ABOUT THE ROLE
We are excited to announce a 2-year opportunity to join a vibrant research environment as a postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences. Working as part of a multi-agency, multi-disciplinary team, you will principally support delivery of research activity on the UKRI Cross Research Council Responsive Mode-funded ECLIPS project [Protocol development and feasibility study for the Elevated Childhood Lead Interagency Prevalence Study].
Lead (Pb) pollution is a global problem and harmful even in small amounts. Lead exposure is entirely preventable. ECLIPS will develop and trial a new child blood Pb screening procedure. We aim to create a quick, simple process for home blood sample collection to test for Pb. The pilot study for our innovative screening protocol will take place in Leeds, UK. This new protocol reframes Pb biomonitoring as a community driven activity. Families will play a crucial role in data collection within their homes, receiving support to identify strategies for reducing Pb exposure.
As the role holder you will undertake, with appropriate support and guidance, individual and collaborative research, including analysing questionnaire data, and delivering workshops and other public events. You will also write up research findings for publication and other dissemination, and contribute to impact via knowledge transfer initiatives. Depending on your skill set, you may also analyse environmental samples (principally house dust and garden soil).
This role is a part-time (0.7 full-time equivalent) fixed term role for 2 years (24 months). We are happy to consider part-time job share arrangements.
ABOUT THE TEAM
You will join a team of researchers from the universities of Northumbria, Oxford, Bristol and Warwick, working in partnership with the UK Health Security Agency, the Health and Safety Executive, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and project partners Synnovis and the LEAPP Alliance. The project is aligned to the Urban Futures Interdisciplinary Research Theme.
ABOUT YOU
Applicants should hold a PhD (or equivalent experience) in a relevant discipline and have demonstrable specialist knowledge and skills in one or more of the following
areas: exposure science, public health, epidemiology, environmental analysis, community outreach. Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to build positive and effective working relationships with colleagues both within and outside the University, and proven experience or interest of working with community participants is essential.
Further information about the requirements of the role are available in the person specification .
If you would like an informal discussion about the role, please contact one of the project leads: Dr Lindsay Bramwell lindsay.bramwell@northumbria.ac.uk, or Prof. Jane Entwistle jane.entwistle@northumbria.ac.uk
For this vacancy please click 'Apply Now'. Your application should include a covering letter and a CV.
ABOUT US
Northumbria University is a research-intensive university that unlocks potential for all. We change lives regionally, nationally, and internationally through education and research, tackling the global challenges of our age to transform society and the economy. Find out why we were named Times Higher Education's University of the Year in 2022 and Modern University of the Year in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2025.
Northumbria recorded the biggest rise of any UK university for research power in the Research Excellence Framework for the second time in 2021 and is now ranked top 25 in the UK for this measure.
One of the largest universities in the UK with over 37,000 students from more than 140 countries, filled with world-leading research, award-winning partnerships, and students at the heart of an outstanding experience. Discover more about us .
Northumbria University is a great place to work. We empower our exceptional people to achieve shared ambitions and promote a positive work life balance. We offer a wide range of benefits including excellent pension schemes, flexible working, a generous holiday entitlement, continued commitment to your learning and development and more .
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We are an on-campus organisation where colleagues work regular patterns of hours and on campus, with some flexibility on the timing of their hours and the location of their work in discussion with their manager. Our campus locations include our City and Coach Lane Campuses in Newcastle upon Tyne and our London campus.
Northumbria University is committed to creating an inclusive culture where we take pride in, and value, the diversity of our staff. We encourage and welcome applications from all members of the community. The University holds bronze Athena Swan and Race Equality Charter awards in recognition of our commitment to advancing gender and race equality, we are a Disability Confident Leader and are participating in the Stonewall Diversity Champion Programme. We also hold the HR Excellence in Research award for implementing the concordat supporting the career Development of Researchers and are members of the Euraxess initiative to deliver information and support to professional researchers. The University has implemented a range of flexible working arrangements, and we are happy to explore candidate requirements as part of the recruitment process.
We are committed to keeping your data safe so it's important for you to know how we use any personal data you give us. For more detailed information, access our Privacy Policy .We are excited to announce a 2-year opportunity to join a vibrant research environment as a postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences. Working as part of a multi-agency, multi-disciplinary team, you will principally support delivery of research activity on the UKRI Cross Research Council Responsive Mode-funded ECLIPS project [Protocol development and feasibility study for the Elevated Childhood Lead Interagency Prevalence Study].