Administrative Assistant, CASCADE

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Administrative Assistant, CASCADE

Cardiff University School of Social Sciences is seeking to recruit an Administrative Assistant to work within the Children\’s Social Care Research and Development Centre (CASCADE), Research Centre that is located within the School.

In this role you will provide an administrative service to CASCADE, the Children’s Social Care Research and Development Centre and the ExChange Wales programme , engaging and completing a range of routine tasks to meet operational and customer service requirements. Providing support and guidance on CASCADE and ExChange Wales administrative processes and procedures , ensure the CASCADE and ExChange Wales teams are supported and key duties undertaken.

This post is full-time (35 hours per week), fixed term from 1st September 2025 until 31st March 2028.

Salary: £24,900 – £25,733 per annum (Grade 3), with annual increments up to final salary at top of grade. New appointments are usually made at the starting point of the salary scale.

Responsible to Sian Lewis, Events and Communications Officer, CASCADE

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Sian, LewisS76@cardiff.ac.uk.

Cardiff University offers many excellent benefits, including 40 annual leave (including bank holidays), blended working (meaning you will be able to work from home for some of your time), a cycle to work scheme and other travel initiatives, annual increments up the pay scale, and more. It is an exciting and vibrant place to work, with many different challenges and is a proud Living Wage supporter.

As the biggest university in Wales – and a major employer, with more than 7,000 staff – we are an ambitious and innovative university located in a beautiful and thriving capital city. We can offer you the chance to work in a vibrant organisation, with great benefits and opportunities for progression.

This role is eligible to be offered on a blended working basis, meaning that as well as spendingtime working on campus you may spend some timeworking from another location, e.g. your home. The University is committed to offering this flexibility, wherever the role and business need allows, supporting work-life balance.

Closing date: Tuesday, 09 September 2025

This post has previously been advertised to employees of Cardiff University only. We now invite external applications.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds who have the ambition to create a University which seeks to fulfil our social, cultural and economic obligation to Cardiff, Wales, and the world. In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Applications may be submitted in Welsh, and an application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.

Job Description

Key Duties

• Deal with a range of enquires from internal and external customers in a professional manner, establishing their requirements and adapting the standard responses accordingly
• Collaborate with others in order to make recommendations for developments of established processes and procedures
• Support the CASCADE and ExChange Wales teams with administration for events, webinars and workshops
• Establish working relationships with key contacts to help improve service levels
• Undertake a variety of administrative duties to support the CASCADE and ExChange Wales teams
• Gather and review data to update administrative systems such as databases and spreadsheets, making sure the information is accurate, and highlighting to your line manager basic trends and patterns.
• Contribute to the success of the team, leading others through example, and supporting the supervision and management of the team.

Specific Duties

• Assist in the preparation and distribution of materials for events, research dissemination, and digital content, such as agendas, presentations, and participant lists.
• Provide general administrative support to the CASCADE and ExChange Wales teams, including the Centre Manager, Admin Manager, ExChange Network Manager, Digital and Web Officers, and Principal and Co-Investigators, by scheduling meetings, co-ordinating availability across centres and entities, handling correspondence and taking minutes.
• Monitor and respond to general inquiries regarding CASCADE administration and the ExChange programme via the CASCADE and ExChange email inboxes.
• Maintain accurate records of ExChange activities, including event details, contact lists, and meeting minutes.
• Assist in the preparation of papers and reporting requirements.
• Manage stationary requirements.

Event Coordination support

• Support the organisation and delivery of CASCADE and ExChange events, including webinars, workshops, and conferences, working closely with the Events and Communications Officer.
• Coordinate logistics for both online and in-person events, such as booking venues, arranging catering, and setting up virtual meeting platforms.
• Assist with the registration process, including managing attendee lists, sending out invitations, and processing RSVPs.
• Provide administrative assistance in the production of online content, including podcasts, videos, and webinars.

Data Management and Reporting

• Collect and organise data related to ExChange events and digital content performance
• Assist in preparing reports on publications, event outcomes, participant engagement, and digital metrics for internal and external stakeholders.
• Ensure that all data is handled in accordance with GDPR regulations.

Financial Administration

• Data entry for financial expenditure for CASCADE purchases, including logging in a finance tracker and assisting the Administration Manager with procurement and financial processes.
• Assist in tracking and processing expenses related to ExChange activities, including processing invoices and maintaining budget records.

General Duties

• Ensure that an understanding of the importance of confidentiality is applied when undertaking all duties
• Abide by University policies on Health and Safety and Equality and Diversity
• Perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role
• Uphold the Professional Services Values & Behaviours

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• NVQ 2/GCSE level A-C or equivalent
• Experience of working in an administrative or office environment
• Proficient in using common office IT packages (e.g. MS Office)
• Ability to set up standard administrative systems and procedures
• Ability to communicate effectively and professionally with a wide range of people
• Ability to work as an effective team member, providing advice and guidance to other team members where necessary
• Proven ability to deal with escalated requests for information or service, resolving customer issues where appropriate
• Ability to plan, prioritise and organise own workload within established time scales
• Ability to use initiative in solving problems and responding to queries ensuring compliance with standard procedures and practices
• A willingness to undertake further training and development

Desirable Criteria

• A-Levels or equivalent
• Experience of working in a research or social care setting
• Experience of working in a Higher Education environment
• Fluency in Welsh, written and oral

IMPORTANT: Evidencing Criteria

It is Cardiff University\’s policy to use the person specification as a key tool for shortlisting. Therefore, candidates must evidence they meet ALL the essential criteria and, where relevant, the desirable.

As part of the application process, you are asked to provide this evidence via a supporting statement. Please ensure that the evidence you are providing corresponds with the numbered criteria outlined in the person specification. Your application will be considered based on the information you provide for each criterion.

When attaching the supporting statement to your application profile, please ensure you name it with the vacancy reference number: XXXXBR.

Your application will be at risk of not being progressed if you do not evidence you have met all essential criteria. The school welcomes the submission of CVs to accompany evidence of the job-based criteria.

Please note that these are also the criteria shortlisted applicants will be assessed against at interview and/or by other means (e.g. a skills test).

Additional Information

The Children\’s Social Care Research and Development Centre (CASCADE)

The Children\’s Social Care Research And Development Centre (CASCADE) Is Concerned With All Aspects Of Community Responses To Social Need In Children And Families, Including Family Support Services, Children In Need Services, Child Protection, Looked After Children And Adoption. It Aims First And Foremost To Improve The Well-being And Safety Of Children And Their Families By

• Generating primary research evidence of an internationally recognised high quality.
• Making the results of this research, and research produced elsewhere, available in an accessible form for children and families who receive social care services, professionals and policymakers.
• Developing social care research capacity in Wales by providing opportunities for researchers from undergraduate through to senior career stages.
• Engaging a range of collaborators in research, including children and young people, parents and carers, practitioners, policymakers and social care providers from the public, private and third sectors.

ExChange

ExChange Wales brings leading researchers together with practitioners and service users to share expertise, research evidence and care experiences. ExChange Wales provides free, high-quality training and support to the ongoing development of social care professionals across Wales. With leading national experts, we deliver conferences , workshops and webinars that enable dialogue and learning between researchers, policy makers and practitioners. We also host a diverse range of resources and projects online including videos , podcasts and blogs . Crucially, our events and resources enrich skills while putting the voice of people with lived experience at the forefront of our learning.

Cardiff University School of Social Sciences

ExChange is based within CASCADE and CASCADE based within Cardiff University School of Social Sciences. The School is an inter-disciplinary centre of teaching and research. With strong links with industry and medicine, it seeks to lead on public and policy debates at international, national, and local levels and is renowned for its innovative scholarship across the social sciences and beyond.

The School hosts a number of research centres and institutes, including the University’s Police Studies Institute (UPSI), now part of the University’s Crime & Security Research Institute; the Wales Institute for Economic Research & Data (WISERD); the Children\’s Social Care Research and Development Centre (CASCADE); the Centre for Development, Evaluation, Complexity and Implementation in Public Health Improvement (DECIPHer); Centre for Adult Social Care Research (CARE) and the Seafarers’ International Research Centre (SIRC). Many of the School’s research centres are housed in the University’s Social Science Research Park (SPARK) – a world first, and part of the University’s wider Innovation Campus.

The School of Social Sciences holds an Athena SWAN Bronze Award that recognises good employment practice and a commitment to develop the careers of women working in academia. Cardiff University is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity. We actively encourage women to apply. We will also always consider proposals for flexible working or job share opportunities.

Salary Range Min.

24,900

Salary Range Max.

25,733

Job Category

Admin / Clerical

Grade

Grade 3 #J-18808-Ljbffr