Communications Assistant - ELSA - Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy - 107601 - Grade 5

Position Details

Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy, School of Infection, Inflammation and Immunology, College of Medicine and Health

University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £30,062 to £31,900, with potential progression once in post to £35,883

Grade: 5

Part Time 0.8 FTE 

Fixed Term contract up to September 2028

Closing date: 30th August 2026

UK travel may be required for this role 

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Background

The University of Birmingham is a global institution working within a diverse and vibrant City, offering an inspiring education to our students, and undertaking critically important research.  We are a place of open, critical thinking, and the creation, sharing and dissemination of knowledge.  Professional Services put students at the heart of all they do and enable an exceptional educational experience. They provide outstanding support to our researchers and help the University to grow its influence regionally, nationally, and globally. They ensure the University’s resources are used wisely, manage and improve the infrastructure which sits at the heart of the institution, and support decisions to be made quickly and based on sound evidence.  Our Birmingham Professional programme operates across the University, supporting colleagues to network and collaborate, offering opportunities to learn and develop, contributing to the delivery of the University’s objectives, and helping everyone to understand the broader context within which we work. 

Project overview 

3 in 1000 children and young adults are at high risk of developing type 1 diabetes in the future. The only way we can find these children and young adults is through screening.

The ELSA Study is recruiting 70,000 children and young adults aged 2-17 years in the UK to explore the feasibility and benefits of screening for type 1 diabetes. The age range is important as 16 and 17 years olds can give their own consent to take part, rather than parental consent, and their recruitment to this study is particularly important so will be a major focus of this Communications Assistant role.  We expect recruitment of this age group to focus on online registration driven by social media. 

Home testing is available to all families. Testing is also offered in some schools and general practices, and is based on a finger-prick blood test where a few drops of blood are placed on a card. This card goes to the laboratories at the University of Birmingham and is tested for antibodies. 

You can learn more about the study here: https://www.elsadiabetes.nhs.uk/ 

The study is supported by Research FIRST (https://birminghamhealthpartners.co.uk/for-researchers/our-research-first-service/) , a service which provides expert support with any research project that is not a Clinical Trials of Investigational Medicinal Products (CTIMP) – for example clinical audits, service evaluations and management databases. 

It is delivered through Birmingham Health Partners, a strategic research alliance made up of nine partners including the University of Birmingham and six NHS Trusts in the city. Its objective is to transform Birmingham’s healthcare through high-impact innovation – delivering research that matters to patients: https://birminghamhealthpartners.co.uk/

The post holder will report to the Birmingham Health Partners Communications Manager with a dotted line to the Head of Research FIRST, and will work closely with the ELSA study team.

Role Summary

The Communications Assistant plays an important role in amplifying the scale, visibility and impact of the University’s activities globally. Working with colleagues across the University, the post holder will support the delivery of communications activities, and provide administrative support.  

In this role, the post holder will support communications activities delivered to a range of audiences across a variety of channels including media, social media, digital, events and advertising.

The post holder will build and maintain effective relationships and work collaboratively with key internal stakeholders, across Colleges and Professional Services including academic staff, and the wider Communications teams. They will play an active role in the University’s communications communities.

Main Duties

• Support the delivery of a range of creative, multi-channel communications activities and campaigns to raise the profile and increase the impact of the ELSA study (e.g. across media, social media, digital, events and advertising), and other University activities as appropriate.
• Work closely with specialist colleagues in Communications, with Colleges, the wider ER division, and other Professional Services to develop a comprehensive and unified approach to increase impact of communications at the University.
• Carefully log activity within the Communications planning tools and contribute to newsgathering and assignment discussions. 
• Work flexibly across academic research areas in response to strategic priorities. 
• Generate new ideas for content. 
• Research, create and edit high quality content across a variety of channels at a level consistent with the University’s Global Top 50 ambitions (e.g. social media, press releases, publications, infographics, policy briefs, workshops, toolkits, presentations), adapting content to a variety of audiences. 
• Champion the brand to ensure consistency of messaging, content and visual identity. 
• Support the management of social media channels.
• Maintain and update allocated domain communications web content.
• Use Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems to deliver targeted, timely communications.
• Support the development of communications collaterals, working with colleagues, internal and external agencies, and suppliers as required.
• Support the delivery of the internal staff communications strategy.
• Collate, analyse and interpret data in relation to metrics and reviewing activities in line with these and prepare written reports.
• Provide other administrative support for the team. 
• Provide support to the wider Communications teams as directed, supporting a variety of activities, events, and campaigns and any other duties commensurate with the grade.
• Willing to work occasional evenings, weekends, and travel as needed to support activities.

 General duties

• Promote a supportive and inclusive team culture - working with discretion, demonstrate diplomacy, maintain confidentiality and ensure compliance with GDPR, accessibility and other regulations as required. 
• Promotes equality and values diversity, acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture. 
• Supports the University’s sustainability agenda through resource efficient working. 

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Educated to A Level or equivalent Level 3 qualification (e.g. NVQ, National Diploma) or relevant work experience demonstrating ability to perform the role.
• GCSE (or equivalent) in English and Mathematics at grade C/4 or above.
• Previous experience in a relevant role; within a large, complex organisation desirable.
• Strong IT proficiency, including Microsoft Office, with the ability to learn new systems quickly.
• Excellent organisational skills with proven ability to plan (including sometimes others’ workloads), prioritise, and manage multiple tasks to meet deadlines.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to translate complex information to diverse audiences across multiple channels, ensuring accessibility for all.
• High level of social media literacy, with the ability to respond quickly to trends and develop content that will resonate with target audiences
• Develop a good understanding of recognised web standards, including accessibility.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate effectively, including with colleagues at all levels, and deliver exceptional customer service.
• High level of professionalism, discretion, and tact when handling and managing sensitive information/issues.
• Ability to work independently using initiative, sound judgment, and flexibility.
• Ability to work effectively in a large, complex organisation and to develop a good understanding of how the University and higher education institutions work.
• Ability to interpret and apply policies and procedures accurately.
• Meticulous attention to detail and high standards of accuracy.
• Confidence in handling statistical and financial data.

DBS required

The University is committed to safeguarding and we promote safe recruitment practice, therefore all associated pre-employment checks will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed. Due to the nature of the work undertaken in this role all successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory DBS clearance prior to appointment.

Further particulars can be found here

Informal enquiries to Louise Stanley, email: [email protected] 

View our staff values and behaviours here

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.