Nick Childs

A science graduate with an MSc in Conservation Biology, my career at the University of Sheffield began in 2011 as the Project Administrator for Professor Peter Andrews at the Centre for Stem Cell Biology. I moved to the post of Senior Research Support Officer in Chemical and Biological Engineering in 2018, before being seconded to the post of Research Hub Manager for the Information School, Education and Journalism in April 2022.

As Research Hub Manager I am responsible for leading the pre-award research support for my group of Departments; including grant costings, proposal development and submission, REF administration and ethical review processes. I also have oversight and coordinate the key research information systems supporting this activity. 

Responsibilities

My responsibilities are:

• Work closely with key academic staff, department staff and Research, Partnerships and Innovation to support grant applications and consultancy projects and provide lead support for costing and collation of other information to ensure grant applications meet funder requirements and have the best chances of success.
• Proactively provide tailored advice to academic staff appropriate to their career level and target research area. 
• Support the Department Directors of Research and other key senior leaders and relevant committees by proactively advising and disseminating information relating to the funding landscape.
• Support and coordinate internal peer review processes for grant proposals and publications. 
• Support the REF Lead in the Departments in which I am based to manage administrative processes relating to REF planning and preparation. 
• Represent the Hub and/or Faculty at University forums, strategic project teams, working groups and committees where required. 

Committee Membership

Information School Research Committee