Senior User Researcher

Senior User Researcher | Government/Public Sector

Day Rate: £600-£650 per day
IR35: Inside IR35
Contract: Until 31 March 2027
Location: London, Bristol or Manchester, predominantly remote
Clearance: BPSS

The Role

We are looking for an experienced Senior User Researcher to join a Government client working on a high-profile transformation programme.

You will lead user research activities, build upon an existing evidence base and work closely with policy teams and senior stakeholders to understand user needs and improve how services and processes are designed and delivered.

While the wider programme has links to AI and emerging technology, AI expertise is not required. The focus is on strong user research, workshop facilitation, stakeholder engagement and evidence-based decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

• Plan and deliver user research across transformation initiatives
• Design and facilitate workshops, interviews and stakeholder sessions
• Gather and synthesise qualitative research into clear, actionable insights
• Test existing assumptions, problem statements and user needs
• Identify gaps and risks within the existing evidence base
• Develop research outputs including insight reports, journey maps, personas and workflow maps
• Present findings and recommendations to senior stakeholders
• Work collaboratively with policy, product, delivery, service design and technical teams
• Use research and evidence to influence future programme and service design

Essential Experience

• Strong Senior User Research experience
• Previous UK Government experience is essential
• Good understanding of government policy environments and ways of working
• Strong workshop design and facilitation skills
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills
• Experience presenting research findings and recommendations to senior stakeholders
• Demonstrable experience using research and evidence to influence decisions
• Experience working within multidisciplinary transformation or digital teams

Desirable

• Experience within policy-focused Government environments
• Service design or research-led transformation experience
• Awareness of AI or emerging technology within services