Senior Grants and Community Manager

UKRI
Salary: £46,743 per annum.
Band: UKRI Band E.
Contract Type: 3 Year Fixed Term. (With possibility of extension)
Hours: Full Time or Part Time. (Minimum 0.8 FTE)
Location: While UKRI supports hybrid working, the postholder will be required to attend one in-office team day per week at Polaris House in Swindon, Wiltshire. Closing Date: Wednesday 25 March 2026 Proposed Interview Date: Interviews are likely to be week commencing 13 and 20 April 2026. Employees applying for any opportunity which may mean being away from your substantive role for a temporary period of time, please refer to the Recruitment Policy and associated guidance for further information in the first instance. If you are made an offer, please ensure you liaise with your line manager and the designated HR team as soon as possible in order that implications of any move are clear and understood, prior to a move taking place.

About the role We are looking for a Senior Grants and Community Manager to join the UKRI Infrastructure Team and lead delivery of the UK’s contribution to the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking on behalf of the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). EuroHPC funds supercomputers and runs research grants within the field of high-performance computing. These grants are part funded (up to 50%) by the EU, and part funded by participating states, including the UK.

Successive reviews of the UK high-performance computing and AI sectors have highlighted the importance of UK involvement in EuroHPC in supporting the UK compute ecosystem. Our involvement in EuroHPC includes:

• Delivering funding to UK researchers and/or businesses for EuroHPC activities that are jointly funded by DSIT;
• Supporting DSIT in identifying the EuroHPC research and innovation activities that will most strongly contribute to the development of the UK’s research and innovation communities, including the identification of priorities for matched funding;
• Providing UK researchers and businesses with information and support, including direct engagement, events, a dedicated web page and community enquiry inbox;
• Liaising with DSIT and the EuroHPC JU for the purposes of reporting, compliance, assistance with policy development, etc.

Together with the Infrastructure Fund and Portfolio pillars, we form the cross-cutting UKRI Infrastructure Team that coordinates and manages UKRI’s Infrastructure portfolio. You will collaborate across the organisation and externally, engaging with relevant stakeholders in Government Departments, Public Sector Research Establishments (PSREs), academia and industry to gather insight and ensure that UKRI’s plans for Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) enable our varied communities to use the most powerful digital tools and techniques.

You will be encouraged to constantly learn and be empowered to explore your curiosity in order to manage engagement with the UK and European computational research community, contribute to the UK’s input into the development of EuroHPC activities, and be involved in the implementation of EuroHPC activities, including grant making. As Senior Grants and Community Manager, your key responsibility will be enabling the UK to deliver its contributions to EuroHPC, working closely alongside UKRI, DSIT and EuroHPC colleagues, as well as with the computational research communities in the UK and Europe. This role offers you the opportunity to demonstrate and develop your grant making, community building, analysis and communication skills by:

• designing, implementing and monitoring operational policies and procedures;
• facilitating awareness of and engagement with EuroHPC activities, driving strong demand from the UK computational research community;
• supporting the analysis of UK capabilities and complementarity with European initiatives; and
• monitoring and reporting on progress, including financial management.

We encourage candidates with an interest and knowledge in DRI to apply for this position: relevant experience might have been gained from several different types of career path or educational background. It is likely that the successful candidate will have the opportunity to work for periods with other policy or technical teams within UKRI to enhance the knowledge needed for their work.

For further information, please contact Richard Gunn, DRI Programme Director (richard.gunn@ukri.org) or Luke Davis, Associate Director for Computational Services (luke.davis@ukri.org). Your responsibilities

• Working with colleagues across UKRI and DSIT, and engaging with external parties such as technology providers and users of DRI, to synthesise the views of diverse research and innovation communities, raise awareness of and contribute to the development of the UK’s involvement in EuroHPC activities.
• Providing information for prospective applicants and relevant communities of practice, including presentations, direct engagements, and written and web-based materials to raise awareness of, and promote active engagement with. EuroHPC activities.
• Providing support and advice for EuroHPC applicants and grant holders.
• Delivering the UK’s contribution to EuroHPC activities through grant making to support match funded initiatives.
• Developing and implementing processes to ensure alignment with UKRI, DSIT and EuroHPC requirements for funding activities, including compliance and financial constraints.
• Develop and monitor critical metrics and highlight areas for continuous improvement.
• Supporting reporting and monitoring of EuroHPC awards, ensuring timely receipt of accurate information and contributing to portfolio reports.
• Supporting the UK’s ongoing contribution to the development of EuroHPC through analysis and assessment of capabilities and complementarity.
• Contributing to strategic projects across the team, as required.

Personal Specification The below criteria will be scored during Shortlisting (S), Interview (I) or both (S&I).

Essential

• Degree, or equivalent experience in a relevant subject. (S)
• Awareness of key technical concepts in large-scale advanced computing technologies such as HPC and AI. (S)
• Experience of programme, portfolio and/or project management of research-related or innovation activities. (S&I)
• Experience of facilitating the development of research or innovation communities of practice, consortia, or multi-institution partnerships. (S&I)
• Experience in successfully developing and delivering grant funding, associated compliance and monitoring processes and cases for investment or projects. Alternatively, equivalent experience that demonstrates your strong capacity to learn these skills. (S&I)
• Excellent written and oral communication skills with the ability to synthesise diverse views, interpret and present complex information to a wide range of audiences in a clear, concise, and accurate way. (S&I)
• Ability to build and sustain productive working interpersonal relationships internally and externally, at all levels of seniority and across academic, policy and private sectors. Able to recognise different motivations and interests. (S&I)
• Sophisticated analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, and an ability to gather information, gain insights, and think strategically. (S&I)
• Able to learn new tools, think creatively, and make effective decisions, sometimes in a complex or uncertain environment. (S&I)
• Self-motivated with a proven track record to work effectively both individually and as a member of a team. (I)
• Willing to travel and work away from the office and/or outside normal working hours on an occasional basis, including occasional travel within Europe. (I)

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.

Plus many more benefits and wellbeing initiatives that enable our employees to have a great work life balance!

For further information on our benefits please see:
Benefits of working at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) UKRI is an Equal Opportunity & Disability Confident Employer.

Please apply online, if you experience any issue applying, please contact Recruitment@ukri.org
We encourage candidates to apply as soon as possible, as we reserve the right to close this vacancy early.
Please note, if you will require sponsorship to work in the UK, as part of your sponsorship application, you and any dependants travelling with you, will be required to pay costs directly to The Home Office for the application before you start your role with us. UKRI is normally able to reimburse some, or all of these fees after you have become an employee and this can be discussed with the Hiring Manager. For more information, please visit https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/how-much-it-costs or contact Recruitment@ukri.org.