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UK Health Security Agency
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About
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will be responsible for planning, preventing and responding to external health threats, and providing intellectual, scientific and operational leadership at national and local level, as well as on the global stage. UKHSA will ensure the nation can respond quickly and at greater scale to deal with pandemics and future threats.
Senior Surveillance Scientist
Closed for applications on: 12-Aug-2024 00:05
Vacancy status: Closed
Closed for applications on: 12-Aug-2024 00:05
Key details
Location
- Site
- Colindale
- Town
- Colindale,London
- Postcode
- NW9 5EQ
- Major / Minor Region
- London
Contract type & working pattern
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Job share
- Flexible working
Salary
- Salary
- £42,716 - £48,068 per annum, pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Grade
- (Civil Service: Senior Executive Officer (SEO))
Specialty
- Main area
- Senior Surveillance Scientist
The United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is a system leader for health security; taking action internationally to strengthen global health security, providing trusted advice to government and the public and reducing inequalities in the way different communities experience and are impacted by infectious disease, environmental hazards, and other threats to health.
UKHSA’s remit, as an agency with a global-to-local reach, is to protect the health of the nation from infectious diseases and other external threats to health. As the nation’s expert national health security agency UKHSA will:
- Prevent: anticipate threats to health and help build the nation’s readiness, defences and health security
- Detect: use cutting edge environmental and biological surveillance to proactively detect and monitor infectious diseases and threats to health
- Analyse: use world-class science and data analytics to assess and continually monitor threats to health, identifying how best to control and mitigate the risks
- Respond: take rapid, collaborative and effective actions nationally and locally to mitigate threats to health when they materialise
- Lead: lead strong and sustainable global, national, regional and local partnerships designed to save lives, protect the nation from public health threats and reduce inequalities.
Job overview
The post holder will contribute to the maintenance, development, and analysis of surveillance systems for the evaluation of national vaccination programmes, specifically vaccine coverage and inequalities in uptake of vaccinations. They will support the ongoing work of the department, contribute to the publication of routine and ad-hoc statistics and specifically develop processes to evaluate new data against existing gold-standard data collections. In addition, the post holder will contribute to research studies of vaccine preventable diseases.
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- Develop and maintain surveillance systems for monitoring vaccine coverage.
- Undertake evaluation of existing and novel surveillance systems.
- Management and epidemiological analysis of data.
- Prepare routine surveillance reports.
- Work closely with members of the team to assist in responding to ad-hoc queries which require scientific input.
- Liaise with NHSE and other stakeholders to assure the quality and validity of vaccination data in the investigation and control of outbreaks, as required.
- Contribute and project manage specific research studies evaluating immunisation programmes.
- Analyse surveillance data and results of studies and write reports and papers for scientific journals.
- Assist in the preparation of papers and reports to inform policy for the UK Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.
- Design presentations and present surveillance data and study results at in-house, national, and international meetings/conferences and attend national and international conferences.
- Develop teaching material and teach on in-house courses and external courses.
- Line management responsibilities of scientists and administrative officers.
Working for our organisation
We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce. UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
These roles offer the opportunity within a national team to lead on delivering routine and emergency surveillance and evaluation of vaccine programmes through high quality data.
Working to a Senior Epidemiologist, you will lead workstreams producing routine vaccination coverage reports, which meet stakeholder needs. You will ensure surveillance systems can support timely, quality surveillance outputs and will lead the further development of data management, processes, ensuring systems are fit for purpose to meet current and future challenges. This will include responding to the implementation of new vaccination programmes, such as the RSV programme starting in September 2024, and leading on additional epidemiological analyses to evaluate programmes and inequalities in vaccination coverage.
As such, our ideal candidate is a self-starter with strong data management, analytical and scientific writing skills who can work effectively in a team, and with stakeholders, to deliver high quality outcomes. They should be comfortable with working under pressure at times as well as working to tight timelines with multiple stakeholders.
For a full list of the main duties and responsibilities of the role, please refer to the attached Job Description.
Essential Criteria
You will be assessed on the below 5 essential criteria, which have been selected from the Job Description.
• Degree in a science subject/Epidemiology or allied discipline or relevant postgraduate experience
• Postgraduate work/study in Public Health, public health microbiology, epidemiology, or an allied subject
• Experience of developing/using relational databases (including Access, SQL), spreadsheets, statistical and graphics packages (e.g., Stata or R) to an advanced level
• Experience of writing/evaluating scientific work, including report writing
• Able to interpret and evaluate microbiological or epidemiological data on vaccine preventable diseases and numerate with deep analytical skills.
Selection Process Details:
This vacancy will be assessed using a competency-based framework which will assess your Qualifications, knowledge and experience and skills and capabilities outlined in the essential criteria.
Stage 1: Application & Sift
Competency-based assessments
You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the above listed 5 essential criteria, and this will be in the form of a:
-
CV/ Application form (‘Employer/ Activity history’ section on the application)
-
1000 word Statement of Suitability.
This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.
The CV / Application form and Statement of Suitability will be marked together.
If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview and assessment
Please do not exceed 1000 words. We will not consider any words over and above this number.
Feedback will not be provided at this stage.
Stage 2: Interview (competency based)
You will be invited to a single face to face interview to be held at :
61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ
Knowledge, experience, skills & abilities will be tested at interview
There will be a Technical Test 30 mins before the interview.
Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.
Eligibility Criteria
Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants).
Security Clearance Level Requirement
Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.
Face to Face interviews
If face to face interviews are planned, in exceptional circumstances, we may be able to offer a remote interview .
Please visit our careers site for more information https://gov.uk/ukhsa/careers
IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ
Your application may be rejected and/or you may be subject to disciplinary action if evidence of plagiarism is detected. Examples of plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by artificial intelligence (AI), as your own.
This is a Non-Reserved post under the Civil Service Nationality Rules. To be eligible for employment in the UK Civil Service applicants must meet the Civil Service Nationality Rules (CSNRs) which operate independently of and additionally to the Immigration Rules. Applicants must also meet necessary security and vetting requirements, along with any other relevant pre-employment checks.
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
- individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
- Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
For more information on job nationality requirements and the right to work in the UK, see the Civil Service Nationality rules (opens in a new window) and the UK Visas and Immigration rules (opens in a new window)
For posts on UKHSA Civil Service terms and conditions, new entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. For existing Civil Servants and roles advertised across government, the rules of transfer apply, i.e., level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive a 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.
The Civil Service pay structure and progression is different from NHS Agenda for Change (AfC), most local authority pay grades and other systems that have annual pay increments. For further details, please refer to the Information Sheet- Starting Salaries & Benefits attachment.
For AfC or Medical/Dental posts, you must have the correct professional registration to be appointed. The pay will follow the AfC or Medical & Dental terms & conditions. You may be asked to provide evidence of previous service whilst we are conducting pre-employment checks to determine your starting salary.
For Temporary Appointments, if you are not currently a civil servant, you will take up the post on a Fixed Term appointment. If you are an existing Civil Servant, based outside of the UKHSA, you will take up the post as a loan which you will need your department to agree. You can not take the post up as a fixed term. If you are an existing UKHSA member of staff, you will take up the post as either a level transfer or a temporary promotion as per the UKHSA’s Pay policy.
Given the nature of the work of the UKHSA, as a Category 1 responder under the Civil Contingencies Act, you may be required in an emergency, if deemed a necessity, to redeploy to another role at short notice. You may also be required to work at any other location, within reasonable travelling distance of your permanent home address, in line with the provisions set out in your contract of employment.
Late Applications will unfortunately not be considered.
Working for the Civil Service
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: [email protected] If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website here.
Reserve List - If more than the required number of suitable candidates pass the interview criteria, you may be kept on a reserve list for 12 months subject to your agreement. You may be contacted, in merit-order, if similar roles with closely matching essential criteria become available and the department choose to appoint from a reserve list.
Interview expenses will not be reimbursed.
UKHSA is required to check employment and/or education history covering three consecutive years. Please ensure you give details of at least two different referees, even if you were employed in one company for three years or more.
If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system. Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there.
Any move to UKHSA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
Benefits of working at UKHSA include:
- Generous annual leave:
-26 days for the first 5 years of continuous service
-28 days after 5 years of continuous service
-32 days after 10 years of continuous service
-Plus public holidays and one privilege day for the King’s birthday - Access to a generous Defined Benefit pension scheme with employer contributions.
- Access to a cycle-to-work salary sacrifice scheme, season ticket advances and payroll giving.
- Access to a retail discounts and cashback site.
- We also promote flexible working patterns (part-time, job-share, condensed hours). UKHSA views flexible working as essential in enabling us to recruit and retain talented people, ensuring that they are able to enjoy a long-lasting career with us. All employees have the right to apply for flexible working and there are a range of options available including working from home, compressed hours and job sharing.
- We also offer a generous maternity/ paternity and adoption leave package.
Hybrid Working
UKHSA operates a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce.
As a hybrid worker, you will usually spend a minimum of 60% of your contracted hours (averaged over a month) working at one of UKHSA's locations (approximately 3 days a week pro rata) and the rest of your time working from home.
Disability Confident Scheme
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria at sift to ensure these candidates are invited to interview. If you wish to be included in this scheme please tick the box on your application form.
Reasonable Adjustments
The Civil Service is committed to making sure that our selection methods are fair to everyone.
To help you during the recruitment process, we will take into account any reasonable adjustments that could help you.
An adjustment is a change to the recruitment process or an adjustment at work.
This is separate to the Disability Confident Scheme.
If you need an adjustment to be made at any point during the recruitment process you should:
Contact the recruitment team in confidence as soon as possible to discuss your needs.
You can find out more information about reasonable adjustments across the Civil Service here: https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/reasonable-adjustments/
International Police Check
If you have spent more than 6 months abroad over the last 3 years you may need an International Police Check. This would not necessarily have to be in a single block, and could be time accrued over that period.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- First degree in a science subject Higher degree in Epidemiology or allied discipline or relevant postgraduate experience
Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria
- Postgraduate work/study in Public Health, public health microbiology, epidemiology or an allied subject
- Experience of developing / using relational databases (including Access, SQL), spreadsheets, statistical and graphics packages (e.g. Stata or R) to an advanced level
- Experience of writing/evaluating scientific work, including report writing
- Of interpreting and evaluating microbiological or epidemiological data on vaccine preventable diseases and numerate with deep analytical skills
Desirable criteria
- Experience co-ordinating projects in complex and challenging environments
Skills / capabilities/ behaviours
Essential criteria
- Ability to work as an effective team member
- Ability to work independently and take responsibility for own technical work and time
- Ability to analyse, summarise and interpret complex epidemiological data
- Ability to prepare and produce concise yet insightful communications for dissemination to senior stakeholders and a broad range of stakeholders as required
- Able to liaise with a wide range of external collaborators including health service and academic professionals
- Ability to work on a number of separate tasks at the same time, whilst keeping to agreed deadlines
Desirable criteria
- Experience of creating and giving presentations to a varied group of internal and external stakeholders
Knowledge & Experience
Desirable criteria
- Knowledge of vaccine schedule and polices in the UK
Equality and diversity
Essential criteria
- An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships
Documents
- Job Description (PDF, 480.3KB)
- Civil Service Recruitment Principles (PDF, 2.6MB)
- Civil Service Nationality Rules (PDF, 195.3KB)
- Application Form Guidance Notes (PDF, 77.3KB)
- Information Sheet - Starting salaries and benefits (PDF, 129.4KB)
- Information Sheet - Selection Process (PDF, 110.1KB)
- Working at UKHSA and your benefits (PDF, 219.2KB)
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Irene Scahill
- Job title
- Resourcing Support
- Email address
- [email protected]
No longer accepting applications
Sorry, this vacancy is no longer accepting applications.
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