View Vacancy -- Communications Officer - NATA 2107

Open Date
15/03/2023, 12:34
Close Date
05/04/2023, 23:55
NATA

The Medical Research Council (MRC), as part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has invested £30m over 4 years through the Strategic Priorities Fund to establish a Nucleic Acid Therapy Accelerator (NATA) that will support state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research to solve critical issues in nucleic acid drug development, through focused NATA research challenges and a NATA infrastructure hub. 

The NATA (https://www.natahub.org/) will focus on building internal chemistry, biology and operational capabilities at the hub while catalysing collaborative R&D activity to tackle significant barriers facing oligonucleotide therapy manufacturing and delivery. This investment will support capacity building in terms of equipment, upskilling and domain expertise that will be essential in developing critical mass to catalyse and de-risk the development of next-generation nucleic acid therapeutics.

UK Research and Innovation is a new entity that brings together nine partners to create an independent organisation with a strong voice for research and innovation, more information can be found at www.ukri.org

MRC - 5
Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire
£25,798 - £27,501 per annum (depending on experience)
Permanent
Administration & Management
Full Time

Overall purpose


We are seeking a highly motivated and organised Communications Officer to ensure that the Nucleic Acid Therapy Accelerator (NATA) has strong public relations, enabling people to understand our activities through a variety of media, communication and events.

As Communications Officer, you will write and edit materials based on scientific content,  including projects at NATA for a variety of media, such as web content, flyers and reports, as well as oversee the planning, running and evaluation of our communications and engagement activities for a wide variety of audiences.

You will also be involved in the development and management of our website, to make the communication of our strategy and messages effective and attractive to our target audiences.

You will identify conferences for our scientists, and will be involved in the development and execution of strategies to maximize NATA involvement at conferences.

Main duties / key responsibilities:

  • Oversee the execution of the NATA communications strategy
  • Research, write and distribute information about our scientific discoveries
  • Write and edit news articles and content for NATA’s website and contribute to its redesign
  • Manage NATA’s social media channels and e-newsletter
  • Produce promotional print materials such as flyers and brochures
  • Ensure that all communications comply with our brand and editorial guidelines and those of the wider UKRI/MRC 
  • Work with MRC and UKRI communications and press teams

Essential:

  • Honours degree in life sciences or chemistry
  • Demonstrable experience in science communication conveying complex scientific topics to different target audiences
  • Experience producing, commissioning, curating, editing and publishing content for websites, social media, e-newsletters, press releases and print
  • Experience managing social media channels
  • Experience using a content management system (CMS) to create, edit and publish web pages
  • Strong writing and editorial skills, with great accuracy and attention to detail
  • Strong organisational and interpersonal skills
  • Ability to work independently
  • Ability to work effectively as a member of a team

Desirable:

  • Qualification in science communication or science media production
  • Experience in working in a scientific environment
  • Experience managing digital newsletters/mailings, including relevant knowledge of, and compliance with privacy and data protection regulations
  • Experience of media relations and building effective relationships with journalists
  • Experience working with creative agencies/teams e.g. graphic designers, videographers and web developers
  • Experience in event planning and management

The Nucleic Acid Therapy Accelerator (NATA) is a UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)/Medical Research Council (MRC) Unit funded by the Strategic Priorities Fund as part of the UK government’s National Productivity Investment Fund. NATA’s mission is to advance the development of nucleic acid therapies (NATs) and associated technologies through high-quality science, collaborations and interdisciplinary research. NATA works with world-leading academics, clinicians, businesses and charities, bringing together a diverse network of expertise, skills and innovative technologies to bridge translational gaps in NAT development. 

For more information, please visit www.natahub.org or email enquiries@natahub.org.


Other benefits also include a flexible pay and reward policy, excellent holiday entitlement, MRC average salary pension scheme.

Equality & Diversity 
The MRC values the diverse skills and experience of its employees and is committed to achieving equality of treatment for all.  Our objectives are that all individuals shall have equal opportunities for employment and advancement on the basis of their skills, aptitudes and abilities.  The MRC is committed to the engagement and retention of the best possible talent and to creating an environment that encourages excellence in scientific research through good equalities and diversity leadership and management.  

Corporate/Local responsibilities & requirements
The job holder must at all times carry out their responsibilities with due regard to the MRC’s: 
•    Code of Conduct
•    Equality and Diversity policy
•    Health and Safety policy
•    Data Protection and Security policy

Job descriptions should be reviewed on a regular basis and at the annual appraisal.  Any changes should be made and agreed between the post holder and their Officer.

The above lists are not exhaustive and the job holder is required to undertake such duties as may reasonably be requested within the scope of the post.  All employees are required to act professionally, co-operatively and flexibly in line with the requirements of the post and the MRC.  


The MRC is a great place to work and progress your career, be it in scientific research or the support functions.The MRC is a unique working environment where our researchers are rewarded by world class innovation and collaboration opportunities that the MRC name brings. The MRC is an excellent place to develop yourself further and a range of training & development opportunities will be available to you, including professional registration with the Science Council.

Choosing to come to work at the MRC (part of UKRI) means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme and excellent holiday entitlement to access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme, as well as the chance to put the MRC and UKRI on your CV in the future.

Our success is dependent upon our ability to embrace diversity and draw on the skills, understanding and experience of all our people. We welcome applications from all sections of the community irrespective of gender, race, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability or age. As "Disability Confident" employers, we guarantee to interview all applicants with disabilities who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy.

UKRI supports research in areas that include animal health, agriculture and food security, and bioscience for health which includes research on animals, genetic modification and stem cell research. Whilst you may not have direct involvement in this type of research, you should consider whether this conflicts with your personal values or beliefs.

We will conduct a full and comprehensive pre-employment check as an essential part of the recruitment process on all individuals that are offered a position with UKRI. This will include a security check and an extreme organisations affiliation check.  The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role.  UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.

This opportunity is closed to applications.