Senior Content Designer

UK Research and Innovation; Swindon; Hybrid; GBP 45,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

UK Research and Innovation seeks a Senior Web Content Designer to enhance the user experience on its corporate website. The role involves crafting high-quality web content strategies, collaboration with stakeholders, and ensuring web accessibility. This is an opportunity to influence web design and content direction in a key public sector organization.

Benefits

Defined benefit pension scheme

30 days annual leave

Employee discounts on retail

Employee assistance programme

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Experience in writing and editing digital content.
• Expertise in web content design and user journeys.
• Ability to conduct user research and evaluate content.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and development of web content for ukri.org.
• Create and update content strategies based on user needs.
• Champion best practices in content design and web accessibility.

Skills

Writing

Editing

Content Management

User-Centered Design

Accessibility Standards

Stakeholder Management

Education

Degree in related subject

Tools

Content Management Systems

Data Analytics Tools

Job description

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UK Research and Innovation

Salary: £45,272 - £49,430 depending on skills and experience

Hours: Full Time (Flexible working patterns available such as compressed hours)

Contract Type: Open Ended

Location: Polaris House, Swindon (Hybrid working available including travel to the Swindon office 1 day a week)

Closing Date: Sunday 29th June 2025

Interviews: Week commencing 14th July 2025

Want a glimpse into what it's like to work as a Senior Content Designer at UKRI? Check out our Day in the Life blog below!

Post | LinkedIn

Job Overview:

The Senior Web Content Designer sits in the web team, part of External Affairs and Communications.

The web team is a multidisciplinary team of content, product and delivery experts who are passionate about driving forward the continuous improvement of the website, making it simpler and easier for people to understand and use.

As a Senior Web Content Designer, your role is to lead on the design, creation, review and development of web page content on ukri.org in collaboration with subject experts from across the organisation.

This is an exciting time for the web team as we evolve our web content strategy and content operations to support a usable, sustainable, accessible website into the future.

Key Responsibilities:

As a Senior Web Content Designer, you'll be an expert practitioner who develops content strategies and solutions. You will be part of the multidisciplinary web team working on the UKRI corporate website making it simpler and easier for people to understand and use.

This role can involve working on a single piece of web copy or on an entire end-to-end journey through the site and to other services to help users complete their goal and deliver UKRI objectives.

Depending on the situation you may start with discovery and work closely with user researchers and web developers ensuring a simple and intuitive journey for our varied user groups.

You will:

• be responsible for creating, evaluating, updating and reviewing content strategies and solutions for ukri.org content, using your professional expertise, user understanding and evidence to ensure its continuous improvement
• lead strategic content improvement projects, focusing effort in the areas of greatest priority and ensuring objectives are met, influencing senior stakeholders to ensure they have the right resources to support their strategic vision
• ensure the web content you develop is high quality and meets accessibility standards, and review other content designers' work to ensure quality
• help colleagues and stakeholders understand what web content design is, why it's valuable and how to work with content designers.
• champion and participate in user research, playing an active role in journey mapping to better understand user needs and where the website and its content fits in
• deliver workshops and training to colleagues across the organisation acting as an advocate for the website, content design and Government Digital Standards
• build a network of internal and external stakeholders, fostering proactive collaborative working, influence and establish good working relationships with subject matter experts
• actively stay abreast of UKRI objectives, priorities and work to better understand business needs
• proactively stay up to date with latest content design best practice and thinking

Person Specification:

(S) - Shortlisting Criteria (I) - Interview Criteria (S & I) - Shortlisting Criteria & Interview Criteria

Essential

• Preferably hold a degree in a related subject or equivalent relevant experience (S)
• Robust experience in writing, editing and publishing accessible digital content, and using content management systems and content production processes (S)
• Experience in a web content design role making strategic decisions about web content creation preferably on a large, complex information rich website (S & I)
• Up-to-date knowledge of accessibility, including the needs of different users, assistive technologies and exemplary editorial skills in writing in plain and accessible language (S & I)
• A deep understanding of web content design on an end-to-end user journey considering the structure and user experience (S & I)
• Experience of taking a user-centered approach to content design and of explaining your decisions in a way that other people understand (S & I)
• Experience of using data, research and evidence to review and evaluate web content to make improvements (S & I)
• Ability to explain content decisions to non-experts, negotiate with stakeholders, deal with challenging situations and remove blockers to ensure business objectives and the needs of users are being met (S & I)
• Be able to handle constructive criticism of your work and to constructively review other people's work ( I)
• Experience of putting forward the case for content design to senior stakeholders and developing long-term strategic relationships ( I)

Desirable

• Experience of using content management systems, a range of data analytics tools, prototyping tools and workflow management systems (S & I)
• An understanding of the role of content in multidisciplinary agile teams (S & I)
• Experience of both public sector and business working environments (S & I)

Application Guidance:

How to evidence the criteria:

You are encouraged to use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) in the cover letter to evidence your ability to meet the 'person specification' criteria in the job description. Cover letters should be no more than two sides of A4 (minimum font size 11). For examples of the STAR method, please visit: The STAR method | National Careers Service '.

Other information

If you'd like to have an informal chat about the role before applying, you're welcome to get in touch with the hiring manager, Karen Hibbert, at [e-mail]

Benefits

We recognise and value our employees as individuals and aim to provide a favourable pay and rewards package! We are committed to supporting employees' development and promote a culture of continuous learning! A list of benefits below;

• An outstanding defined benefit pension scheme
• 30 days' annual leave in addition to 10.5 public and privilege days (full time equivalent)
• Employee discounts and offers on retail and leisure activities
• Employee assistance programme, providing confidential help and advice
• Flexible working options

Please click here for more details on the https://www.discover.ukri.org/benefits-of-working-at-ukri/index.html

About UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

UKRI launched in April 2018, UKRI is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

Our organisation brings together the seven disciplinary research councils, Research England, which is responsible for supporting research and knowledge exchange at higher education institutions in England, and the UK's innovation agency, Innovate UK. Together we build an independent organisation with a strong voice and vision to ensure the UK maintains its world-leading position in research and innovation. More information can be found at www.ukri.org .

Choosing to come to work at UKRI means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement, access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme. For more details, visit Benefits of working for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.

How we support EDI in the workforce

At UKRI, we believe that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be provided with equal opportunities to thrive and succeed in an environment that enables them to do so. We also value diversity of thought and experience within inclusive groups, organisations and the wider community. For further information, please visit ' How we support EDI in the workforce '.

Disability Confident Employer

As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

How to apply

Online applications only preferred for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for UKRI and the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the 'experience' section of the application.

UKRI seeks to ensure it creates and maintains a system of openness, fairness and inclusion - a collaborative, trusted environment, which is attractive to and accessible to everyone who is interested in developing their career with us.