Senior Analyst

Senior Analyst – UKRI (Research England) – Bristol, United Kingdom

CLOSING DATE: 16 January 2026

PROPOSED INTERVIEW DATE: Week beginning 9 February 2026 (planned)

LOCATION: Research England, Bristol

SALARY: £46,743 per annum

HOURS: Full Time (Minimum 0.8 FTE)

CONTRACT TYPE: Fixed Term (12 Months)

GRADE: UKRI Band E

POSITIONS AVAILABLE: 1

As a Senior Analyst at Research England you will design and deliver analytical processes that directly support the allocation of £2 billion of strategic institutional research funding (SIRF) and knowledge exchange funding to higher education providers in England. You will manage work areas from design and development, through quality‑assurance processes, to delivery, providing analysis and dashboarding to support senior leaders in decision‑making and liaising with stakeholders to identify required data.

• Develop a sound knowledge of the higher‑education sector data used by the analyst team to underpin funding allocations.
• Understand and collaborate on algorithm‑driven (formula‑based) funding methods used by Research England, developing, maintaining and implementing funding models.
• Synthesise datasets from partner organisations – collating and processing the required subsets for each funding stream.
• Engage with quality‑assurance and publication processes for disseminating funding outcomes.
• Ensure the team QA process is always followed and QA approvals are escalated as necessary.
• Identify and establish solutions for data gaps in the underlying data.
• Process updated data for calculation of potential grant adjustments and amend existing datasets as required.
• Produce financial reports required of institutions as part of an annual exercise and validate and summarise the information in those reports.
• Support development of analytical models underpinning sector benchmarking activities.
• Investigate available datasets and determine possible metrics for sector analysis.
• Collaborate with colleagues to gain sector insight from datasets and create data visualisations for stakeholders.
• Respond to internal and external queries, create technical documentation and provide subject‑matter expertise to executive briefing papers.
• Maintain liaison with the Office for Students, Jisc (HESA) and higher‑education providers.
• Audit data used within algorithm‑driven funding processes.

• Degree in mathematics or another numerically intensive subject, or equivalent professional experience.
• Experience coding in R to manipulate large complex datasets.
• Significant experience analysing data, identifying relevant sources and presenting findings.
• Ability to contribute to technical or process development.
• Experience of quality‑assurance processes and awareness of how they minimise errors in analytical outputs.
• Strong written communication skills, clarifying policy questions and guiding colleagues in data interpretation.
• Strong verbal communication skills, able to explain technical details clearly and concisely to varied audiences.
• Ability to plan and manage a varied workload and respond to changing priorities.

• Outstanding defined benefit pension scheme.
• 30 days annual leave + 10.5 public & 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.
• Additional wellbeing initiatives supporting a good work‑life balance.

UKRI is an Equal Opportunity & Disability Confident Employer.

Online applications only. Please submit a CV and cover letter that clearly outline how you fulfil the specified criteria, including a motivation for joining UKRI.