The Royal Society’s mission is to recognise, promote, and support excellence in science and to encourage the development and use of science for the benefit of humanity. Science is vital to many areas of policy making and the Society seeks to ensure the government and the public have access to impartial and independent expert advice to inform debate and guide good decision making. The Royal Society provides independent, timely and authoritative scientific advice to UK and international decision makers.

Scientists and researchers, including Fellows of the Royal Society and people the Society funds, are working together across the globe to rapidly help us better understand Covid-19 and discover the best ways to tackle it. We are leading and convening researchers to work together to inform policy decisions on managing the pandemic. Across three areas of work, Science in Emergencies Tasking – COVID (SET-C); Rapid Assistance in Modelling the Pandemic (RAMP); and Data Evaluation and Learning for Viral Epidemics (DELVE) – the Society has provided rapid synthesis of evidence on issues such as vaccine development, deployment and uptake; the role of masks in preventing transmission; and the impacts of the lockdown on education and the economy.

Following a continuation funding award from UKRI for RAMP, the Royal Society is looking for an experienced policy professional and programme manager to support the continuation of its programme of policy work in response to, and learning from, the Covid-19 pandemic. The Society provides a vital function in this work, drawing on research to inform policy, rapidly identifying where within Government new scientific findings can have maximum value. The successful applicants for this role will have a strong track record of helping shape and inform corporate, national and or international policy in science, research and technology, working with and through others to deliver tangible impact, and of building and leveraging senior stakeholder networks.