Plant Health Research Support Officer

Government Recruitment Service; Leicester; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 38,000; Full time

Job summary

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) offers a temporary Plant Health Research Support Officer role based in Leicester. You will join the National Centre for Environmental Horticulture and Plant Health (NCEH) to help safeguard plant health through research administration and portfolio delivery.

The role involves coordinating with Defra policy makers, managing research outputs from conception to publication, and collaborating with partners across the UK and beyond to translate science into

Responsibilities

• Support the NCEH Head of Centre in administering and delivering the NCEH
• Develop and manage elements of the NCEH research portfolios and related activities
• Ensure research outputs are delivered on time using scientific knowledge and programme management
• Manage the NCEH pipeline of project reports and outputs from submission to publication
• Collaborate with Defra policy makers and specialists to assure evidence underpinning plant health policy
• Collaborate with Defra network partners including APHA, Forestry Commission, Forest Research and Kew
• Contribute to high-profile work on priority plant health threats
• Support other Defra group plant health programmes as required

Job description

Plant Health Research Support Officer

Company: Government Recruitment Service

Salary: £35,895 to £38,192 a year

Hours: Full-time

Location: Leicester

Job type: Temporary

Posting date: 22 Oct 2026

Closing date: 5 Nov 2026

Do you want to help shape and deliver research that protects the UK’s plants, trees and horticulture from emerging threats?

Can you bring people, science and evidence together to support effective plant health decisions?

If so, we would love to hear from you!

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves. We value difference and diversity, because it helps us be more innovative and make better decisions.

We are dedicated to being an inclusive employer, offering equitable opportunities for all individuals. Our goal is to build a diverse workforce, and we hope to attract applications from all backgrounds and underrepresented groups.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Plant Health Research Support officer to join our National Centre for Environmental Horticulture and Plant Health (NCEH). We have one mission, which is to safeguard animal and plant health for the benefit of everyone in society, the environment, and the economy. Every one of our employees is passionate about achieving this mission. Responding to the Government’s mission for kickstarting economic growth, this role has been created to capitalise on the UK’s excellence in plant science and translate this into commercial success for the environmental horticulture sector. This sector is facing a number of interrelated challenges including increasing pest and disease risks, reductions in pesticide use and the use of alternative growing media.

Your core activity will be to support the newly established National Centre for Environmental Horticulture and Plant Health and work alongside the NCEH Head of Centre. The NCEH research programme brings together long-term strategic research on emerging and future threats with more applied research on immediate risks. This research is developed with partners across the United Kingdom, the European Union and further afield.

The role involves a wide range of work including, but not limited to, the following:

• Support the NCEH Head of Centre in administering and delivering the NCEH, a virtual research centre led by the Royal Horticultural Society and APHA
• Develop and manage elements of the NCEH research portfolios, including commissioning, overseeing and assuring a small portfolio of high-quality research projects and related activities to deliver value for money and support plant health policy, decision making and knowledge exchange
• Ensure research projects and outputs are delivered and disseminated efficiently and on time, using scientific knowledge and wider programme management skills
• Manage the NCEH pipeline of project reports, journal articles and other outputs from submission to Defra through approval by Defra’s publication panel and publication, liaising with research partners, managing risk and preparing defensive lines for communications support
• Work with the Defra Plant Health Evidence and Analysis (PHEA) team, policy makers and specialists across evidence professions, including natural scientists, economists, statisticians and social researchers, to commission and assure the evidence underpinning plant health policy and risk-based decision making
• Collaborate with experts across the Defra network, including APHA, the Forestry Commission, Forest Research and RBG Kew, and with the wider UK academic sector
• Contribute to high-profile work on priority plant health threats, including Xylella, ash dieback, oak processionary moth and acute oak decline, supporting the GB Plant Biosecurity Strategy and the Tree Health Resilience Strategy
• Support other Defra group plant health programmes, including those within APHA, as required, such as the PHEA Future Proofing Plant Health programme, and contribute to essential APHA work when needed

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