Durham University
Project Coordinator
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The University
At Durham University we are proud of our people. A globally outstanding centre of educational excellence, a collegiate community of extraordinary people, a unique and historic setting – Durham is a university like no other.
Across the University we have a huge variety of roles and career opportunities, which together make us a large and successful community, which is a key hub of activity within our region and nationally. Whether you are at the very start, middle or end of your career, there is a role for you. We believe everyone has their own unique skills to offer.
We would be thrilled if you would consider joining our thriving University. Further information about the University can be found here.
Find out more about the benefits of working at the University and what it is like to live and work in the Durham area on our Why Join Us? - Information Page.
The Role and the Department
Re-Knowing Self-harm seeks to appoint a Project Administrator to join the project team, reporting to the Project Investigator (PI – Veronica Heney). This is a 3-year fixed term post, with the potential for an extension.
Re-Knowing Self-Harm is a 5-year Wellcome Trust-funded Early Career Award, led by Dr Veronica Heney. The project responds to existing failures of care to reclaim and re-think the relationship between culture and self-harm through re-centring lived experience. Re-knowing self-harm accomplishes this through four strands of inter-related intellectual and practical intervention, which mobilise collaboration and innovative creative methods to impact care for self-harm across community action, healthcare practice, and policy. The project is co-located at the Department of Sociology and the Discovery Research Platform for Medical Humanities.
The position offers an exciting opportunity for an experienced administrator to join a dynamic and friendly team. The Project Administrator will work closely with the PI, and play a key role in the day-to-day project administration of Re-Knowing Self-Harm. This will involve co-ordinating meetings, communicating with key project stakeholders, supporting with event organisation, budget monitoring, making payments, and recording financial information. It will also involve regular review and assessment of operational data to ensure activities, budgets and documents comply with internal university and external funder regulations, policies and procedure. The Project Administrator will liaise with professional and academic staff within the Department of Sociology, the Discovery Research Platform, the Institute and a variety of administrative teams across the University to deliver excellent financial and administrative support. This will include setting up systems to help with managing and maintaining financial and budget records, and communicating with external partners and suppliers will also be a requirement of the role. The Project Administrator will help to ensure that Re-Knowing Self-Harm meets its core research and impact priorities, working in accordance with University and Departmental policies and procedures.
This post will be 100% office based, with an element of flexibility. The role can be taken on as a single day each week, or split across two half-days, as is convenient for the application; precise details regarding hours and working days will be agreed following an offer of employment.
The role will be based in The Discovery Research Platform, which is an exciting place to work. Our offices in the Confluence Building on Durham University’s Science site offer a friendly and pleasant environment in which to work, with the flexibility of having quiet dedicated office space alongside an open plan area, meeting rooms and a well-equipped staff room. Occasionally the Project Administrator, together with the project PI, will be located in the Department of Sociology in Mill Hill Lane offices, in order to maintain connection with the Department of Sociology.
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The Discovery Research Platform for Medical Humanities (DRP-MH) at Durham University aims to empower health and wellbeing researchers from different sectors and disciplines to co-develop new and experimental approaches to tackling health challenges, including mental health and health inequalities. It is a £9.5m award which aims to transform the way research is undertaken in the field of Medical Humanities. The Platform involves researchers from departments across the Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences and Sciences. It engages with and supports international research networks, and a wide range of voluntary and health sector partnerships. The DRP-MH is hosted by the Institute for Medical Humanities (IMH) which is focused on improving health by understanding hidden experiences. The Institute and Platform are currently located on Durham University’s Science Site.
The Department of Sociology at Durham was established in 1964, initially as the Department of Social Theory and Institutions. We currently offer successful undergraduate degree programmes in Sociology and Criminology. Durham ranks 3rd for Sociology and 5th for Criminology in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026. Sociology is ranked 4th in the Complete University Guide 2027, and Durham is ranked 5th for Sociology and Social Policy in the Guardian University Guide 2026. We also hold an Athena SWAN silver award and the Department is committed to promoting equality for all within the workplace and creating a diverse, inclusive and supportive working environment. The Department’s research strategy is built around five themes: Communities and Social Justice, Health and Social Theory, Higher Education and Social Inequality, Violence and Abuse, and Criminal Justice, Social Harms and Inequalities. We were ranked 4th in the UK for research impact in REF 2021.
Working at Durham
A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University:
- You’ll receive 27 days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year - a total of 39 days. The University closes between Christmas and New Year.
- No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered. We have parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies.
- You can access exclusive discounts via our benefits portal including money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, eating out and days out at various attractions.
- Our on-site nursery is rated Outstanding by Ofsted, and you can access holiday camps for children aged 5-16.
- We provide wide-ranging health and wellbeing support including discounted membership for our state-of-the-art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme.
- We offer all staff the opportunity to take part in volunteering activities to make a difference to the local community.
- Our family friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers).
- If you are keen on advancing in your role or career, we have a genuine passion for developing our colleagues from qualifications to IT skills, courses and apprenticeships.
- We offer generous pension schemes with varying contribution amounts to help you plan for your future.
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Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion
Our collective aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and we believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work. As a University equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key part of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do. We also live by our values and our Staff Code of Conduct. At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive.
We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our workforce including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. If you have taken time out of your career, and you feel it relevant, let us know about it in your application. If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role.
What you need to demonstrate when you apply/Person Specification
When you apply it is important that you let us know what skills/experience you have from a similar role and/or what skills/experience you have which would make you right for this role. Further information about the role and responsibilities is at the end of this job description. Where a criteria has an asterisk* next to it, it may be given additional weighting when your application is considered.
Your application should cover the following criteria:
Essential Criteria
Qualifications/Experience
- Five GCSEs at least Grade C or level four (or equivalent) including English Language and Mathematics or a Post-16 qualification or equivalent experience.
- Experience of working in a busy office environment delivering front line administrative services to a high standard.
- Experience of managing time to meet deadlines and working under pressure without compromising on quality.
- Experience of providing advice and guidance to a range of customers and colleagues.
Skills/Abilities/Knowledge
- Excellent spoken and written communication skills, including the ability to communicate around sensitive issues and with a wide range of stakeholders and audiences, including those in the third sector or members of the public.
- The ability to develop effective working relationships, both internally and externally.
- Excellent digital competence across a range of digital devices and apps including Microsoft 365 application, particularly navigating excel financial datasets and experience of using Teams and SharePoint for communication and the sharing and storage of information.
- *Good numeracy skills and the ability to work maintaining a high level of accuracy.
- Ability to solve problems yourself and as
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