Head of DiSSCo UK

Job summary

Head of DiSSCo UK

Salary: £58,589 Per Annum
Band: UKRI Band F
Hours: Full time or Part time (minimum 0.8 FTE)
Contract Type: 3 years Fixed Term
Location: Polaris House, Swindon, Wiltshire
Closing Date: 28 June 2026

Job description

About the Role

The Distributed System of Scientific Collections UK (DiSSCo UK) is a £155.6 million investment for a national infrastructure programme to digitise 37 million natural science specimens. To deliver this exciting new programme, AHRC, alongside their delivery partner the Natural History Museum (NHM), are developing a DiSSCo UK delivery team to manage the programme on a day-to-day basis. This new team will be based at Swindon (with strong links to London) and will be responsible for managing the contract with the external evaluation supplier, leading on benefits management, engaging with relevant communities, measuring the impacts of the programme, and ensuring that impacts, outputs and outcomes are reflected upon, reported and communicated in a timely and effective manner. Some of the key activities for the team will be supporting grant holders, designing, and delivering future funding opportunities, and capturing programme and project level impacts.

As this role will involve interaction with grant holders and stakeholders, as well as attendance at events and conferences, the role will involve UK and international travel, including overnight stays.

Your Responsibilities

• Responsible for the strategic management and alignment / strategic leadership and direction of DiSSCo UK.
• Manage the relationship between AHRC/UKRI and NHM, providing the essential bridge between funder and delivery partner.
• Work collaboratively and effectively with DiSSCo UK colleagues (including those based at the NHM), adapting and communicating to ensure shared goals are met, staff feel supported and delivery objectives are maintained.
• Work collaboratively with NHM colleagues to support the work of the DiSSCo EU European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) and Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF).
• Lead on managing the budget and financial reporting for the DiSSCo UK Programme
• Lead on the delivery of future programme approvals including Gate Reviews.
• Line management of the senior manager roles.
• Build strong working relationships to support the delivery of programmes funded by other Research Councils (notably the Natural Environment Research Council and Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council), and cross-UKRI initiatives, as appropriate.

Person specification

The below criteria will be scored during Shortlisting (S), Interview (I) or both (S&I).

Essential

• Demonstrable experience in developing, leading and delivering strategic activity, preferably in collections or related fields. Familiarity with mandated approvals and assurance processes would be beneficial. (S,I)
• Demonstrated ability to lead and manage teams (project & delivery) within complex programmes, ensuring motivation and positive management and development of staff at different levels. (S,I)
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, including working across a variety of disciplines, sectors and professions in support of programme delivery and organisational strategy including academia, government, and industry (S,I)
• Ability to represent an organisation authoritatively in high-level policy discussions and cross-sector forums. (S, I)
• Exceptional communication (both written and verbal) and influencing skills, with the ability to articulate complex issues clearly and persuasively to diverse audiences. (S,I)
• Demonstrable strategic thinking capability, including the ability to formulate and adapt strategy within a dynamic and evolving landscape (S,I)
• Strong creative problem-solving skills, coupled with a proactive and flexible approach to achieving objectives in challenging contexts. (S,I)

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £58,589, UK Research and Innovation contributes £16,973 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

We recognise and value our employees as individuals and aim to provide a favourable pay and rewards package. We are committed to supporting employees' development and promote a culture of continuous learning!

A list of benefits below:

• An outstanding defined benefit pension scheme.
• 30 days' annual leave in addition to 10.5 public and privilege days (full time equivalent).
• Employee discounts and offers on retail and leisure activities.
• Employee assistance programme, providing confidential help and advice.
• Flexible working options.

Plus many more benefits and wellbeing initiatives that enable our employees to have a great work life balance!

For further information on our benefits please see:

Benefits of working at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

UKRI is an Equal Opportunity & Disability Confident Employer.

Please apply online, if you experience any issue applying, please contact Recruitment@ukri.org

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

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

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

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Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : UKRI Recruitment Team
• Email : Recruitment@ukri.org

Recruitment team

• Email : Recruitment@ukri.org