Salary for this Role:

London Living Wage, paid on an hourly basis

Job Title:

BRF Research Officer/Support Technician (Bank)

Reports to:

Anna Sullivan

Closing Date:

05/Apr/2024 23.59 GMT

Job Description:

BRF Research Officer (Animal Technician)/Support Technician (Bank Staff)

Reports to: BRF Support Manager and/or BRF Unit Manager(s)

Contract Type: This is a temporary position on a bank (casual) agreement covering the summer period

Pay rate: London Living Wage, paid on an hourly basis at £13.15

Summary

The Crick’s Biological Research Facility (BRF) is looking for individuals to join their team on a bank (casual) agreement. Full training will be given.

The BRF Research Officer/Support Technician Bank Staff are responsible for the delivery and provision of quality essential support to the team. Working under supervision, this role includes carrying out clearly defined animal husbandry tasks while adhering to legal frameworks, protocols and procedures.

The BRF manages several multidisciplinary animal facilities housing rodents, zebrafish, Xenopus spp., laboratory opossums and ferrets, with associated specialist equipment and areas. It provides a service to ~550 Personal Licensees using ~50 Home Office Project Licences and has over 150 staff.

About us

The Francis Crick Institute is a biomedical discovery institute dedicated to understanding the fundamental biology underlying health and disease. Its work is helping to understand why disease develops and to translate discoveries into new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, stroke, infections, and neurodegenerative diseases.

An independent organisation, its founding partners are the Medical Research Council (MRC), Cancer Research UK, Wellcome, UCL (University College London), Imperial College London and King’s College London.

The Crick was formed in 2015, and in 2016 it moved into a brand new state-of-the-art building in central London which brings together 1500 scientists and support staff working collaboratively across disciplines, making it the biggest biomedical research facility under a single roof in Europe.

The Francis Crick Institute is world-class with a strong national role. Its distinctive vision for excellence includes commitments to collaboration; developing emerging talent and exporting it the rest of the UK; public engagement; and helping turn discoveries into treatments as quickly as possible to improve lives and strengthen the economy.

Key responsibilities

These include but not limited to;

Animal Husbandry and Welfare:

• Providing excellent care, welfare and husbandry to laboratory animals including mice, rats, laboratory opossums, ferrets, zebrafish and frogs within specialist facilities
• Providing daily animal husbandry support to animals within specialised barrier systems
• Undertaking general cleaning and disinfection of equipment and areas
• Gaining and maintaining knowledge of relevant legislation, for example, Animal (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986

Logistics:

• Using equipment in an appropriate and efficient manner. This includes, for example, cage washers, robotic cage processing systems and cage change stations
• Unloading and checking deliveries
• Checking stock levels within relevant BRF areas
• Delivering animals, stock and consumables between delivery points and BRF units in a timely manner
• Providing daily support to the BRF, for example, by preparing cages, racking, water pouches, laundry and consumable supplies

Health & Safety:

• Working to defined Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
• Gaining awareness and adhering to all Health and Safety Regulations
• Maintaining the integrity of the barriers for areas working in and reporting breaches to the relevant people

Information Technology:

• Maintaining accurate written and computer-based records

Team Work:

• Working as part of a team to provide support to the BRF
• Undertaking general cleaning and disinfection of areas including toilets and shower facilities
• Assisting with some animal husbandry duties within specialised barrier systems
• Taking part in any other duties that are appropriate to the role as directed

Communication:

• Asking for information, guidance from relevant people to complete tasks
• Reporting and communicating any issues/problems identified in the area to the relevant people
• Conveying of information clearly to others within own team

KEY EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCIES

Full training will be given

The post holder should embody and demonstrate our core Crick values: Bold, Open and Collegial, in addition to the following:

Essential:

Qualification, experience and competencies:

• Educated to GCSE level or equivalent and possess a minimum of 5 GCSEs (including Maths and/or Science)
• Respects and has empathy towards the care and use of animals in science
• Is physically fit to meet the demands of the role as will include frequent carrying and lifting
• Demonstrates contributing effectively to the work of a team
• Is conscientious and reliable in undertaking the job and wants to do well
• Ability to work under light supervision and organise own tasks on a daily basis
• Good time keeping skills
• Good written and communication skills
• Proactive in the workplace
• Ability to comply with Crick policy and procedures

Desirable:

Qualification, experience and competencies:

• Previous experience of working in this field
• Has a desire to work in the laboratory animal technology field

Find out what benefits the Crick has to offer:

For more information on our great pay and benefits package please click here: https://www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-study/life-at-the-crick/pay-and-benefits

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion:

We welcome applications from all backgrounds. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities, regardless of ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, pregnancy, age, disability, or civil partnership, marital or family status. We particularly welcome applications from people who are Minority Ethnic as they are currently underrepresented in the Crick at this level.

Diversity is essential to excellence in scientific endeavour. It increases breadth and perspective, leading to more innovation and creativity. We want the Crick to be a place where everyone feels valued and where diversity is celebrated and seen as part of the foundation for our Institute’s success.

The Crick is committed to creating equality of opportunity and promoting diversity and inclusivity. We all share in the responsibility to actively promote dignity, respect, inclusivity and equal treatment and it is our aim to ensure that these principles are reflected and implemented in all strategies, policies and practices.

Read more on our website: https://www.crick.ac.uk/careers-and-study/life-at-the-crick/equality-diversity-and-inclusion