User Researchers

Citizens Advice offers confidential advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free. Through our national network of charities, we give people the knowledge and the confidence they need to find their way forward – whoever they are, and whatever their problem.

Do you want to work for an organisation that makes a difference, every single day, to people from all walks of life? The people that turn to Citizens Advice need help overcoming an obstacle in their lives – from debt to evictions to trouble at work – and you can be key to them getting the support they need in the quickest, easiest, and most effective way.

User Researchers at Citizens Advice work in multidisciplinary teams to understand people’s problems, motivations and goals so our products and services are accessible and meet their needs.

We are looking for 2 User Researchers to join our vibrant and talented User Research team:

One role will be embedded within a continuous improvement team working closely with an Evaluation Specialist and Service Designer. The team will focus on changes to our energy advice programmes to improve the experience of people accessing this support and will shape what our offer looks like in future.

The other role will be embedded within a content team working to redesign our online discrimination advice, working closely with Content Designers and Subject Matter Experts. Improving our discrimination advice is an organisational priority and a pillar of our EDI approach and work on inclusive access. This team will focus on ensuring our offer is relevant to clients from minoritised and marginalised groups, helping people who may have experienced unlawful discrimination to find a way forward.

We’re interested in people that have had a breadth of research experience and have either been part of a small team or been quite autonomous as part of a larger team. You’ll need demonstrable experience carrying out a range of research methodologies - this might come from a range of research backgrounds. An understanding of UX and prototyping skills is also useful.

You’ll help teams to understand the diversity of people using our services so we design and deliver accessible services that work for everyone. We take a Design Justice approach to our work, centering the voices of people with lived experience to ensure that the advice we provide meets their needs and helps solve their often complex problems.

Research projects won’t take months within Citizens Advice so you should understand how to run user research in agile and collaborative teams. We’re looking for someone who can apply research learnings and methodologies to services and online content in a fast paced, iterative environment.

Please provide details in your cover letter to evidence the following essential criteria:

• Demonstrable experience of using primary and secondary research to identify user needs, and working in teams to design products and services.
• Passion for using research insights to shape inclusive and accessible services and content.
• Experience of user and design research methods, such as interviews, using personas, ethnography and observation, usability testing, online surveys and Google Analytics.

If you would like to arrange an informal call with a User Researcher at Citizens Advice to learn more about what the role involves and discuss your experience in order to work out whether you have the right skills for this role, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with Elexa St. John-Saaltink (elexa.st.john-saaltink@citizensadvice.org.uk) or Christina Herold (christina.herold@citizensadvice.org.uk) to arrange a time slot.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is of strategic importance within the organisation and recognised as integral to all we do as a service.

Central to pursuing our EDI mission is building diverse and inclusive teams in which everyone has a sense of belonging. We believe inclusion is a social justice issue - a principle that underpins our all EDI work. To that end, we particularly welcome applications from people we would like to see better represented in our organisation and sector - people of colour, LGBTQ+ people and disabled people. If you are disabled and meet our minimum criteria you will be guaranteed an interview for this role and we will provide reasonable adjustments as needed. We follow the social model of disability.

We’re a flexible employer, so this role may suit anyone who’d prefer a flexible arrangement to help their work/life balance, many of our colleagues spend most of their time working remotely. Whilst we prefer a blended approach between a local office, if one is near you, and home we’re open to being flexible on location, occasionally a role may require you to be based in a certain location if that is the case it will be detailed in the advert or job description. This can be discussed in more detail during your interview.

The National Citizens Advice Operates from offices in England and Wales, with 4 regional offices based in Cardiff, London, Birmingham and Leeds, therefore all successful applicants must be based within England or Wales.

Our commitment to colleague wellbeing is reflected in us being awarded Gold in the Health & Wellbeing category, as well as Overall Winners, at the Employee Experience Awards 2022.

Please be aware that Citizens Advice is not a sponsoring organisation. Therefore the successful applicant must already possess the right to work in the UK or be able to secure the right to work in the UK independently.

In the event of a high number of applications, we reserve the right to close the application early.

This vacancy closes at 23.59 on the closing date.

For more information about the organisation, our values and benefits please see the following link - Information, values and benefits

Need help with your application, see our useful how to guides on the following page - Guidance notes for applicants