Senior Policy Manager in Cambridge

Location: Great Abington, Cambridge CB21 6AD (Agile; approximately 2 days a week from our office)

Job type: Permanent, Full Time vacancy.

The Senior Policy Manager plays a vital leadership role in the team management and delivery of ARUK’s influencing strategy. The role oversees a highly engaged and high‑performing policy team that brings Alzheimer’s Research UK’s influencing priorities to life. Alzheimer’s Research UK is a leading voice on dementia and research, and this postholder will develop a credible and comprehensive policy base for the charity and maintain strong external stakeholder relationships activity with civil servants, researchers, clinicians and decision makers. They will co‑coordinate a team covering policy across our whole portfolio: prevention and brain health, early detection and diagnosis, dementia research, access to new treatments and clinical engagement.

The Senior Policy Manager brings expertise in developing policy positions, producing compelling and influential policy publications and enabling the team to develop new thinking and solutions on dementia and dementia research. They will champion policy best practice, evaluation and innovation while embedding the right ways of working and process to support a flourishing policy function.

The Senior Policy Manager reports into the Head of Policy and Public Affairs and works closely with colleagues across our Communications, and Information and Involvement teams to ensure that Alzheimer’s Research UK continues to be positioned as the go‑to organisation on dementia and dementia research. The postholder will be experienced at managing people to achieve impact and working across multiple projects.

Main Duties & Responsibilities

• Oversee the Policy team, line managing three Managers and a team of around eight people.
• Manage the day‑to‑day budgeting and reforecasting process with an expenditure budget of circa £200,000, ensuring that the team operates cost effectively in meeting its objectives.
• Provide a high level of expertise on dementia and dementia research across the organisation and externally, through leadership of the policy team.
• Develop, manage and deliver a substantial programme of high‑quality policy analysis and proposals for change.
• Put in place the right processes and ways of working to consistently enable the highest quality of policy outputs that have significant external and media impact.
• Leadership of working groups to deliver the strategic and influencing priorities for ARUK.
• Representation of ARUK on external working groups, at events, and in the media.
• Provide strong support to the Policy team, through coaching, mentoring and developing individuals to create a thriving policy function.
• Facilitate team building and collaborative working to deliver the strategic and operational plans.
• Ensure the team is kept abreast of the policy environment, building and maintaining a deep understanding of current issues and trends and producing insight and analysis for the organisation.
• Work with policy managers to develop and implement a structured programme of policy work that identifies the key factors that need to change in order to meet our strategic goals, bringing new innovative policy ideas and solutions to make this happen.
• Identify policy areas in which ARUK is seeking greatest action and develop strategies to influence and effect positive change, ensuring a coherent narrative and strategy sitting across our various programmes of policy work.
• Commission strategic research projects or commission analysis to further the aims of the organisation.
• Responsible for working closely with the Information and Involvement team to ensure the involvement of people affected by dementia in the development of ARUK’s policy priorities and positions.
• Oversee the timely delivery of effective and credible policy outputs of the highest quality – including reports, briefings and discussion papers.

Stakeholder Relations and Influencing

• Support the development of the department’s influencing strategy and deliver policy work that provides a strong evidence base and clear recommendations for Alzheimer’s Research UK.
• Work across the organisation to develop good forward planning and stakeholder management processes and mechanisms that help us to manage and derive insights from key organisational relationships and maximise the impact of our influencing work.
• Represent ARUK to a range of decision makers and stakeholders; this will involve participating in public events, making presentations and acting as a media spokesperson.
• Build relationships with civil servants, academics, dementia organisations, think tanks and other key stakeholders, establishing opportunities for partnership working and commissioning new insights.
• Work with the Senior Public Affairs and Campaigns Manager to develop a synergistic Public Affairs and Campaigns strategy that embeds and exploits our policy work.
• Work across Policy and Public Affairs department to ensure there is good co‑ordination and communication of policy throughout the charity in order to foster a shared understanding of ARUK’s policies and issues.
• Work closely with colleagues across the charity to ensure that ARUK’s external messaging and activities reflect our policy priorities and positions.
• Undertake any other relevant duties and projects delegated by the Head of Policy and Public Affairs in line with the responsibilities of the post.

What We Are Looking For

• Proven experience in a policy role within a national organisation (public, private or voluntary sector), including working with policymakers on complex health or science issues.
• Experience of developing or commissioning quantitative and qualitative evidence and analysis to shape policy.
• Proven experience of working in partnership with stakeholders and people with lived experience to inform impactful outputs.
• Strong policy influencing skills, with a track record of driving change through high-quality policy outputs, stakeholder engagement and thought leadership.
• Excellent leadership and organisational skills, with the ability to motivate and manage teams, prioritise and meet deadlines effectively, including utilising a range of different management styles as appropriate.
• Outstanding communication and influencing skills, experienced at communicating complex information in an impactful way and confident in engaging senior stakeholders, partners and the media.
• A collaborative, proactive approach—able to identify opportunities, drive impact and work effectively across teams.
• Sound judgement, accountability and a commitment to continuous improvement.
• High levels of integrity, motivation and professionalism.
• Flexibility to travel in the UK and internationally, including occasional work outside normal hours.

The Charity

Alzheimer's Research UK is the UK's leading dementia research charity. Our mission is to accelerate progress towards a cure. Today one in two people will be impacted by dementia, either through caring for a loved one, developing it themselves or tragically both. But there is hope. There has never been a more important and exciting time in dementia research. With promising new drugs in clinical trials that slow the progression of the diseases that cause it, and revolutionary new ways to diagnose them on the horizon, we are now at a tipping point. Working with the smartest minds globally and across the UK, with industry and academia, Alzheimer’s Research UK is uniquely placed to invest in the very best research identifying barriers to a cure and knocking them down so that there are more and better treatments for everyone with dementia.

Inclusion

We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone can be themselves and reach their full potential. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under‑represented. Any offer of employment is however subject to you having the right to work in the UK.

Benefits

It is important to offer a range of benefits which are designed to meet both the organisational and individual needs, are market competitive and designed to attract and retain employees.

About the Charity

Alzheimer's Research UK is a registered charity, numbers 1077089 and SC042474. 3 Riverside, Granta Park, Cambridge CB21 6AD.