GMCA Research and Strategy, Greater Manchester Combined Authority

Greater Manchester is at the national forefront of public policy innovation and new thinking about how to transform the lives of local citizens. We want to make Greater Manchester one of the best places in the world to grow up, get on, and grow old. We will do this by nurturing a world class, competitive, caring and economically sustainable place to live. This is an exciting time to be working in the city region for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA).

Greater Manchester is one of the country's most successful city-regions. It is home to more than 2.7 million people and with an economy bigger than that of Wales or Northern Ireland. It was the first city region to agree a devolution agreement with the government in late 2014. In May 2017 the residents of Greater Manchester voted for their first ever Mayor for Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham. Under the Mayor, and the leaders of our ten councils, the Combined Authority now seeks to reform and transform public services. It will do so through a new model for public service delivery based on person, place and prevention, reaching across health and social care, education, the criminal justice system, and wider public services.

The GMCA Research and Strategy Department plays an important role in providing the evidence base for almost everything we do as a city region. To help us achieve our ambitions, we are seeking to appoint a research analyst with a cross-cutting role supporting our public service reform programme.

Analysts within the team engage in work across a whole range of the GMCA’s priorities:

Supporting investment decisions – by looking at the evidence behind new ways of delivering public services and helping senior officers consider value for money in everything we do. The Research Team’s work on population health, for example, has helped ensure more is being done in Greater Manchester to tackle smoking and drinking during pregnancy; it has informed thinking on how we can offer lung cancer screening to local residents; and supported the decision to invest more local resources in early diagnosis of HIV.

Evaluating what we do – through having the right monitoring and evaluation processes in place. The team does in-house evaluation on some projects (e.g. our front-line police and mental health responses to people experiencing crisis; our children’s social care innovation projects); we support collaborations with university and wider research partners on other, flagship initiatives such as the Working Well programme; and we work collaboratively with government on national agendas such as the Troubled Families programme.

Promoting evidence-based decision making – by making the right performance and outcomes data available to the right audiences. The team is the evidence engine-room for the Mayor and Greater Manchester Leaders, and is transforming the way insight work is delivered in Greater Manchester. We are committed to ensuring that decision making in Greater Manchester is supported by the smart use of new data analytics tools, techniques and software.

If you are the person for the job, we expect you will have previous experience of research projects from either academic study or work experience. An understanding of how to analyse and interpret data relating to policy issues is vital. The research you produce will be used to brief and inform what the Mayor and other leaders choose to invest in and deliver.

Skills and experience you will need include:

·         A high level of technical competence in both quantitative and qualitative research methods;

·         Highly skilled in developing and delivering research projects;

·         Excellent writing and presentation abilities that can be demonstrated in previous work;

·         The people skills and communication skills necessary to work with a range of different project teams and individuals across public, private and voluntary sectors;

·         An eagerness to learn new techniques and approaches, and to make Greater Manchester one of the best places in the world to live.

Applicants need to be flexible to changing circumstances – our work changes daily, and candidates should be willing and confident in turning their hands to a wide variety of research tasks.

In return, research analysts will get to work in one of the most exciting areas of the country, with people who have a real passion for Greater Manchester and the work we do. We offer a good salary, and a wide range of opportunities to work with people across multiple organisations and multiple policy areas. This opportunity is what you make of it!

Please apply by completing the application form, and please also include a brief covering letter explaining how your knowledge and experience equip you for the role by 12^th May 2019 at 5pm. The covering letter can be attached to the application as a supporting document.

About Us

As an employer, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) is made up of a number of key Greater Manchester strategic functions and service providers including; Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS); Waste and Recourses; Environment; Work and Skills; Research; Public Service Reform; Police, Crime and Criminal Justice; Homelessness; the Greater Manchester Ageing Hub and the Commissioning Hub.

We value the diversity of our employees, and aim to recruit a workforce which reflects our diverse communities across Greater Manchester. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals, irrespective of people's age, disability, gender, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or other personal circumstances. We have guidance in place to ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and consistently at every stage of the recruitment process, including the consideration of reasonable adjustments for people who have a disability.

The GMCA is an Equal Opportunities Employer and we positively welcome applications from all candidates regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

The GMCA is a supportive flexible working employer. Our flexible working offer includes part time working, home/remote working, flexible start and finish times and job share.  Other employee benefits include salary sacrifice schemes for cycling and transport tickets, a variety of discounts/reward card schemes, FlameSaver, Insurance discounts and the Employee Assistance Programme that provides advice for you and your immediate family.

To find out more about working for us please click here https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/.

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