<!--anchor--> <!--anchor--> Public Engagement Officer <!--anchor-->

Updated: about 2 years ago
Location: Strand, ENGLAND
Deadline: The position may have been removed or expired!

The Public Engagement Officer will work within the School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London and is based at St Thomas’ Hospital campus. Staff and PhD students focus on the science and engineering of medical imaging and aims to improve outcomes for patients with cancer, brain and heart conditions.  

Chemists, engineers, physicists and mathematicians work together with clinicians and healthcare professionals to deliver impactful research, providing innovative and inspiring opportunities for engaging public groups, community members and involving patients with our translational work.

The School provides a comprehensive interdisciplinary PhD programme via its Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Smart Medical Imaging, specifically designed to meet the challenges in healthcare and medical imaging. King's College London and Imperial College London, two world leading research-focused universities, collaborate to create an interdisciplinary training approach specifically designed to provide a unique PhD experience.  

The Public Engagement Officer, reporting to the Public Engagement Manager, will   

•         lead on the public engagement and outreach activities for the CDT  

•         arrange and deliver a regular programme of training in public engagement to the PhD students  

•         evaluate the effectiveness of CDT public engagement events and widening participation activities 

•         manage the Public & Patient Involvement Advisory Group

The post-holder needs to be a confident, visible, friendly and an accessible team member, advocating for and building a culture of engagement with the Centre.

This post will be offered on a fixed-term contract until 31 July 2023 

This post can be offered on a full time or part time basis (job share will also be considered)


  • Support and develop PhD students in delivering public engagement activities on- and offline, as bespoke events or as part of the Public Engagement Programme
  • Act as a point of contact for staff & PhD students for advice on patient engagement
  • Support the Public Engagement Manager in developing and delivering a public engagement strategy for the CDT, agreeing priority activities tailored to target specific audiences; 
  • Record public engagement data and evaluate the impact of public engagement activity, where appropriate against key performance indicators, producing reports on these activities for the Public Engagement Manager and funders;
  • Liaise closely with the CDT Directors and CDT Manager on public engagement and outreach activities for the CDT, by attending Operational and Management Meetings as needed;
  • Build a strong network of contacts across the School, the CDT and King’s, and liaise with external partners where appropriate;
  • Organise training on different modes of public & patient engagement
  • Develop sustainable relationships and effective structures that allow a diverse range of people, especially underserved groups, to be involved in meaningful ways in setting research agendas
  • Act as key point of contact for the  staff and students on public and patient engagement support and guidance regarding development of activities, grant funding applications and resource signposting
  • Provide administrative support for public involvement activities, including arranging video calls and meetings, ensuring participants are financially compensated where relevant and writing up and distributing meeting minutes.
  • Recruit and develop sustainable relationships with external professionals for different projects (e.g., charities, artists, designers, evaluators, facilitators, consultants)Update website and internal webpages to share public engagement resources and information
  • Support the CDT Communication Officer in sourcing and creating content to demonstrate the impact of the CDT Public engagement work
  • Facilitate an inclusive culture and ethos across the School, working in partnership with academic staff in the Centre and more widely with colleagues in the Faculty team and functional networks; participate in local and national public engagement networks to share best practice  
  • Liaise between departments/centres/Faculty and ensure appropriate internal and external communication of public engagement information to relevant stakeholders  
  • Undertake any other reasonable duties and projects as requested by the Public Engagement Manager, Centre Manager and School Manager.   

The above list of responsibilities may not be exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such tasks and responsibilities as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the post.  

Essential criteria  

1.       Educated to degree level or has relevant work experience  

2.       An in-depth understanding of the purpose of public engagement and best practice 

3.       An understanding of patient involvement in research best practice standards 

4.       Excellent ability to engage with individuals of different diversities, age and levels of expertise, including scientists, medical doctors, patients, school children, musicians, performers and artists 

5.       Excellent written and verbal communication skills 

6.       Experience of running public engagement and patient involvement activities 

7.       Experience of project management – working in parallel on projects of different scale and complexity, prioritising and meeting deadlines within budget 

8.       Experience of using a variety of communications and engagement methods, with proven ability to select best approach depending on context and audience group 

9.       Excellent ability to network and develop new relationships both externally and internally 

10.   Experience of providing advice on public and patient engagement, preferably within grant schemes 

Desirable criteria

1.       Professional qualification in communications, particularly science communication 

2.       Experience of working in the higher education sector  

3.       Experience of delivering training in public engagement and/or patient involvement training  

4.       Working directly with patients and managing patient advisory groups 

5.       Commitment to personal professional development and developing others 

Further information

About the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine  


The Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine (FoLSM) is one of the largest and most successful centres for research and education in the UK.  The Faculty was created as a result of a merger, with elements of the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Medicine. The merger brings together basic, translational and clinical scientists to provide new cross-divisional research collaborations while optimising the deployment of teaching expertise across the Faculty. 

Our research is strategically aligned to King's Health Partners with Clinical Academic Groups bringing together academics and clinicians who are committed to ensuring faster translation and adoption of research innovation into clinical practice.  

https://www.kcl.ac.uk/lsm/index.aspx

About the Wellcome / EPSRC Centre for Medical Engineering

The Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Medical Engineering is based at the St Thomas’ Hospital campus, Waterloo. Its remit includes staff and postgraduate students within the School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences (BMEIS) at St Thomas’ and the Department of Neuroimaging (IoPPN), Denmark Hill, King’s College London. By combining expertise in biomedical and clinical research with excellence in the underpinning sciences of imaging engineering & physics, computational and mathematical approaches and imaging chemistry, we will deliver impact that improves the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of neuropsychiatric, oncological and cardiovascular diseases.


As a large multi-disciplinary research Centre, we foster a strong cooperative research culture. Our established links with industrial partners, access to cutting edge facilities, and the central location within a major hospital campus creates an exciting, synergistic environment where the most challenging questions can be addressed. In addition to producing world-leading outputs, the Centre infrastructure will accelerate translation to clinical benefit and industrial uptake. The Centre acts as a focus for recruitment of leading international talent and training of the next generation of research leaders, enhancing excellence. An important component of the Centre’s activities is to develop public and patient engagement in the Centre’s research, highlighting its impact and societal implications.  

https://medicalengineering.org.uk/

About the Centre for Doctoral Training in Smart Medical Imaging


The Centre for Doctoral Training in Smart Medical Imaging provides a comprehensive interdisciplinary PhD programme in Medical Imaging, specifically designed to meet the challenges in healthcare and medical imaging. King's College London and Imperial College London, two world leading research-focused universities, collaborate to create an interdisciplinary training approach specifically designed to provide a unique PhD experience. The Centre builds on strong existing collaborations between King's and Imperial, including substantial joint grant funding, joint publications and current joint supervision.

http://www.imagingcdt.com/

This post is subject to Disclosure and Barring Service and Occupational Health clearance.



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