King's College London

About us

The Wolfson SPaRC (Sensory, Pain and Regeneration Centre) is one of four departments in the School of Neuroscience at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience. The department is located on the Guy’s Campus in a dedicated building which was generously supported by the Wolfson Foundation.

Research in the department spans three main themes: Chronic Pain & Migraine, Spinal Cord & Brain Repair, and Hearing Loss & Sensory Systems. Our fundamental mission is to understand the biological mechanisms behind these neurological and sensory disorders and harness this knowledge to develop new therapeutic strategies. We have world-leading experts who interrogate these conditions at the genetic, molecular, cellular, and whole systems level. Cross-cutting strengths lie in our world-leading expertise in neuroplasticity, interdisciplinary neuro-immune research, high-throughput sequencing technologies, drug discovery and advanced therapeutics. We have excellent facilities to support our state-of-the-art  pre-clinical cellular, ex-vivo and in vivo models, which provide an essential platform for us to forward- and back-translate our fundamental research to and from the clinic, which is also aided by close links with clinicians across 3 major teaching hospitals (Guy’s, St Thomas’ and KCH).

The School of Neuroscience is UK’s 2nd largest Neuroscience school with over 500 researcher and 200 PhD students. It is one of three schools at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience. We are ranked 4th in the world for the total number of publications in neuroscience, 4th for the number of publication outputs in top 5% citations in neuroscience, and 4th for top 5% citations in neurology.

Our academic and research staff are integral to our school. Their work is supported by a group of Professional Services staff members within the departments as well as at the school level. We support staff members requiring flexible working arrangements and reasonable adjustments. Upon consultation at the points of recruitment and onboarding, we will strive to provide the best adjustments for you.

We strongly encourage our staff to dedicate time to their professional development through training courses and participation in working groups and networks. We also encourage our staff to seek mentoring outside their direct line management. Mentoring, both via formal and informal arrangements, allows individuals to fully explore their career situation and development. Our weekly school circular regularly captures and promotes opportunities open to all staff. 

About the roles

We are looking to recruit two ambitious academics at Lecturer, Senior Lecturer or Reader level to join King’s College London, within the School of Neuroscience.

The Wolfson SPaRC (Sensory, Pain and Regeneration Centre) is a vibrant department, with world-leading strengths in mechanistic and translational research related to neurological and sensory disorders. Our staff undertake world-leading research in three main areas: Spinal Cord and Brain Repair; Hearing Loss and Sensory Systems; Chronic Pain and Migraine. 

The successful candidates will develop and lead a research programme within one of these themes, or one which crosscuts them. They should already have published, and obtained previous research funding, in this area.

Wolfson SPaRC has ambitious plans for its future research vision and strategy to support our underpinning mission of finding new treatment  options for currently incurable disorders. A core strength of the Wolfson SPaRC is the parallel use of pre-clinical cellular, ex-vivo and in vivo models, alongside our world-leading expertise in neuroplasticity, regeneration, interdisciplinary neuro-immune research, high-throughput sequencing technologies, drug discovery and advanced therapeutics. 

The successful candidates will join a dynamic research environment in which they will be supported to develop their academic careers. They will be expected to secure external grant funding to support an internationally competitive research programme and to recruit and nurture PhD students and research staff within their group. They will contribute to teaching, learning and curriculum development for undergraduate and postgraduate students within Neuroscience and Pharmacology disciplines. They will also be expected to contribute in a positive and collaborative way to the Wolfson SPaRC community, and to make a positive impact more broadly within the wider KCL community.

For informal enquiries, please contact Professor Elizabeth Bradbury or Professor Susan Duty: elizabeth.bradbury@kcl.ac.uk; susan.duty@kcl.ac.uk   

Both positions will be offered on full-time, indefinite contracts.

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria – Lecturer

1.  Doctoral degree in a related field
2.  Proven ability to conduct high quality research and to complete successful research projects
3. Proven track record or potential of attracting external funding
4. Track record of high-quality published research in an area aligned with our research themes
5. Experience in undergraduate or post graduate teaching and/or successful supervision of research project students
6. Excellent communication skills and ability to disseminate findings
7. A commitment to developing and sustaining a high-quality student experience in the relevant subject and more generally within KCL
8. An understanding of and commitment to enhancing Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Essential criteria - Senior Lecturer

1. Doctoral degree in a related field
2. Proven track record of attracting external funding as principal applicant in an area aligned with our research themes
3. Proven ability to conduct and lead high-quality independent research as principal investigator and project leader
4. Experience of leading and managing research teams
5.  Proven track record of high-quality published research as senior author in an area aligned with our research themes
6. Experience in undergraduate or post graduate teaching and successful supervision of MPhil/PhD students
7. Proven ability to balance the pressures of teaching, research and administrative demands and competing deadlines
8. An understanding of and commitment to enhancing Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Essential criteria - Reader

1.  Doctoral degree in a related field
2.  Proven track record of attracting significant external funding as principal applicant in an area aligned with our research themes
3. Significant experience of conducting, leading and managing high-quality independent research, and research teams
4.  Experience of strategic contribution to the research and/or education agenda of the wider institution
5. Proven track record of high-quality published research as senior author in an area aligned with our research themes
6. Experience in undergraduate or post graduate teaching and successful supervision of MPhil/PhD students
7. Proven ability to balance the pressures of teaching, research and administrative demands and competing deadlines
8. An understanding of and commitment to enhancing Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Desirable criteria

1. Holder of a Higher Education Academy Fellowship, or equivalent.
2. Proven ability to develop internal or external research collaborations
3. Completion of appropriate training in equal opportunities, diversity, and inclusion
4. Evidence of good citizenship in previous roles
5. Experience of industrial and/or clinical collaborations

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the next page after you click “Apply Now”. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community. We are committed to working with our staff and unions, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's. As part of this commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and through this appointment process, it is our aim to develop candidate pools that include applicants from all backgrounds and communities*.*

Please submit alongside your application:

• CV
• Supporting statement which indicates which role you are applying for and detailing how you meet the essential criteria for that role
• A 4-page summary of your future research vision

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘ How we Recruit’ pages.

Interviews are due to be held on TBD

We are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.

  This post is subject to an Occupational Health clearance.