Postdoctoral Research Associate (PDRA) in Geospatial Mental Health and Wellbeing

University of Lincoln - Lincoln Institute for Rural and Coastal Health

Are you passionate about using geospatial data and place-based analytics to address mental health inequalities in rural and coastal communities?

The University of Lincoln is seeking an ambitious Postdoctoral Research Associate (PDRA) with strong geospatial and quantitative research expertise to join the Lincolnshire Unit for Mental Health Research (LUMHR) – a major NIHR-funded initiative focused on improving mental health and wellbeing in rural, coastal, and underserved communities across Lincolnshire.

This post is permanent and full-time (1.0 FTE) and offers the opportunity to develop an independent, applied research career at the intersection of geospatial analytics, mental health research, and service planning, within a highly collaborative and multidisciplinary environment.

About the role

The PDRA will be an independent researcher working with a significant degree of autonomy within LUMHR’s Connect theme, based in the Lincoln Institute for Rural and Coastal Health (LIRCH) and reporting to Dr Harriet Moore. The role focuses on developing and applying geospatial and quantitative approaches to understand access barriers, digital exclusion, social isolation, service pathways, and place-based mental health inequalities across Lincolnshire.

You will design, implement and analyse spatial datasets, contribute to the development of an interactive geospatial dashboard and data observatory, and produce high-quality visualisations and analyses to support research, service design and decision-making. You will work closely with academic colleagues, NHS and Integrated Care System analytics teams, local authorities, and community partners, contributing to both applied research outputs and system-facing insights.

The role involves contributing to reproducible analytical workflows using appropriate geospatial software (e.g. ArcGIS, QGIS) and coding environments (e.g. Python or R), collaborating across LUMHR themes, and supporting interdisciplinary research activity. Teaching support may be required, up to a maximum of six hours per week.

About you

You will have a PhD (or near completion) in a relevant discipline (e.g. geography, GIS, data science, public health, or a related field) or equivalent research experience. You will have demonstrable expertise in geospatial analysis and place-based data, experience working with complex or multi-source datasets, and the ability to communicate spatial insights to non-technical audiences.

You will bring a strong commitment to ethical, inclusive and impactful research. Experience applying geospatial methods in applied, interdisciplinary or health-related contexts is particularly welcome.

About us

LUMHR is Lincolnshire’s first integrated, multidisciplinary unit dedicated to applied mental health research in rural, coastal and small urban-deprived settings. Funded through the NIHR Mental Health Research Group programme, LUMHR brings together academic, clinical, community and lived-experience partners to address persistent mental health inequalities.

The University of Lincoln is proud to be a recipient of the Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher Education (2023) and is based in the heart of one of the UK’s great historic cities.

Informal enquiries

For informal enquiries or further information, please contact: Dr Harriet Moore (HaMoore@lincoln.ac.uk)

Job Description and Person Specification