Salary: £31,236 to £32,080 with progression to £34,610 per annum
Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.
Closing Date: 17 October 2025
The Role
The post will provide technical support for the operation of research within the Newcastle Fibrosis Research Group (NFRG) led by Prof Derek Mann, Prof Fiona Oakley, Dr Lee Borthwick, Dr Emma Scott and Dr Jack Leslie, and join a wider community of technical professionals in the Biosciences Institute managed by the Institute Technical Manager. You will require knowledge of technical scientific practices, methods and procedures gained through either experience and/or formal qualification and will deploy this knowledge to provide a range of technical support activities supporting the research of the group.
You will play a central role in overseeing the day-to-day running of the laboratory, ensuring efficient management of shared resources, consumables, and laboratory infrastructure. You will be responsible for managing laboratory compliance and governance processes, including Human Tissue Authority (HTA) documentation, Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs), COSHH and BIOCOSHH assessments, and laboratory risk assessments. You will help ensure all activity adheres to institutional policies and regulatory requirements.
The role requires excellent organisational and communication skills, and a proactive, team-focused approach to maintaining a high-quality and compliant research environment. Experience in handling human tissue samples, storage and HTA legislation would be advantageous.
The post is for 6 months in first instance.
Informal enquiries to : Dr Jack Leslie: Jack.Leslie@newcastle.ac.uk
Please note that if you are successful to this role, you will require medical clearance before you can commence in the role.
Key Accountabilities
* Provide technical support for the operation of research within the NFRG
* Responsible for the operation and operational maintenance of complex and sophisticated research equipment/instruments in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions. Perform regular first line maintenance tasks or minor repairs on all project equipment. Responsible for ensuring that all repairs are carried out and records are kept up to date
* Maintain stocks of chemicals, media and other consumables determining requirements and initiating orders within specified ordering procedures to ensure the laboratory runs smoothly. Checking, processing, and keeping accurate records of incoming deliveries
* Liaise with suppliers and manufacturers to help resolve any delivery or ordering issues and investigate replacement options
* Help to develop local procedures, establish, and maintain a safe/compliant working environment
* Maintain in-depth and up-to-date health and safety knowledge relevant to the specialism
* Assist with the completion and updating of a wide range of safety paperwork for example, risk assessments and maintaining safety laboratory records (e.g., COSHH, BIOCOSHH, and other regulations) in consultation with academic staff or, where appropriate, senior technical staff
* Ensure correct storage and handling of bio-chemicals, biological materials and tissue samples collected from patients. Be responsible for the safe disposal and storage of hazardous waste in accordance with local rules and legal requirements. Maintain records of archived materials, data and methods for use by all related research staff
* Receive and store samples donated to the local tissue bank and ensure this is in accordance with Human Tissue Authority regulations
* Schedule, prioritise and monitor work in line with demands and deadlines
* Organize and facilitate progress meetings
* Contribute to and support change
* Help oversee one or more budgets monitoring resource usage
* Help source and negotiate with suppliers for a range of items including specialist parts/equipment
* Prepare and manufacture specimens/samples requiring specialist skills with limited direction
* Maintain equipment booking logs
* Manage local security and access control arrangements such as -80 freezer auto-dialers and alarms
* Assist managers with the identification of training and development needs
* Maintain specialist knowledge and skills, sharing with others
* Mentor junior staff
* Provision of assistance and training of academic, technical, research staff and both postgraduate and undergraduate project students on specific experimental techniques and the use and application of equipment and deliver inductions
* Support taught course projects by promotion and incorporation of specialism
The Person
Knowledge, Skills and Experience
* Extensive experience supporting research operations in a large, dynamic laboratory environment
* Proven ability to manage and optimise laboratory-wide compliance tasks
* Experience overseeing shared laboratory resources, scheduling workloads, and facilitating effective day-to-day running across multiple research teams
* Day-to-day oversights of lab accounts, ordering, and providing regular updates to grant holders
* Experience supporting sustainability initiatives and efficient lab operations
* Ability to communicate effectively in written and oral form
* Ability to prioritise workload and plan effectively
* Computer literate
* Ability to show initiative
* Ability to play an active part in a multi-disciplinary team & to liaise with external centres as required
* Thorough working knowledge of Health and Safety procedures
* Excellent team working skills
* Demonstrates technical and problem-solving capacity
Desirable
* Demonstrates good organising ability to meet deadlines, with a positive and proactive approach to duties and diligence and attention to detail
* Skills in developing, maintaining, and automating digital databases for tracking samples, consumables, equipment usage, and compliance records
* Contribute to design and specification of research/teaching activities
* Ability to adapt to changes in laboratory research priorities
* Skills working with clinical specimens and sample collection/storage/recording/logging including HTA regulations, Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs), and human tissue governance.
* Willingness to take on other roles e.g. fire warden
Attributes and Behaviour
* Tact, diplomacy and able to handle difficult situations
* Ability to meet deadlines with effective time and resource management
* Clear communicator and active listener
* Consistent and appropriate approach to staff and situations
* Use of feedback for process improvement and staff development
* Ability to maintain detailed documentation of processes and willingness to establish standard working practices
* Self-motivated
* Team player, self starter and able to manage complex workload
* Ability to respond enthusiastically and positively to undergraduate students
Qualifications
* BTEC HNC / HND; or A’ level (or equivalent) qualification; or broad work experience acquired through a combination of vocational training and considerable on-the-job experience, demonstrating development through progressively more demanding relevant roles
Desirable
* Professional registration with an accredited professional body (including HEA) or working towards this on appointment
Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.
We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.
At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.
In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.
Requisition ID: 28573