Title: Senior User Researcher (Newcastle Upon Tyne)

Location: Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne And Wear, North East, NE7 7NE, UK

Company: DWP Digital

Pay up to £68,205, plus 28.97% employer pension contributions, hybrid working, flexible hours, and great work life balance.

DWP. Digital with Purpose.

We need a skilled Senior User Researchers to lead research activities that shape user-centred digital services.

In DWP Digital our teams use fresh ideas and leading-edge tech to build and maintain digital solutions that will be used by nearly every person in the UK, every day and at key moments in their lives.

DWP is the UK's largest government department. We help people into work and make payments worth over £195bn a year to support and empower millions of people.

The scale of what we do is extraordinary, and our purpose is unique. We'd love you to join us.

What skills,knowledgeand experience will you needto demonstrate in your application?

• Experience of, and can help teams adopt, a wide range of user research methods. Can plan user research for services with challenging user needs and complex user journeys.
• Influential, being able to lead and collaborate with other researchers on research projects.
• Significant and demonstrable experience of championing, planning and conducting research approaches which are inclusive of all users. Detailed working knowledge and experience of the ethical and data governance requirements of conducting research.
• Proven track record in working effectively with senior stakeholders/clients. Experience of persuading others on the value of research, defending research findings and challenging others on the use of research.
• Proven ability to work with constraints, adapting approaches to mitigate against constraints.

You and your role

Our User Researchers work on internal and external user research projects to gather insights and feedback from a diverse range of users.

You're an experienced practitioner in User Research, so you'll be used to planning and leading user research activities across complex projects and services.

Our User Researchers use a wide range of research methodologies, both qualitative and quantitative depending on the requirements of each project/programme.

You have the expertise to define a problem, and pick the right research strategies and methods to help us understand and design for our users' needs.

You'll make telling recommendations based on a variety of research outcomes, which inform the way we deliver our wide range of products and services for millions of people.

We work in an agile environment, as part of multi-disciplinary project teams, and expert communities of practice. You'll keep our teams locked in on user centred design based on user needs and quality user research.

As a Senior Researcher you'll be an expert voice in our UR community. You will lead and inspire our User Researchers, championing a user-centred and evidence-based approach.

You'll be an advocate for inclusive research principles, planning and conduct, considering the diversity of our users and their different needs - DWP services need to work for everyone.

Our User Research team - culture, learning & community.

Our User Research community is well-established, but we continue to grow, and there is a clear progression pathway and opportunity to nurture your skills and career.

We're also part of a collaborative UX/Product Design community, working with interaction designers, content designers and more to get better together.

You'll have access to whatever learning works for you to keep you at the top of your UR game. And we continually evolve our research methodologies and tools, so we have the clearest understanding of our users and how our services are working.

Details. Wages. Perks.

Location: You'll join us in one of our brilliant digital hubs in Birmingham, Blackpool, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Sheffield, whichever is most convenient for you.

Hybrid Working:We work a hybrid model - you'll spend some time working at home and some time collaborating face to face in a hub.

Pay: We offer competitive pay of up to £68,205.

Pension: You'll get a brilliant civil service pension with employer contributions worth 28.97%, worth up to £19,758.

Holidays:A generous leave package starting at 26 days rising to 31 days over time.

You can also take up to 3 extra days off a month on flexi-time. You'll also get all the usual public holidays.

We have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:

• Flexible working including flexible hours and flex-friendly policies

• Time off volunteering and charitable giving

• Bring your authentic self to work with 'I Can Be Me in DWP'

• Discounts and savings on shopping, fun days out and more

• Interest-free loans to buy a bike or a season ticket, so it's even easier for you to get to work and start making a difference

• Sports and social activities

• Professional development, coaching, mentoring and career progression opportunities.

And we have an award-winning environment and culture:

• DWP have been recognised as 2024 Diversity Employer of the Year at the Computing Women in Tech Excellence awards

• Diverse and Inclusive Leadership at Digital Leaders Awards 2024

• Commended as Best Place to Work in Digital category in the Computing Digital Technology Leaders awards 2025

• Recognised as one of the Best Public Sector Employers at 2025 Women In Tech Employer Awards
  
  

Process:

We know your time is valuable so our application and selection process is just two stages:

• Apply: complete your application on Civil Service Jobs. There'll be full instructions when you click through.

• Interview: a single stage interview online.

CLICK APPLYfor more information and to start your application.

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