Job vacancy: Senior Public Health Researcher, Public Health Wales NHS Trust, Cardiff

Job summary

Main area

Senior Public Health Research Officer - National Population Health

Grade

Band 6

Contract

22 months (Fixed Term for 22 months until 31/08/2027 due to funding)

Hours

Full time
Flexible working

37.5 hours per week

Job ref

028-AC208-0825

Employer: Public Health Wales NHS Trust
Employer type: NHS
Site: Capital Quarter 2
Town: Cardiff
Salary: £39,263 - £47,280 per annum
Salary period: Yearly
Closing: 31/08/2025 23:59

Senior Public Health Researcher

Band 6

Welcome to Public Health Wales, the national public health organisation for Wales

Our vision is Working to achieve a healthier future for Wales

To find out more visit Public Health Wales and watch this video about our Strategic Plan

Working together, with trust and respect, to make a difference

Applicants are invited to apply in Welsh, any application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application made in English. To support our all Wales service, we particularly welcome applications from Welsh speakers.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

About the Role

Join Public Health Wales as a Senior Public Health Researcher and play a central part in our work to transform Wales’ rare diseases surveillance and research capability.

You’ll be part of the CARIS team in the Research, Data and Digital Directorate, contributing to a national programme that aims to transform how rare disease research is delivered in Wales. Your work will involve mapping data sources, developing exemplar studies, and enhancing the systems that support research and innovation across the rare disease landscape.

What You’ll Do

· Lead analytical work on rare diseases and congenital anomaly datasets.

· Shape the design and delivery of exemplar research studies.

· Support the development of metadata, coding standards, and infrastructure to improve research readiness.

· Collaborate across disciplines and organisations to deliver meaningful, high-quality research.

· Present findings to a range of audiences, from peers to policy and clinical stakeholders.

· Contribute to a culture of innovation in data linkage, documentation, and research practice.

What You Bring

Strong research skills with experience analysing health or clinical datasets.
Knowledge of public health and/or rare disease contexts.
Proficiency in tools such as R, Python, SPSS, or other analytical software.
Ability to communicate complex findings clearly and with impact.
A collaborative, solutions-focused mindset and a commitment to improving outcomes for under-served populations.

The Job Description and Personal Specification provide full details.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; Welsh and/or English speakers are equally welcome to apply.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

Educated to degree level or equivalent in a mathematical, statistical, computer-science, epidemiology, operational research, informatics or a similar discipline.

Desirable criteria

A master’s degree in relevant discipline or equivalent.

Experience & Knowledge

Essential criteria

Experience in conducting research and evaluation in a field related to public health and understanding the application of different types of data.
Experience of verbal and written communicating complex information including writing academic publications.
A proven track-record of data management and the management of projects delivering against targets.
Knowledge of research methods such as survey design and evaluations.
Experience in conducting research and evaluation in a field related to public health, and understanding the application of different types of data.
Experience of conducting data analysis including survey data and routine health data
Experience of conducting literature reviews.

Desirable criteria

Contribution to external funding applications.
Experience of manipulating large and complex datasets.

Skills & Abilities

Essential criteria

Advanced IT skills with proficiency in Microsoft Office applications including SharePoint.
Statistical analysis of complex information, using software packages such as R.

Desirable criteria

Knowledge and experience of SQL to interrogate data within a relational database environment in a health setting.

Personal Attributes

Essential criteria

Flexible to meet the needs of the service and able to multi task
Ability to work to deadlines and prioritise own workload
Must be proactive. Ability to work under own initiative and as part of a team
Self-confident, motivated and reliable.
Enthusiasm to develop self.
Willingness and ability to travel between sites in Wales.

Desirable criteria

Welsh speaker

Public Health Wales, reserves the right to close this vacancy early. We therefore encourage early applications.

Priority is given to staff awaiting redeployment. We therefore reserve the right to withdraw this advert at any stage.

If you have a disability and have any particular requirements to enable you to participate in the application process, please contact [email protected]

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR APPLICANTS: Applications for our roles are carefully reviewed and shortlisted based on specific criteria, which varies from job to job.

Using a generic application or automated AI application services, such as Lazy Apply or AI Apply, does not usually provide enough personal evidence of your skills and experience relevant to the role. This can make it difficult for us to assess your suitability and will reduce your chances of being shortlisted.

To ensure your application is given full consideration, we recommend submitting a tailored application that directly addresses the criteria listed in the Person Specification section of the advert, providing clear evidence and examples to demonstrate how you meet each requirement.

Visa Sponsorship Eligibility

If you require sponsorship under the Skilled Worker or Health and Care Visa routes, please ensure you self‑assess your eligibility for sponsorship for this role before applying.
Check the Skilled Worker visa guidance or Health and Care visa guidance for details on job eligibility, salary, English language, and sponsorship requirements.

If you are successful and short listed for interview you will be contacted by email using the address with which you registered. Please ensure you check your email account regularly.

We are committed to fair, transparent recruitment and believe in equality of opportunity in our workplace and will not tolerate discrimination on grounds of age, disability, gender identity, religion or belief, race or nationality, marriage or civil partnership status, sex, sexual orientation, working pattern, caring responsibilities, trade union activity or political beliefs – or on any other grounds. We welcome applications from individuals seeking flexible working arrangements.

The salary scale shown is for a full-time member of staff, with the amount being adjusted pro rata for those working less than 37.5 hours per week.

The salary scale above has been agreed as part of the NHS Agenda for Change pay award for 2025/2026 and will be implemented in August 2025 with arrears backdated to 1st April 2025 where applicable.

In general, anyone joining our Trust who has not previously worked in the NHS will, by default, start on the first point of the advertised pay band. Pay progression will then be determined by annual Performance and Development Reviews in accordance with the NHS Wales Pay Progression Policy. An application for Incremental Credit may be considered, but can only be awarded based on evidenced, reckonable service and/or equivalent, relevant experience.