Research Officer
Employer: Kinship
Location: Home-based or hybrid (Vauxhall office), with occasional travel across England
Working hours: full-time - 35 hours per week (flexible, working minimum of 28 hours/week considered)
Salary: £31000 to £34,000 depending on experience (plus London Weighting if applicable of £3,405.85 per annum FTE) pro rata if part time
Closing date: 19/04/2026 11:59 pm
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Purpose of the role
The Research Officer supports Kinship in building a strong and coordinated evidence base about kinship families, and ensures our influencing work is grounded in real experience.
The role supports the design, delivery and communication of high-quality research, insights and evaluation that shapes policy, practice and service development. It also supports the coordination and operational delivery of research and practice activity, helping ensure projects, networks and events run effectively and that insights are shared across the organisation and the wider sector.
They will work closely with colleagues across the organisation, including Policy, Programmes, Peer Support and Communications. It will ensure that research and insight are gathered and used consistently and that the experiences of kinship carers, particularly those from underserved communities, are central to our work.Key responsibilities:
Research and insight
Design and deliver qualitative and quantitative research that improves understanding of kinship families’ needs, experiences and outcomes.
Lead data collection through surveys, interviews, focus groups and desk research.
Carry out analysis using suitable methods to produce accurate and meaningful insight.
Ensure research reflects the diversity of kinship carers, including carers from ethnic minority communities, mixed heritage families, informal kinship carers and carers experiencing additional barriers.
Maintain strong ethical standards and follow GDPR requirements.
Developing and supporting participatory research methods with kinship carers, children and young people
Evaluation
Support evaluation of Kinship services including peer support, training and digital programmes.
Develop tools and approaches that help gather feedback and evidence of outcomes.
Analyse programme data to highlight trends, gaps and opportunities.
Present findings in clear and accessible ways that support decision making.
Policy and influencing support
Provide evidence that strengthens Kinship policy positions and external influencing activity.
Contribute data and insight to briefings, consultation responses and reports.
Identify emerging issues and opportunities for policy change.
Research operations and coordination
Support the operational delivery of research and practice work across the organisation.
Organise participant remuneration for people with lived experience involved in research and practice activity.
Manage invoices and liaise with the finance team to process payments
Manage the research inbox and coordinate responses to incoming queries.
Support project coordination across research and practice work using systems such as Asana.
Maintain accurate records of activity and engagement using Salesforce.
Collaboration and stakeholder engagement
Work with colleagues across teams to understand research and insight needs.
Maintain positive relationships with external research partners and sector organisations.
Support opportunities for kinship carers to participate in research in a respectful and inclusive way.
Manage the Kinship Professionals’ Network and the Kinship Care Researchers’ Network, working with the Practice Lead to plan and schedule meetings, coordinate agendas, record and minute meetings and share insights across the organisation.
Support the planning and delivery of research and practice events, from consultations to knowledge exchange events.
Manage communications for research and practice activity including drafting copy for social media and the Kinship website.
Reporting and communication
Produce clear and high-quality written reports, summaries and presentations.
Translate data and complex information into accessible findings for families, colleagues, funders and partners.
Work with the communications team to support publication and dissemination.
Experience requirements:
Experience and Knowledge
Experience completing mixed methods research including design, fieldwork, analysis and reporting.
Experience working in a research, evaluation or insight role in a charity, academic or public sector setting.
Experience producing accessible research outputs for different audiences.
Experience engaging with underrepresented communities and understanding barriers to participation.
Experience of kinship care or social care research in the UK or comparable settings
Strong analytical and data interpretation skills with experience of R or equivalent statistical languages.
Knowledge of research ethics, safeguarding considerations and GDPR.
Excellent project management skills with an ability to manage multiple projects and tasks with accuracy and attention to detail.
Excellent written and verbal communication.
Ability to work collaboratively and build strong relationships.
Values and behaviours
Commitment to Kinship’s mission and improving outcomes for kinship families.
Values lived experience and works in an inclusive way.
Curious, thorough and committed to producing high quality evidence.
Responsible and accountable for accurate and reliable outputs.
Helps build a positive team culture and contributes to organisational learning.
General characteristics and attributes
A real commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion within your role
A respectful approach to working with people from a range of backgrounds
Understanding of safeguarding particularly around vulnerable families
Commitment to the values, aims and objectives of Kinship
Flexible and willing to travel for work across England, including overnight stays
Permission to work in the UK
A DBS check is essential due to working with and across vulnerable groups of individuals.
Desired skills:
Postgraduate qualification in a related discipline with a research methods component
Lived experience of kinship care
Understanding of trauma-informed approaches
Demonstrable experience using Salesforce (our CRM), Asana (project management), and Notion (manualisation platform)
Demonstrable experience of delivering government-funded or commissioned services and reporting to funders
Experience of working with kinship or care-experienced children and young people in the UK or comparable settings
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