and robust research is rooted in our policy sector specialists, survey methodologists, data analysts, expert quantitative and qualitative researchers and our interviewers.

Social research needs careful and sensitive interviewing by specialists and we believe our large interviewing field force (both face-to-face and telephoning) are the very best at what they do. Additionally, we have survey nurses working for us who are able to collect clinical data. Our interviewers and survey nurses are the most passionate in the business - great ambassadors for social research, NatCen, and the individual projects they work on.

Our Strategy “Towards 2025”

You can find a summary of the organisation’s strategy, Towards 2025, on our web site here: http://natcen.ac.uk/about-us/our-strategy/. And a copy of our latest annual report here: http://www.natcen.ac.uk/about-us/our-annual-report/

We’re currently doing well as an organisation, but we strive to do even better for our customers in the future.

Get job alerts

Create a job alert and receive personalised job recommendations straight to your inbox.

Create alert