Senior Quantitative Analyst or Senior Social Researcher

This job is critical to ensuring that the Children's Commissioner’s Office (CCo) can shed new light on issues for the wellbeing and welfare of children, and drive change to improve the lives of children – especially the most vulnerable. You will use your analytical skills and expertise to lead and contribute to projects involving data analysis and careful reporting of social research, and will support the use of high-quality quantitative analysis across the organisation.
The post is full time, however requests for flexible working of 3 or more days per week will be considered. The OCC offers hybrid working based on a minimum of 60% on site. This post requires travel within the UK.
Specific Duties
Deliver policy-relevant insights through ethical, reproducible and quality assured quantitative analysis and modelling of administrative and survey datasets (using R).
Quality assure analysis and outputs of other members of the research team.
Work as part of a project team, collaborating closely with other members of project teams and across the CCo, including research and policy professionals and senior management. To take ownership of your outputs and lead projects independently, and be responsible for delivery on time and within budget.
Communicate findings to analytical and non-analytical colleagues, internal and external, extracting and clearly presenting and explaining key findings and any limitations, with an aim to maximise positive impact in a policy area.
In collaboration with qualitative research colleagues, participate in fieldwork visits and carry out interviews and focus groups with children and professionals.
Use and develop knowledge, understanding and networks in one or more specific policy areas relevant to children.
Use and develop knowledge of the existing statistical landscape to find innovative solutions to answer big questions and respond to requests for information quickly.
Work with the Head of Data Collection, Head of Data Analysis and Data Protection Officer where necessary to ensure data collection and management is undertaken in accordance with organisational policies and procedures.
Help ensure, as part of the research team, that the Commissioner has the quality assured statistics and analysis she needs to deliver clear, accurate and impactful policy and public affairs messages.
Work collaboratively with colleagues across the CCo, providing analytical support as appropriate across the organisation in order to deliver the CCo’s Business Plan priorities. This may involve work on new data requests, using the Commissioner’s statutory data collection powers, to shed new light on the lives, experiences and outcomes of children, especially vulnerable children.
Provide leadership of junior analysts or interns as assigned, and more widely contribute to a learning culture in the office, including delivering training and support to colleagues., Your statement of suitability should be anonymised (name-blind) and should set out how you meet the essential skills and any relevant experience to the key duties of the role (no more than 500 words).
Applications will be sifted against the requirements set out in the essential and desirable criteria listed in the job description.
Interviews for shortlisted candidates are expected to take place week commencing 24 June 2024.
Please note that the successful candidate will be expected to join at the base of the salary band.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
+ UK nationals
+ nationals of the Republic of Ireland
+ nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
+ individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
+ Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Do you want to make a tangible difference to the lives of children across England? Can you use your skills to be a catalyst for creating meaningful change? Are you ready to join a committed team dedicated to giving children and young people a voice on the issues affecting them?, + Degree Level or equivalent training in a quantitative discipline including advanced training on social research methods with a significant statistical/econometric component.
+ Knowledge and understanding of qualitative and quantitative research methods, data protection and research ethics.
Desirable Knowledge
+ Postgraduate training or equivalent in a quantitative social science.
+ Degree level or equivalent training in social research.
Essential Experience
+ Post-education experience of applied research on children or families.
+ Experience of successfully using statistical data to inform and challenge.
+ Experience of delivering research projects, taking ownership for delivering to time, identifying and mitigating risks and developing contingencies where required.
+ Experience of working at pace in a responsive way, juggling quick-turnaround work with longer-term priorities.
Desirable Experience
+ Experience of analysis of administrative or survey data on UK children.
+ Experience of research with or of working directly with children and young people including vulnerable groups.
Essential Skills and Abilities
+ Ability to code in R, and to quality assure code written by others.
+ Proven ability to generate insight using primary data and secondary sources with the ability to pay close attention to detail in data analysis.
+ Capacity to use innovative and digital methods of research.
+ Good knowledge and competence with information systems and IT tools and software for the collection and management of data.
+ Excellent oral and written communication skills and good interpersonal and stakeholder management skills for technical and non-technical audiences.
+ Excellent project management, prioritisation and organisational skills
Personal Qualities
+ Flexible, motivated, solution focused, calm and effective under pressure.
+ Committed to the Children’s Commissioner’s principles in relation to equality and diversity and to operating with integrity at all times.
+ Committed to promoting children’s rights.
+ Able to travel within England as required.

Now is the perfect time to join the Children’s Commissioner’s office (CCo) following the publication of ‘The Big Ambition’, a campaign hearing directly from children and young people across England about what they need to make their lives better. The Children’s Commissioner wants to take children’s thoughts, opinions and ideas to decision-makers, to ensure that the Government reflects children’s voices in the decisions that will affect them in years to come.
What children want and need underpins all the work we do, with the Children’s Commissioner working across sectors, Government, and the civil service to deliver for their needs.
Joining the team is a chance to be involved in shaping children’s policy, making sure children’s voices are heard and be part of an exciting environment which puts children’s needs at the heart of everything they do.
We are working to make the changes children said mattered to them. And we’re looking for dedicated, highly skilled people to join the team.

Alongside your salary of £45,465, Office of the Children's Commissioner contributes £13,171 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
+ Learning and development tailored to your role
+ An environment with flexible working options (Please note that all CCo staff are dividing their time between our offices in Westminster and home working)
+ A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
+ A Civil Service pension
+ 25 days annual leave in your first year, increasing by one day for each year of service to a maximum of 30 days, plus 8 bank and public holidays and 1 day of privilege leave for the King's birthday
+ Employee wellbeing initiatives
+ Enhanced maternity/paternity pay