Research Associate - National Youth Agency

WorkNest Clients; United Kingdom; Remote; GBP 30,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job description

The National Youth Agency is looking for a new Research Associate to join our Knowledge Team.

Contract: 12-month Fixed Term Contract (with potential to extend)

Hours: Full-time - 37 hours per week

Salary: £30,000 - £35,000 per annum, dependent on experience

Remote: This role is 100% homebased with occasional travel for staff residentials and other events.

What we do

As the national body for youth work, the NYA has a dual function. We are the professional statutory and regulatory body (PSRB) responsible for qualifications, quality standards, and safeguarding for youth work and services in England. In line with our charity mission and aims, we also champion youth work through research, advocacy, campaigns, and programmes.

We work in partnership and believe in collaborative leadership, listening to youth workers and the youth work sector so that we can understand their needs and respond to the challenges they face. We are ambitious for youth work and for young people and integrate youth voice and influence across our work.

About the Role

This is an exciting opportunity to join our Knowledge Team, working alongside two existing Research Associates and a Data Analyst.

You will be integral in delivering research, data, and insights that support organisational development and programme delivery across NYA.

We are looking for an experienced mixed-methods researcher with a strong understanding of social research and evaluation approaches. Ideally, you will have experience working in or alongside the youth sector and be confident using both qualitative and quantitative methods.

You'll need to be flexible, proactive, and a strong communicator, able to explain complex ideas to varied audiences.

This role is ideal for someone looking to make a tangible difference through evidence-led approaches that shape policy, practice, and impact in youth work.

Key responsibilities for this role will include:

1. Designing and delivering research projects using a range of methods including surveys, interviews, and focus groups.
2. Supporting the development of the NYA research and data hub, including external research collation and data visualisation.
3. Leading on evaluations to meet funder requirements and contribute to NYA's growing evidence base.
4. Analysing data from NYA programmes to support impact measurement.
5. Promoting evidence-based practice across NYA and the wider youth sector.
6. Communicating findings clearly through reports, briefings, and presentations.
7. Managing research projects and collaborating with internal and external partners to deliver on time and to quality.
8. Responding to internal and external research enquiries.

The ideal candidate will have experience in social research, familiarity with various research methodologies, and the ability to communicate complex findings to diverse audiences.

Why Work for NYA?

1. NYA operates as a people-first organisation, prioritising the well-being and needs of its employees.
2. NYA offers an exceptional flexible working approach which encourages our team to balance professional responsibilities with their personal life.
3. A remote based team, spread across England, fostering inclusivity and diverse talent. Despite geographical distances between team members, NYA maintains a highly motivated and connected team through the optimisation of digital tools.
4. NYA is committed to supporting the continual personal and professional development of our team and helping them achieve their ambitions.
5. We provide 25 days leave plus 8 days, life assurance scheme, 5% employer pension contribution and a comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme via Spectrum.life with unlimited specialist support available to all NYA employees.

How to Apply:

Please download our applicant pack to find out more about the role and the requirements.

To apply, please submit the following via our online application platform by 11:59pm on Monday 12th May 2025:

1. A detailed CV setting out your career history, with responsibilities and achievements in line with the person specification in the About You section.
2. A covering letter (maximum two sides) highlighting your suitability for the role and how you meet the requirements in the About You section.
3. We will request data for our EEDI monitoring purposes, providing this is optional.

Please note: the covering letter is an essential part of the application process and will be assessed as part of your full application. We use AI detector software, so cover letters or CV's with over 30% AI generated content will be disregarded. We understand that AI tools can offer support to candidates who have learning differences, which is why we will accept applications with some AI assistance. CV's will not be accepted without a cover letter.

If you have any issues uploading documents, please email [e-mail]

The National Youth Agency is an equal opportunities employer.

At NYA our inclusive culture means that we embrace individual differences and understand that we need a diverse team to achieve our organisations mission.

We wish to recruit candidates from all backgrounds to ensure our team reflects the rich diversity of the communities we serve. We encourage applications from anyone regardless of disability, ethnicity, heritage, gender, sexuality, religion, socio-economic background and political beliefs but we particularly welcome applications from global majority candidates and those from other minoritised ethnic groups in the UK as they are currently underrepresented in our team.

More about us

Discover more about the National Youth Agency and our work at: nya.org.uk