Job summary
- Main area
- Social Worker Research Lead
- Grade
- Band 8a
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 351-CS2875-CL
- Employer
- Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Social Work Projects
- Town
- Preston
- Salary
- £57,528 - £64,750 Per Annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 14/04/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Social Work Research Lead
Band 8a
Our Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism, community, and physical health services for the populations we serve.
As an integrated Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCFT) delivers a comprehensive range of services, including:
- Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults, including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, and forensic services with low and medium secure care.
- Specialist mental health inpatient care for individuals with learning disabilities, alongside specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.
- Extensive community physical health and well-being services for children and adults, covering prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and long-term condition management.
The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,500 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health, general nurses, children’s nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers, as well as those specialising in learning disabilities and community physical health services.
For more information visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT.
Job overview
At LSCFT, our social work practice is grounded in our Brilliant Basics framework.
This model ensures we excel in four critical areas: Clinical Practice, Leadership, Education, and Research. As the Social Work Research Lead, you will be the driving force behind the Research element of this framework. Your goal is to move beyond standard practice by identifying key priorities for new knowledge and ensuring every intervention we provide is backed by the strongest evidence.
Main duties of the job
Leading the Research Agenda
In this role, you won't just oversee projects; you will cultivate a research-active culture that empowers our staff and improves patient outcomes.
You will:
Identify & Innovate: Pinpoint gaps in our current knowledge base to deliver better care and support for people accessing our services.
Support & Mobilise: Actively support LSCFT social workers with their own research while sharing findings through effective knowledge mobilisation.
Collaborate for Quality: Lead quality improvement projects and research into patient experiences to inform person-centred service design.
Address Inequalities: Contribute to projects that explore strategies to reduce health inequalities and challenge discrimination within our diverse communities.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Partnerships: Effectively link with academic partners (including UCLAN, Lancaster University, and the University of Manchester) to develop high-quality research bids.
Grant Leadership: Lead the development and submission of research grant bids, such as NIHR Research for Patient Benefit.
Evidence-Based Practice: Inculcate research awareness among social workers to promote a culture of evidence-based practice.
Working for our organisation
LSCFT values diversity and inclusion, recognising that talent from varied backgrounds creates a flexible, creative, and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from all, regardless of age, disability (including those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion, belief, or sexual orientation.
Our aim is to reflect the communities we serve, so we particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups. If you’d like to discuss your application, please ask.
We also welcome individuals with lived experience relevant to the role or service area, as your insight brings authenticity to our services.
LSCFT support flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as term time, part time, compressed hours and flexi-time.
The wellbeing of our people is at the heart of everything we do. We offer a wide range of resources, tools and support to help you thrive both in and out of work.
Explore our full wellbeing offer here: Keeping our workforce well
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information about this role.
Person specification
Education, Qualifications and Training
Essential criteria
- • Social Work degree
- • Master’s degree in relevant subject or equivalent knowledge and experience
- • Evidence of continuing professional development related to research and development
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- • NIHR funding options and other potential grant opportunities, e.g. charities, professional associations
- • Knowledge of social work practice within and NHS setting – the challenges, strength and tensions related to practice.
- • Quantitative and qualitative research methods
- • Communication techniques with hard to reach populations
Experience
Essential criteria
- • Experience of working as an independent researcher
- • Experience of data collection on funded projects relating to mental health
- • Work with people with mental health difficulties
- • Knowledge of clinical services/clinical experience
- • Experience of preparing reports and summarising data
Skills and Aptitudes
Essential criteria
- • Ability to secure external research funding
- • Project / programme management
- • Ability to produce written work to high standard of accuracy, quality and presentation
- • Excellent communication skills (written and verbal) including an ability to communicate and work across a number of different settings
- • Excellent IT skills including use of Microsoft Office and research software
Other
Essential criteria
- • Creative, innovative, lateral thinker and has an ability to generate solutions
- • Ability to work with people from different backgrounds and of different ages
- • Ability to work well with staff of all grades/disciplines and interact professionally at all times
- • Ability to be flexible and adapt to changing circumstances
- • Can achieve a healthy work/life balance and is a positive influence on others around them
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
Application numbers
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Ryan Cowley-Sharp
- Job title
- Senior Manager
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07557789673
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