Head of Evaluation and Observational Research (Maternity Cover)

Niot; London, Birmingham, Blackburn, Bristol, Bradford; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

The National Institute of Teaching is seeking a Head of Evaluation and Observational Research for maternity cover. This role involves leading research projects, supervising teams, and contributing to educational methodologies. The position offers a competitive salary and opportunities for professional development within a collaborative environment.

Benefits

27 days’ holiday a year (plus 8 bank holidays)

Flexible working opportunities, including hybrid working

Entry to the Local Government Pension Scheme

Highly competitive pay and pay progression opportunities

A stimulating, supportive working environment

Qualifications

• Experience supervising early career researchers.
• Experience with monitoring & evaluation research.
• Prior record of publishing high-quality written outputs.

Responsibilities

• Supervise the design and delivery of large-scale research projects.
• Conduct quantitative analyses of education data.
• Prepare high-quality written outputs such as reports and academic papers.

Skills

Quantitative research methods

Project management

Interpersonal communication

Data analysis

Team collaboration

Education

Doctoral degree in social science, education, or research methods

Job description

Head of Evaluation and Observational Research (Maternity Cover)

The NIoT has an exciting opportunity to cover for a period of maternity leave. This role is a 0.6 FTE and is to cover the Head of Evaluation and Observational Research. This role will report to the Executive Director of Research and will work within a multidisciplinary research team alongside other Heads of Faculty and Research, and a team of Research Fellows and Research Assistants. This position includes a Principal Investigator role for the national School-level Professional Development research project at NIoT, and oversight of a portfolio of programme evaluation research within NIoT programme design and delivery.

Apply By: 15 June 2025 Location: London, Birmingham, Blackburn, Bristol, Bradford, Doncaster, Redcar. Salary: Actual salary is circa £38,000 per annum, pro rata. (FTE salary is £55,000-65,000)

About Us

The National Institute of Teaching (NIoT) is a school-led and research-informed organisation operating across England providing teacher and leadership training, from initial teacher education (ITE) to a dedicated course for CEOs of multi-academy trusts.

The NIoT is among the largest national provider of ITE and trains thousands of teachers a year across four regional teams and nine campuses.

We are committed to high quality, evidence-informed, teacher education, and are on a mission to improve the quality of teacher and leader development across the system. Part of this mission involves producing rigorous, impactful, and cutting-edge school-led research.

We have dedicated in-house research teams who work with our programme-delivery teams to develop and test new methodologies, address critical challenges, and meet the evolving needs of our partner schools and organisations in the wider education sector. This is a new and exciting approach to embedding research within practice in education, and we work collaboratively to continually evolve and strengthen our approach to making research useful in teacher education practice. The Evaluation and Observational Research team sits within the overall Research team and designs and implements primary research projects in collaboration with the Programmes team at the NIoT.

About the Role

The NIoT has an exciting opportunity to cover for a period of maternity leave. This role is a 0.6 FTE and is to cover the Head of Evaluation and Observational Research.

This role will report to the Executive Director of Research and will work within a multidisciplinary research team alongside other Heads of Faculty and Research, and a team of Research Fellows and Research Assistants.

This position includes a Principal Investigator role for the national School-level Professional Development research project at NIoT, and oversight of a portfolio of programme evaluation research within NIoT programme design and delivery.

In addition to being a specialist in designing and conducting primary observational and/or experimental quantitative research, you will be an innovative and practice-minded researcher who strives to make cutting-edge research relevant, engaging, and useful for practitioners in teacher education. You will also play a key role in contribution to the academic environment at the NIoT, for example, teaching and marking at Masters’ degree level.

You will either be looking to take on or extend your experience of leading a research team: both supervising early career researchers and providing oversight to the design and delivery of primary research projects in education.

Corporate Responsibilities

• To ensure that the responsibilities of the role are carried out in a way which reflects the mission and the values of the NIoT.
• To be aware of and observe all policies, procedures, working practices and regulations, and in particular to comply with policies relating to Equal Opportunities, Health and Safety, Confidentiality, Data Protection and Financial Regulations, reporting any concerns to an appropriate person.
• To comply with all reasonable management requests.

Main Duties & Key Responsibilities

• Supervise the design and delivery of a large-scale research project in education, working closely with members of the project team from across the organisation, education stakeholders, and collaborators.
• Supervise the design and management of a portfolio of programme evaluation research, working closely with the Heads of ITE, ECF and NPQ Faculties.
• Supervise and conduct quantitative analyses of education data.
• Provide academic supervision to Research Fellows and Research Assistants.
• Prepare high-quality written outputs, such as reports, presentations, and academic papers, and provide support and supervision to early career researchers to do so.
• Lead the design and dissemination of resources and activities for a range of audiences.
• Communicate and liaise with the teams designing and delivering teacher professional development programmes at NIoT, school staff, and other education stakeholders throughout the project life cycle.
• Contribution to the academic environment at the NIoT, for example, teaching and marking at Masters’ degree level.
• A commitment to the aims of the National Institute of Teaching.
• An interest in the education sector and a belief in the value of teachers and school leaders.
• Excellent understanding of quantitative research methods, including experimental approaches.
• Experience with designing and/or conducting randomised or non-randomised experiments in the context of programme design and delivery improvement.
• Doctoral degree in social science, education, research methods, or other relevant field.
• Experience with monitoring & evaluation research.
• Enjoys working collaboratively and flexibly (including in a hybrid working environment) and approaches problem-solving with curiosity.
• Experience managing research projects, including collaborative projects to tight timelines.
• Prior record of publishing high-quality written outputs.
• Commitment to upholding high ethical standards and best practices in educational research.
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills.
• Excellent organisation skills and attention to detail.
• Proven interest and/or experience in teacher training and professional development.
• Experience working in or with schools.
• Experience supervising and/or line managing early career researchers.

Working at the National Institute of Teaching

Contract: Maternity Cover starting in August 2025 for approximately 12 months. FTE 0.6 which is 22.2 hours per week. Working pattern negotiable.

Salary: Actual salary is circa £38,000 per annum, pro rata. (FTE salary is £55,000-65,000) London Weighting where applicable.

• Highly competitive pay and pay progression opportunities.
• Flexible start and end working times.
• Flexible working opportunities, including hybrid working.
• 27 days’ holiday a year (plus 8 bank holidays)
• Entry to the Local Government Pension Scheme
• A stimulating, supportive and rewarding working environment with a dedicated team of likeminded professionals.
• Excellent opportunities to develop your skills and experience and to progress your career.
• A range of salary sacrifice schemes.

Notes:

-This post requires a satisfactory enhanced disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) with a Children’s Barred List Check and Occupational Health Check is required as a condition of employment.

-This document is an overview of the role.

-The responsibilities will include but will not be limited to those listed above and it is anticipated that the role will evolve over time and as such the duties may change.

-This document does not form part of the contract of employment.

Contact Us: If you have any queries about this role, please email us [e-mail]

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