Research Assistant (Workplace Trauma Support)

Gmmh; Manchester; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Research Assistant (Workplace Trauma Support) to recruit and assess staff and patients on mental health inpatient wards as part of the NIHR grant project. The role sits in the Research and Innovation Department and collaborates with the University of Manchester.

You will work under the project manager, receive regular supervision, contribute to governance, data collection and analysis, and help ensure robust ethical oversight and

Qualifications

• Good honours degree in psychology (at least 2:1).
• Masters in relevant subject or master’s in research (MRes).
• Eligibility for membership of the British Psychological Society (BPS) or relevant professional body.

Responsibilities

• Recruit and complete assessments with staff and patients on mental health inpatient wards.
• Collaborate with project team and receive line management support and supervision.
• Contribute to governance, data collection/analysis, and report writing.

Skills

Literature searches

Research methods

Ethics knowledge

Psychology knowledge

Education

BSc in psychology (2:1)

MSc or MRes in relevant field

BPS membership eligibility

Job description

Research Assistant (Workplace Trauma Support)

NHS AfC: Band 4

Main area Mental Health Research Grade NHS AfC: Band 4 Contract Fixed term: 12 months (Flexible working and job shares considered.) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Happy to discuss flexible working) Job ref 437-8353851

Site 1st Floor, Central Park Hub, Unit B Town Manchester Salary £28,392 - £31,157 per annum pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 30/10/2026 23:59

Job overview

The Workplace Trauma project is an NIHR grant exploring the effect of a workplace trauma support intervention on staff working on acute mental health wards. The post holder will be based within the Research and Innovation Department at Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, which hosts a number of large mental health trials and other research studies. The post holder will also have close links with the University of Manchester, School of Health Sciences where the Lead Investigator is based. Both the Trust and the University place a very high value on collaborative working with service users and collaborate with service user groups locally and nationally to support a range of clinical and research initiatives.

We strive to be an inclusive research unit, and we welcome applicants from a diverse range of communities to apply for the post, including people from diverse ethnic communities, people who identify as LGBTQIA+, and/or who identify as having a disability or as being neurodivergent. We know that experiences of workplace trauma are more common for staff from Black, Asian, and other diverse ethnic communities, and we will be purposively sampling 50% of our participants from a range of minority groups. Experience of recruiting research participants from diverse communities that are often under-represented in research would therefore be beneficial for the role, as would experience of working on acute mental health inpatient wards.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will work as part of a team to recruit and complete assessments with staff and patients on mental health inpatient wards. The project is a collaboration between Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Manchester. The project’s Lead Investigator is Professor Katherine Berry.

The post-holder will receive line management support from the project manager. This includes regular line management supervision, clear objective setting for 3, 6 and 12 months and annual appraisals thereafter (depending on continued funding for the post).

Working for our organisation

Greater Manchester Mental Health (GMMH) Foundation Trust employs over 7000 members of staff, who deliver services from more than 122 locations.

We provide inpatient and community-based mental health care for people living in Bolton, the city of Manchester, Salford,Trafford and the borough of Wigan, and a wide range of specialist mental health and substance misuse services across Greater Manchester, the north west of England and beyond.

Greater Manchester is one of the world's most innovative, original and exciting places to live and work. From the beauty of the surrounding countryside to the heart of the vibrant inner city with great shopping, entertainment and dining options.

Wherever you go you will experience a great northern welcome with people famed for their warmth, humour and generosity.

Our people enjoy their work, have opportunities to learn and develop their skills and are encouraged to generate new ideas that improve care for our service users.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Synthesise previous/current research evidence.

Governance To attend and contribute to appropriate multi-disciplinary meetings, steering groups and other forums as appropriate.

Management Set up systems to ensure efficient management of own workload, under the guidance of the Project Manager / CI .

IT responsibilities Utilise IT to support report writing, data input and analysis .

General To undertake specific administrative duties as required .

Working environment The Research and Innovation (R&I) Department at the GMMH . Trust and inpatient mental health wards at hospital sites across the Trust.

Person specification

Education/ Qualifications

• Good honours degree in psychology (at least 2:1).
• Masters in relevant subject or master’s in research (MRes).
• Eligibility for membership of the British Psychological Society (BPS) or relevant professional body.

Experience

• Conducting research.
• Being a research assistant
• Recruiting research participants from diverse communities that are often under-represented in research.

Knowledge

• Knowledge of research design
• Knowledge of research methods, including recruitment, data collection, data entry and data analysis.
• Knowledge regarding psychological approaches to severe mental illnesses.
• Knowledge of research ethics and governance procedures.

Skills and Abilities

• Ability to conduct literature searches.
• Knowledge of research methods, including recruitment, data collection, data entry and data analysis.
• Knowledge of research ethics and governance procedures.
• Knowledge regarding psychological approaches to severe mental illnesses.

Other Requirements

• Ability to demonstrate an interest in and enthusiasm for working with people with severe mental illness.
• To be able to communicate effectively with staff (i.e. health professionals), service users, relatives, carers, community members and a range of professionals and non- academics (verbally and in writing).
• Full UK driving license (subject to Disability Discrimination legislation).

Important Information about working for GMMH: All positions within the Trust are subject to satisfactory pre-employment checks, for further information on the checks required please visit the NHS Employers website www.nhsemployers.org

The Trust mandates all post holders who require a DBS for their role to subscribe to the DBS Update Service. You will be required to enrol for this service for a fee of £16 per year and maintain registration throughout your employment with GMMH.

Applicants are encouraged to apply for posts at Greater Manchester Mental Health who have direct experience of mental health, learning disability or drug and alcohol services either as a service user or a carer.

The Trust is also committed to safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable adults and requires all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

We are aspiring to ensure our workforce is representative of the diverse communities that we serve, and we are strongly committed to removing barriers to employment for candidates from under-represented groups, for example BAME, Disabled and LGBT+ communities. If you would like to have an informal chat about the recruitment process for this role or would value some additional support, we’d love to hear from you.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when writing job applications

A candidate may utilise the help of AI when writing job application.The assessment of an application is made on its entirety and most times AI-generated content does not fully grasp the context and requirements of the job one applies for thus producing inaccurate and misleading information, especially in the supporting statement section of an application that can lack real life examples of one’s achievements, success and challenges.

We have added a disclaimer to our application process advising that the use of AI is monitored. GMMH reserves the right to follow up with a candidate at the interview on specific responses and those examples used in the supporting statement to explore it further.

Sponsorship

We are proud to be an approved sponsor for the Skilled Worker visa. Applications from individuals who require sponsorship will be considered alongside all other applications. Please be aware that not all roles are eligible for sponsorship. You can review the list of eligible roles and salary requirements on the UK Government’s website – click here .

If you are offered a role with us and you require sponsorship, we will check your eligibility in line with the information on the above website. Your offer of employment could be withdrawn if the role is not eligible for sponsorship, and you are not otherwise able to evidence your right to work in the UK.

The Home Office introduces new changes from 22/07/2025 that impact the health and care sector, you may wish to familiarise with it here .

Do you have experience outside the NHS?

We want to attract and retain people with diverse skills and experience, to deliver inclusive healthcare services to our communities.

We will consider relevant experience outside the NHS to calculate your salary on appointment. Please contact our Recruitment Team for more information.

**Please note, this vacancy may be closed at any time if sufficient applications have been received**

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.

As a service user, relative or carer using our services, sometimes you may need to turn to someone for help, advice, and support.