User Experience Associate

**Job details**

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**Responsible to**

User Experience Coordinator

**Location**

Cavendish Building, Derby CampusKedleston Road, Derby Campus

**Closing date**

Monday 23 March 2026

**Salary**

£25,045 to £25,421 per annum pro rata (for exceptional performers, there is scope for further progression up to £29,234 per annum, pro rata)

**Job grade**

ATOS 2

**Reference**

0253-25

**Contract type**

Permanent

**Post type**

Part-time

**Adaptive working type**

Onsite

This role will be based on site, primarily in the named location.

**About the University**

We have one simple promise – to make a positive impact. Through our ground-breaking research, teaching excellence and commitment to sustainable living, we are changing lives for the better.

The University of Derby is a modern university with a modern outlook. Everything we do is driven by delivering excellence and opportunities for our students, our staff and our region.

We have some of the best university facilities in the UK and achieve outstanding results for our teaching and research and have been awarded Gold in the prestigious Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023 – making it one of the top universities in the country recognised for its outstanding student experience and student outcomes.

Financially strong and seriously ambitious we offer our employees an inclusive culture that centres itself around staff wellbeing, where you can be confident you will receive all the help and encouragement you need to build a rewarding career with lots of opportunities to enhance your skills.

**About the College/Department**

Our Provost – Learning and Teaching department drives forward the University’s ambition to provide excellence and opportunities for all students; building on Derby’s long-standing reputation for teaching excellence, ensuring the development of sector-leading flexible, integrated learning that aligns to the needs of learners, not just now but in the future.

**Library**

Our Library is one that supports our communities to realise their ambitions by opening up new areas of knowledge & understanding and through fostering applied creative thinking.

At the centre of our approach is a high-quality student experience, outstanding student outcomes and supporting an excellent research environment. With this in mind, our teams deliver against three core strategic themes:

• Community - The original missions of libraries were not about repositories of books or as gatekeepers to knowledge, but about fostering communities of scholars. With that in mind, our focus is on how the Library supports the wide range of communities we have, fostering connection and empowering academic culture.
• Confidence - There is a fundamental role for the Library to ensure all students become confident, independent learners and researchers. We shall support students to develop confidence and applied creative thinking through our academic skills provision and an industry relevant skills offer that enhances performance whilst at university as well as into their chosen future.
• Content - Exploration and access to scholarly content is critical to the process of learning, teaching, research, and knowledge exchange. The Library plays a significant role provisioning scholarly content, working with our academic colleagues and students. We shall work to ensure that relevant content is delivered in a sustainable way and that we leverage technology and metadata expertise that enables our students and academics to explore and access the scholarly record.

**About the role**

As User Experience Associate, you’ll be responsible for the delivery of operational activity in support of the Library’s user experience services, delivering to the operational plan. You’ll welcome and support users of the Library, answering queries, providing direction, and managing behaviour within the library spaces. You’ll spend time shelving and tidying stock, managing library returns and recording maintenance requirements in-line with health & safety protocols.

The working pattern for this role is Monday 8am - 2pm (5hrs) at The Cavendish Building, Thursday 4.45pm - 12.15am (7hrs) at Kedleston Road, Saturday 1pm - 8pm (6hrs) at Kedleston Road. This role requires the post holder to be flexible within the working pattern to meet the business needs, including working evenings, weekends or extended hours.

**The anticipated interview date is from 2nd April 2026.**

**About You**

To be successful in this role you will be self-motivated and able to work collaboratively. You’ll leverage your experience of user-focussed services, including providing counter support to service users. You’ll be confident and self-assured with the ability to communicate effectively to resolve queries, respond to user feedback and maintain the library spaces. You’ll be flexible in approach and have confidence in approaching new technologies.

**Principal accountabilities**

Working collaboratively, provide operational support for library spaces and user experience, delivering against operational plans and placing strong focus on continuous improvement to align with university priorities.

Maintain a welcoming, safe and accessible environment, observing, investigating and reporting matters of concern regarding security, safeguarding and health and safety.

Work, as scheduled, at onsite library entrance points, answering queries and providing advice on booking study spaces and navigating library services, working collaboratively to resolve issues and complete tasks.

Be proactive in communicating library policies and procedures, particularly in relation to study areas.

Support users in navigating self-service points, maintaining the self-service technology as appropriate.

Organise and undertake regular patrols of the library. Ensure the library study environment remains welcoming, accessible and inclusive for users. Observe, investigate and report matters of concern regarding security and health and safety issues in a timely manner.

Open and close the library, following library procedure and liaising with Security, Estates and Estate Contractors staff as required.

Regularly support the arrangement of stock and re-shelving of items and contribute towards tidying and organising library spaces.

Capture data and feedback in respect of library space and user experience, in accordance with defined measures and benchmarks.

Assist in the production, construction and dismantling of notices, signs and displays that promote library services and activities. Wear university-branded clothing provided at appropriate times and occasions, to promote Library Services.

Assist with library projects, in particular refurbishment and re-organisation of library spaces.

Have an awareness of the Library’s provision of spaces for a variety of research and learning preferences.

Actively promote and support inclusion through operational activities undertaken through the role.

Undertake continuous personal and professional development in support of the role.

Be flexible with working pattern and in working at different University sites and supporting other library teams, as required.

Ensure compliance with relevant University policies and procedures.

**Person specification**

### **Essential Criteria**

#### **Qualifications**

• Level 3 qualifications or equivalent professional experience

#### **Experience**

• Experience of delivering user-focussed services, including providing counter support to service users
• Demonstrable experience of patrolling premises to maintain a suitable environment
• Experience of building positive relationships and working productively in collaboration with a wide range of colleagues

#### **Skills, knowledge & abilities**

• Commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion with the ability to role model, adhere to and advocate the University’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy
• Confident and self-assured with the ability to actively listen, communicate confidently to resolve queries and respond to user feedback
• Ability to file and sort alphabetically and numerically
• Confident in approaching new technologies and flexible approach to change

#### **Business requirements**

• Ability to work across all University sites, as required
• Ability to be flexible within the working pattern to meet the business needs, including working evenings, weekends or extended hours
• Willingness to provide support at University events from time to time e.g., Graduation, Clearing and Open Days, (some of these events occur outside of normal working hours, such as evenings and weekends)

### **Desirable Criteria**

#### **Qualifications**

• Relevant customer service qualification

#### **Experience**

• Experience of working within a library
• Experience of managing behaviours

#### **Skills, knowledge, and abilities**

• Knowledge and understanding of the post-16 education environment

**Benefits**

• Generous annual leave entitlement of 38 days inclusive of bank holidays and concessionary days (pro rata)
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Suite of holistic wellbeing benefits and support including family-friendly policies, generous sick pay provision and comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme
• Access to a variety of staff discounts at high street retailers
• Discounted onsite gym
• Cycle to Work scheme
• A flexible working environment
• A commitment to personal and professional development

**Key contact**

For further information and informal enquiries regarding the role, please contact Warren Roome, User Experience Librarian via W.Roome@derby.ac.uk

For enquiries regarding your application and for sponsorship eligibility, please contact the recruitment team via recruitment@derby.ac.uk.

**Important information**

#### **Visa Sponsorship Eligibility**

The University is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers under the Skilled Worker route for this role; however, applications are welcome from candidates who are able to demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

#### **Equity, diversity and inclusion**

The University of Derby is committed to promoting equity, diversity and inclusion, regardless of age, disability, trans status, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief (or none), sex and sexual orientation.

We are Disability Confident Employers, demonstrating our commitment to disability inclusion, and invite applicants to highlight adjustments they may require to ensure equitable participation in our recruitment processes.

Further, we are committed to ensuring an environment which is trans and non-binary-inclusive for all our staff, students, partners, and visitors, and continuously review our policies, guidance and training.

When applying to join the University, you can choose your preferred title, including the gender-neutral title 'Mx'. We also ask our candidates if they would like to share their preferred pronouns. This is voluntary but demonstrates our commitment to inclusivity for trans and non-binary candidates. Once employed, you can add pronouns and preferred names onto our system.

The University of Derby undertakes anonymised shortlisting during the staff recruitment process. This means that, when shortlisting, panel members will not be able to see an applicant’s name and will see an applicant number instead. This demonstrates the practical steps we are taking to remove barriers to recruitment by minimising the possible impact of our unconscious bias.

However you identify, we actively celebrate the knowledge, experience and talents each person brings. Our students come from a wide range of backgrounds; therefore we are particularly interested to hear from applicants who will help our leaders and teams be more reflective of our student population.

Read more about equity, diversity and inclusion at the University of Derby.

#### **Environmental Sustainability**

At the University of Derby, we are passionate about embedding sustainability into everything that we do. We aim to bring environmental sustainability into all aspects of the University, including teaching, research and operational activities. In line with the University's strategic framework, we expect all our staff to embed sustainability into their working practices and support the University's objective to reach net zero carbon by 2050.

**How to apply**

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You can apply by submitting an online application. Once you have signed in or registered with us you will be able to begin your application. If you are creating an account for the first time, please ensure you provide an email address that you access regularly as this will be our main means of contacting you regarding your application.

**The University reserves the right to close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. We encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.**

If you require any assistance, including the provision of any documentation in an alternative format, please contact the Recruitment team at recruitment@derby.ac.uk.

Please note all applications must be submitted online by Midnight GMT on the closing date of the vacancy.