Senior Programme Manager – UK Vaccine Innovation Pathway

NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research) provided pay range

This range is provided by NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research). Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Base pay range

Be part of the next chapter in vaccine innovation.

What if your next role helped transform how vaccines are developed and delivered across the UK and beyond?

At the NIHR, we’re driving a bold mission to make the UK the world’s best place to conduct vaccine research. And we’re looking for a Senior Programme Manager with vision, precision and purpose to help make that happen.

About the Programme

The UK Vaccine Innovation Pathway (UK VIP) is reimagining the way clinical trials are designed, set up, and delivered, from infectious disease vaccines to the next generation of cancer therapeutics.

Building on the lessons from the pandemic, UK VIP brings together the NHS, academia and industry to accelerate vaccine research, improve patient access, and strengthen national readiness for future health challenges.

This is not just another programme, it’s a movement shaping the future of public health.

Your Impact

As our Senior Programme Manager, you’ll sit at the heart of this transformation. You’ll coordinate across multiple partners, from leading pharmaceutical companies to cutting edge research centres, to make vaccine trials faster, smarter, and more effective.

Your work will:

  • Redefine how vaccine studies are delivered across the UK
  • Enable collaboration between the NHS, NIHR, and industry to streamline research and accelerate breakthroughs
  • Empower research teams to bring innovative vaccines to patients faster
  • Strengthen the UK’s global leadership in vaccine science and clinical excellence

Every project you lead will help bring life changing vaccines closer to the people who need them most.

What You’ll Do

  • Lead and coordinate key UK VIP workstreams, ensuring seamless delivery across national partners
  • Shape and optimise processes that speed up trial setup, improve recruitment, and enhance efficiency
  • Oversee governance, reporting, and performance across UK Vaccine Delivery Groups
  • Build powerful collaborations through the Vaccines Research Fora and Vaccine Innovation Fund
  • Turn insights into action, continuously improving how the UK delivers research

Required Criteria

  • Education: PhD or Master’s in biomedical science, life sciences, or related field
  • Experience: 5+ years in clinical research programme/project management, including multi site trial setup and delivery within the UK NHS or academic research environment
  • Knowledge: In depth understanding of UK health and care research landscape (NIHR networks, governance, regulatory processes)
  • Leadership: Proven ability to lead complex, multi partner programmes with measurable outcomes in system/process improvement
  • Stakeholder Management: Strong engagement skills with pharmaceutical companies, NHS Trusts, and academic partners at senior levels
  • Governance & Oversight: Ability to design, implement, and monitor programme governance (reporting, risk management, performance dashboards)
  • Project Management: Advanced skills with recognised qualifications (PRINCE2, Agile, Lean) able to coordinate multiple interdependent workstreams
  • Strategic & Analytical: Capable of interpreting complex information, identifying interdependencies and driving operational improvements in research delivery

Desired Criteria

  • Experience managing multi partner, cross sector clinical research collaborations
  • Ability to redesign research processes or implement system wide improvements (trial setup, recruitment, delivery optimisation)
  • Strategic portfolio planning experience (aligning studies with NHS capacity and population needs)
  • Line management and team development skills to drive performance and accountability
  • Expertise in stakeholder engagement and public involvement initiatives (advisory fora, community strategies, consent-to-contact registries)
  • Strong IT proficiency for digital tools, dashboards, project management software and programme planning support

Why Join NIHR

At NIHR, your work doesn’t just support research, it shapes the nation’s health future. You’ll join a passionate team working at the intersection of science, innovation, and policy with the opportunity to make a lasting national impact.

If you want to be part of something bigger, to help make the UK a global powerhouse in vaccine development, this is your opportunity.

Compensation, Benefits & Working Arrangements:

  • Salary: £48,600 to £51,300 (higher for exceptional candidates)
  • Location: Victoria, London / hybrid working model
  • Contract Type: Fixed‑Term (15 months: January 2026 – March 2027)

Employee Benefits Include:

  • Annual bonus
  • Enhanced Contributory Pension Scheme
  • Life Insurance Cover
  • Benenden Healthcare Membership
  • Training and Development Opportunities
  • Season Ticket Loan

NB: This is a hybrid role based at our office in Victoria, London, with a minimum requirement of one in‑office day per week. This requirement may increase based on team needs or operational demands.

How to Apply

If you are excited about the prospect of joining our team and believe you possess the relevant skills and background, we invite you to apply. Please submit your CV along with a \'Statement of Suitability\' that showcases your key skills and experiences in relation to the \'Required & Desired Criteria\' outlined in the job description. Additionally, share your enthusiasm for working with the NIHR.

NB: Closing date for applications is 5pm on 27th October with the interviews to be held from the W/C the 3rd November.

Inclusion and Diversity

LGC strongly believes that every job applicant and employee should be valued for their individual talents regardless of age, disability, race, colour, ethnic or national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, religion, or belief. Short listing, interviewing and selection will always be carried out without regard to gender, sexual orientation, marital status, colour, race, nationality, ethnic or national origins, religion or belief, age, or trade union membership.

#J-18808-Ljbffr Salary: GBP 48600 - 51300 per year Experience: 5 years required
Back to blog

Other Jobs To Apply

No other job posts for this day.

Common Interview Questions And Answers

1. HOW DO YOU PLAN YOUR DAY?

This is what this question poses: When do you focus and start working seriously? What are the hours you work optimally? Are you a night owl? A morning bird? Remote teams can be made up of people working on different shifts and around the world, so you won't necessarily be stuck in the 9-5 schedule if it's not for you...

2. HOW DO YOU USE THE DIFFERENT COMMUNICATION TOOLS IN DIFFERENT SITUATIONS?

When you're working on a remote team, there's no way to chat in the hallway between meetings or catch up on the latest project during an office carpool. Therefore, virtual communication will be absolutely essential to get your work done...

3. WHAT IS "WORKING REMOTE" REALLY FOR YOU?

Many people want to work remotely because of the flexibility it allows. You can work anywhere and at any time of the day...

4. WHAT DO YOU NEED IN YOUR PHYSICAL WORKSPACE TO SUCCEED IN YOUR WORK?

With this question, companies are looking to see what equipment they may need to provide you with and to verify how aware you are of what remote working could mean for you physically and logistically...

5. HOW DO YOU PROCESS INFORMATION?

Several years ago, I was working in a team to plan a big event. My supervisor made us all work as a team before the big day. One of our activities has been to find out how each of us processes information...

6. HOW DO YOU MANAGE THE CALENDAR AND THE PROGRAM? WHICH APPLICATIONS / SYSTEM DO YOU USE?

Or you may receive even more specific questions, such as: What's on your calendar? Do you plan blocks of time to do certain types of work? Do you have an open calendar that everyone can see?...

7. HOW DO YOU ORGANIZE FILES, LINKS, AND TABS ON YOUR COMPUTER?

Just like your schedule, how you track files and other information is very important. After all, everything is digital!...

8. HOW TO PRIORITIZE WORK?

The day I watched Marie Forleo's film separating the important from the urgent, my life changed. Not all remote jobs start fast, but most of them are...

9. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A MEETING AND PREPARE A MEETING? WHAT DO YOU SEE HAPPENING DURING THE MEETING?

Just as communication is essential when working remotely, so is organization. Because you won't have those opportunities in the elevator or a casual conversation in the lunchroom, you should take advantage of the little time you have in a video or phone conference...

10. HOW DO YOU USE TECHNOLOGY ON A DAILY BASIS, IN YOUR WORK AND FOR YOUR PLEASURE?

This is a great question because it shows your comfort level with technology, which is very important for a remote worker because you will be working with technology over time...