The OPSS Research Fellowship Scheme

Are you a researcher interested in gaining experience working in government? Are you passionate about research that has an impact on policy and practice? Are you motivated to keep people and places safe from product related harm?

If you answered ‘yes’, then The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) Research Fellowship scheme may be for you.   

We are excited to announce the launch of the flagship OPSS Research Fellowship Scheme. The scheme seeks to forge connections between UK academia, industry and government. Fellows are invited to join OPSS on a secondment basis to lead on a specific research project for the duration of one year.  

The project will align with the Fellow’s subject specialism and technical expertise, enabling the Fellow to make a unique contribution to the effective development of UK product safety regulation. This opportunity is available full time or part time. The position is funded, allowing Fellow’s current salary to be matched according to Civil Service pay scales. 

Becoming a Fellow at OPSS is a unique career opportunity that will allow you to: 

  • Understand the role of evidence and research in informing policy decisions  
  • Take a step back from your usual research, such as lab-based or academic work, to lead on research that makes an impact within a policy environment   
  • Collaborate with government employees across a range of teams to build new professional networks   
  • Gain access to unique training and development opportunities to learn new skills to take back to your employer and/or advance your career  
  • Join the founding cohort of OPSS Fellows, benefiting from the support of other researchers  

About OPSS

We are the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), part of the Department for Business & Trade. We are here for the purpose of making regulation work to deliver real world impact. Regulation is a powerful Government tool to address market failures, influence behaviour and promote positive action. Crafted and delivered well, regulation can be an enabler of growth, innovation and efficiency. 

OPSS has a vital role in ensuring the safety of UK citizens. As part of this work, OPSS commissions research that responds to a variety of evolving contemporary issues: from investigating fires caused by e-bike batteries to interventions to promote gender-inclusive regulatory reform. OPSS plays a vital role in providing evidence and expert guidance to product safety challenges, with real world implications.  

Since early 2018 we have been building a positive and creative team that enjoys a position of influence and respect within an organisation that continues to grow.

Our primary purpose is to protect people and places from product-related harm, ensuring consumers and businesses can buy and sell products with confidence

What are we looking for? 

The Fellowship scheme is open to researchers from a range of disciplines, with subject and technical expertise relevant to the research projects. We welcome applications from data scientists, economists, engineers and scientists with experience in computational toxicology or flammability testing.   

All Fellows must be confident in data collection and analysis, drawing together findings and communicating these to both technical members of the team and the public. The specific research and data analysis skills required depend on the project you are applying for.   

Please see below for more information on current opportunities… 

Grade: Senior Executive Officer (SEO)
Salary: London, £44,942 – 48,817, Birmingham: £41,156 – 45,112

As a relatively new regulator, it is vital that OPSS can demonstrate the benefits and impact it has on consumers, markets and businesses. Understanding the detriment that can be caused without OPSS intervention, and hence avoided if OPSS intervenes, is a key component of identifying and monetising OPSS’ impact. Hence, OPSS has developed an economic model (in Excel) to help measure the detriment associated with unsafe goods in monetary terms. The Strategic Evidence Team in OPSS Economics is now seeking a research fellow to:  

  1. Lead the conversion of an Excel-based economic detriment model into RStudio.
  2. Build in new capabilities to incorporate the treatment of uncertainty within the estimates.
  3. Aid the dissemination of estimates through the development of a dashboard or interactive user interface.  

The current model is inefficient, requiring extensive manual data processing. A more robust version will enable OPSS to regularly update the model with new data and make it easier to get refreshed estimates. The current team consists of three members, providing technical guidance and quality assurance.   

This project has not been undertaken before, offering an opportunity for innovation.  

The research fellow will receive an induction to OPSS and the Strategic Evidence Team, including an overview of the economic detriment model and its policy context. The role will provide the candidate with opportunities to familiarise themselves with the concepts of detriment and the process of the value for money assessment of the regulatory role of the OPSS.  

Key Responsibilities: 

Model Development & Conversion:  

  • Translate the existing Excel-based model into RStudio, ensuring all functionalities are maintained or improved  
  • Streamline data loading, wrangling, and calculations to improve efficiency and reproducibility  

Quality Assurance & Analytical Robustness:  

  • Lead the quality assurance process to ensure model accuracy and reliability  
  • Implement best practices for analytical robustness, including documentation, version control, and peer review  

Collaboration & Knowledge Sharing:  

  • Work independently as well as in a team. Get support from team members for quality assurance and technical feedback  
  • Engage with colleagues to refine the methodology and identify opportunities for model expansion  

Deliverables:  

  • A fully functional economic detriment model in R-studio  
  • Clear documentation to ensure future usability by OPSS economists  
  • Recommendations for potential enhancements and scalability of the model 

Person specification 

Essential criteria 

The below criteria are essential and will be assessed at application stage: 

  • Proficient in RStudio and Excel 
  • An understanding of economic modelling 

The candidate must be able to demonstrate the following technical skills:   

  • Software programming [practitioner level] – Conversion of the economic detriment model from Excel, automation of processes, and code optimisation for future-proofing model updates  
  • Data Wrangling & Processing [practitioner level] – Handling, structuring, and cleaning data for efficient model use  
  • Quality Assurance & Analytical Robustness [practitioner level] – Leading the quality assurance process, verifying model accuracy with colleagues and enduring reproducibility   
  • Building & Applying Knowledge [awareness] – Understanding the economic principles and applications of the model   
  • Communicating insights [awareness] – Documenting and communicating model development and presenting to the team   

Desirable criteria  

An economics background is advantageous but not essential.  

For scheme specific queries, please email: [email protected]

To apply, email your CV and a cover letter to: [email protected]

Apply for role

Location 

All projects can be based in either Birmingham, London or Teddington. You will be expected to work a hybrid arrangement, with 40-60% of time spent in the office. Exceptions will be considered on an individual basis, depending on project need.  

Secondment Eligibility Criteria

As this is a secondment opportunity, you must have an employer who is willing to sign a secondment agreement. You should be on the employer’s payroll, as we will reimburse your employer for associated costs, including your salary within our pay range, employer pension contributions, employer national insurance contributions, and VAT. Funded PhD students are also welcome to apply, provided that their funder or university is prepared to sign a secondment agreement with us. Please note, this opportunity is not open to current Civil Servants.

Security 

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty. Any applicant who has details held on the IFD will be refused employment.    

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. Please contact us if you have any issue with this.  

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks. 

Nationality requirements 

This job is broadly open to the following groups: 

  • UK nationals
  • nationals of the Republic of Ireland 
  • nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK 
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window) 
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) 
  • individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020 
  • Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service 

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) 

  • Please note: The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.  

Working for the Civil Service 

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. 

We are Inclusive

We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible and recognise how important inclusivity is to achieve the best outcomes. We hope to attract applications from all underrepresented groups.

 We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation if required to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform crucial job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us ([email protected]) to request accommodation of any reasonable adjustments.  

Additional information  

  • Candidates that do not quite meet the standards for the roles may be offered a position at a lower grade and salary. 
  • A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. 
  • Please see Candidate Pack linked below for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department. 

Ready to apply?  

Please email your CV and a cover letter to: [email protected]

We will shortlist applications on a rolling basis, and if you are selected you will be invited to attend an interview.  

 

Expected timeline  

We anticipate interviews to take place throughout Autumn and will aim for successful applicants to be onboarded by December 2025.   

 

Interested in finding out more? 

Watch the webinar recording:

Please note: The webinar was recorded during an earlier round of recruitment. While most information is still relevant, the most up to date specifics can be found in the candidate pack

 

Find out more information here: Candidate Pack – OPSS Research Fellowship Scheme Sep 25.pdf