Vacancy: Become a Planning Group member

About the International Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) Network

The mission of the International PPI Network is to build a world where patient and public involvement is an integral part of health and social care research. We were formed in 2017 as a global collaboration of individuals and organisations, supported by a small secretariat based in the UK. Specific objectives include promoting and raising awareness of patient and public involvement in research, promoting standards and good practice, and working with organisations across the globe, including those from low and middle-income countries, to foster mutual learning and increased capacity for involvement in research.

The Network has over 300 organisational and individual members who benefit from regular mailings, and opportunities to communicate and collaborate through the Network website, and to attend the Network’s regular webinars on topical aspects of patient and public involvement in health research.

The Planning Group

The Planning Group provides oversight of and advice on Network activities, including the choice of topics for the webinars. It also deliberates and makes decisions on strategy, governance, member-engagement, funding and future work-streams.

Benefits of joining the Planning Group include:

The opportunity to interact and collaborate with influential people across the globe
The ability to contribute to shaping the International PPI Network into a powerful movement pushing for public involvement to be an integral part of health and social care research
Collaborating on innovative ideas for future Network activities

The role

We are looking to recruit someone who can bring their vision, skills, knowledge and experience to the Planning Group to help achieve its mission by growing the Network, creating a sustainable organisation, and leading to a world where patient and public involvement is an integral part of health and social care research. You would be joining a friendly, informal and creative group of like-minded people.

As a member of the Planning Group, you would attend the monthly Planning Group online meetings and make an effective contribution, based on your relevant knowledge, skills, experience and insights. Membership of the Group will be for a period of 2 years starting from attendance at your first meeting, with the possibility of renewal at that point. Meetings are generally held on the second Tuesday of each month.

Alongside this, we would expect you to:

prepare for meetings, including by reviewing papers as necessary
find ways of supporting and promoting the Network through your own networks and spheres of influence
on occasion be involved in additional meetings or work

What are we looking for

We are looking for 2 people to join the Planning Group. These roles are open to members of the public (i.e. people with lived experience, community members, consumers, patients) and people with community engagement/PPI experience.

As the UK is currently well-represented on the Planning Group, and in the interests of greater diversity, we encourage people from outside of the UK to apply for this role, including candidates from lower- and middle-income countries.

It is essential that the new Planning Group member can demonstrate the following:

Direct experience of patient, public or community involvement in health and care research, for example, having a strategic public involvement role, sitting on study steering committees, involvement in or leading on the planning and implementation of community-based projects.
Effective communication and collaboration, in English, with the ability to contribute to discussions, constructively challenge, put forward solutions, and present views succinctly.
Ability to draw on your lived and/or PPI experience, while not being limited by this, and able to see the bigger picture.
Ability and willingness to work in partnership with others on the Planning Group.
Ability to make sense of complex written materials such as funding applications, research papers, and business plans.
A commitment to the values underpinning patient and public involvement in research, as expressed for example in the Shared Commitment to Public Involvement of which the Network is a signatory.

It is desirable that the new Planning Group members can demonstrate the following:

Ability and willingness to draw upon a wider personal network for insight, intelligence and where possible practical help for the International PPI Network.
Experience of seeking funding (or being involved in seeking funding) for projects or networks involving health research collaborators from multiple countries.

We are aware that people are less likely to apply if they don’t meet all the criteria. The International PPI Network Planning Group are dedicated to building an inclusive team, so if you’re excited about this role but don’t meet all the criteria, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Support

We will offer an orientation meeting for new members before you attend any meetings. This will give you chance to meet the Planning Group Chair, find out more about the International PPI Network and Planning Group, and will give you a chance to ask any further questions before meeting the Group.

Payment will be offered for your involvement in Planning Group meetings and other associated activities. You will need to find out whether there are any restrictions on accepting payment for public involvement activities in your country of residence. Please investigate this before accepting any payment.

If you are currently in full-time, salaried position relating to research or PPI, you will not be eligible for payment. Only public members will be eligible for payment.

How to apply

If this exciting opportunity interests you, please could you email Katie Porter at k.s.porter@soton.ac.uk with an expression of interest by midnight on 4 November UTC.

Your expression of interest should explain - in 300-500 words - why you are interested, what you would bring to the role, and how you meet the requirements set out in this specification.

After the deadline, we will review and shortlist the submitted expressions of interest. Those who are shortlisted will be invited for a short, informal discussion with two members of the Planning Group. The two successful candidates will be identified after these discussions.

Any questions about the role or application process, please get in touch with Katie Porter at k.s.porter@soton.ac.uk.