Involvement and Engagement Officer

The Involvement & Engagement Officer will play a crucial role in delivering the patient and public involvement and engagement strategy for Alzheimer’s Research UK.

The role forms part of the Involvement & Engagement team, which sits in the Information and Involvement (I&I) department.

The team acts as a focal point for patient and public involvement at the charity, working to ensure that people with lived experience shape and inform projects and activity across ARUK. You will coordinate and support a key group of lived experience involvement volunteers, facilitate high-quality involvement activity, and contribute to the development of standards and processes that enable meaningful involvement across ARUK.

The team supports colleagues and dementia researchers by developing guidance and training on involvement and engagement and promoting best practice.

The team also delivers public engagement initiatives, with the aim of making dementia research accessible and inspiring to the public through face-to-face events and participatory projects. The team also supports fundraising colleagues and activities through helping to embed and enhance ways to engage supporters with dementia research.

The team forms part of the busy Policy, Communications & Involvement directorate and works closely with colleagues both within the directorate and across the charity. The I&I department’s mission is to improve understanding of dementia and the diseases which cause it and encourage and support the public and people affected by dementia to get involved in research. The evolving remit of the team means this role has significant scope to shape and develop this area of work.

MAIN DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Working with the Involvement & Engagement Manager, implement ARUK’s public involvement and engagement strategy.
• Plan and deliver the work of the Lived Experience Involvement Group, including liaising with members and providing dementia specific assistance, arranging logistics for meetings, responding to queries, liaising with internal stakeholders.
• Facilitate involvement activities, including producing plans and briefs ahead of sessions; facilitating sessions, ensuring participants can effectively take part and share their views; gathering insight and effectively analysing and sharing with relevant colleagues.
• Support the recruitment of new lived experience representatives, with a focus on improving representation from people with a dementia diagnosis and those from underserved communities.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records relating to involvement activity, in line with ARUK policies and procedures.
• Help to develop and deliver training on engagement and involvement for the Lived Experience Involvement Group, colleagues and the research community, working with the Research Involvement Manager.
• Work closely with the Research Involvement Manager and wider Research team, sharing knowledge and insights and supporting their work focussed on involvement in research. Collaborate on special projects relating to involvement as appropriate.
• Act as a champion for public involvement across ARUK, effectively communicating the importance of involvement in the charity’s work and supporting colleagues to effectively incorporate involvement into key projects and initiatives.
• Work with the Involvement & Engagement Manager to evaluate the involvement and engagement programme, identify opportunities for continuous improvement and propose new initiatives.
• Seek opportunities for public facing activity, that engage people with the topic of dementia and the importance of research, in line with ARUK’s strategic goals.
• Support delivery of online public event series, working with colleagues across events, marketing and social media to plan sessions and effectively promote them, both externally and internally, to engage supporters and other members of the public with dementia research funded by ARUK.
• Support colleagues to effectively engage with their audiences, creating and maintaining compelling activities and resources that bring dementia research to life.
• Keep up to date with patient and public engagement and involvement sectors to identify emerging knowledge and best practice that might benefit ARUK’s work. Take part in groups that support professional development around involvement and engagement.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

• Experience in coordinating or delivering patient and public involvement and/or public engagement.
• Knowledge of the spectrum of involvement approaches and methods.
• Experience in project management, with the ability to oversee multiple projects simultaneously.
• Experience of discussing and communicating health or research matters with the public.
• Experience of building and maintaining effective working relationships with internal colleagues and external partners.
• Experience in developing and delivering training programs related to public involvement or public engagement.
• Experience of working with people affected by dementia and their families.
• Understanding of the medical research environment.
• Knowledge of equity, diversity and inclusion principles and how they relate to health inequalities.
• Experience of working in a charity or fundraising environment.
• Experience of managing volunteers.
• Experience of using databases or customer-relationship management systems.
• Ability to communicate clearly in writing and verbally, adapting information for non-specialist audiences.
• Ability to communicate clearly and sensitively with people affected by dementia and their families.
• Ability to find creative solutions to complex problems.
• Ability to organise and coordinate multiple projects with competing deadlines.
• Ability to work with independently and manage their tasks effectively
• Ability to use Microsoft 365 applications and databases or customer relationship management systems to maintain records and support project delivery.
• Ability to travel within the UK occasionally and work outside regular office hours when required, with reasonable adjustments where appropriate.
• Ability to facilitate group discussions, enable different voices to contribute and capture key insights.

The closing date for applications is the 25th October 2026, with interviews being arrange once shortlisting has been completed. Please indicate in your covering letter if you are unable to attend an interview on a certain date. We would encourage you to submit your application at the earliest opportunity, as on occasion we may have to bring forward the interview date and/or the closing date based on the needs of the business. Although a possibility, this will only happen in exceptional circumstances. Please indicate in your covering letter if you are unable to attend an interview on a certain date.