Work with us

Work for us

Some of the staff benefits we have in place at the moment:

• Holiday entitlement – ILC employees are entitled to 25 days annual leave per year (pro rata), plus normal bank and public holidays
• Birthday Annual Leave – Employees are entitled to take their birthday as annual leave in addition to their normal holiday entitlement
• Working from home – At ILC we like to be flexible, where possible, and recognise that homeworking can be beneficial
• Flexible working – It is ILC’s policy to try are be flexible on working patterns for all employees
• Family Leave – We are supportive of employees with children through the provision of maternity, paternity, parental, adoptive parents leave and shared parental leave, and we offer enhanced maternity pay to employees with at least three years continuous service.
• Loans – Staff with a contract of employment of 12months or more are eligible to apply for an annual interest free season ticket loan or a bike loan

Working at the ILC: a testimonial

“On my first day as an Intern at the ILC I was taking calls from 10 Downing Street.

On my second day I walked through that famous black door and discussed the impact of our rapidly ageing society with Parliamentarians. One month later I had back-to-back meetings in Brussels and Berlin to contribute to international health summits and three months later I was talking about ILC research live on the BBC’s Sunday Politics.

I joined the ILC as a Policy, Communications and Events Intern in September 2015 having previously worked for a candidate in the 2015 General Election and having recently completed a Masters. I joined because I was keen to work across policy areas and disciplines for an organisation committed to public service. From my first day at the ILC I was entrusted with a degree of responsibility I imagine few interns enjoy.

Brilliant international colleagues drawn from politics, academia, City institutions and charities asked me what I would like to do at the ILC and then provided the support I needed to learn new skills and develop existing ones. Early on I was encouraged to suggest ideas for new research, practice project and event management and collaborate with a broad range of stakeholders to deliver new research and analysis.

I was able to try my hand at speech writing for our Chief Executive; writing research proposals; organising international events; managing a large social media presence; writing press releases and speaking to the media, and representing the ILC at high-level meetings with senior policy-makers.

I’ve been fortunate enough to contribute to exciting and original work on the future of health and social care, economics and finance, housing and communities and transport and infrastructure. The ILC provides a valuable public service as the nation’s leading think-tank focusing on rapid population ageing and what happens next and its close-knit team continue to shape public policy and discourse.

During my time at the ILC I have been promoted from Intern to Policy and Public Affairs Assistant, Officer and Manager. I’ve travelled from San Francisco to San Servolo, Brussels to Abu Dhabi to discuss work with which I am proud to have been associated. Working at the ILC is a great way to begin or develop a career in public policy and learn from an inspiring team of colleagues.”

Dave Eaton, former Policy and Public Affairs Manager

Working at the ILC: another testimonial

“As a freshly-graduated Masters graduate (in Medical Anthropology) I joined the International Longevity Centre-UK as an intern in September 2010 and stayed a member of the team until June 2014. During that time I worked initially as a Research Assistant and later Research Officer, before moving over to a role focussed on communications across the whole think tank.

When I first started I was looking for a way in which I could be a researcher in such a way that had a positive impact on the outside world – and where communication with decision makers was as much part of the process as the research itself. It’s a bit too easy to just speak to other researchers when you work in academia, so think tank research felt like a better option for me. A main draw to ILC-UK was the standards they hold themselves to across their research. There’s a lot of shoddy “evidence” bandied around in the name of evidence-based policy making and being part of a body of organisations and institutions quietly but firmly pushing back against this was just what I was after.

One of the great advantages of working in an organisation that explores a cross-cutting issue like population ageing is the exposure it gives you to different areas of policy. My starting interests were in health and social care, but during my time at ILC-UK I also worked on projects on rural and community planning, intergenerational relationships – particularly those within the LGBT community, and employment policies, among many others. I was also able to work on projects close to my heart – like co-editing a collection of essays on women’s experiences of ageing and reflections on an ageing society from a feminist perspective.

I’m now a few months into my second job on from my final role at ILC-UK, as Policy and Communications Manager. As it was my first post-graduation job, it’s easier now, looking back, to reflect on the things about ILC-UK that made it such a good place to work – and how those set it apart as an employer. Chief among these assets is a great team of people who genuinely enjoy working together and with shared values for raising important issues and producing the best possible work together. As well as having some great working relationships during my ILC-UK time I still consider my former colleagues as friends first and foremost.

Being part of a great team isn’t just a nicety – it builds the groundwork for a great deal of trust within the organisation. In a small team working under deadlines and with external factors like parliamentary sessions setting your agenda, being able to trust my colleagues and knowing that I’m trusted to get on with my job means that things work smoothly despite these pressures. At an individual level, this translates into being given responsibility for your projects sooner rather than later. Even as an intern I was managing externally funded projects – knowing that there was support if and when I needed it. This was instrumental in building my confidence and initiative when working independently – skills I’ve probably used every working day since!

A highlight of my ILC-UK time was working with members of the International Longevity Centre Global Alliance – you learn not only about how different countries are experiencing population ageing but also about different political and policy systems and how to bring about change in different settings. Throughout the course of my time with ILC-UK I attended a number of international conferences, delivering presentations and representing the organisation from Dublin to Prague, Hyderabad to Tokyo. Not to be sniffed at for a first job!

The support I received as a member of the team was particularly impressive when you consider the size of the organisation. Time and efforts were put in by my colleagues to help me skill up and to access external training when required. There is a culture of skill-sharing and a desire, from Board level down, to see people do well within the organisation. I gained a huge amount from working there, and would heartily recommend ILC-UK as an employer and my friends and former colleagues as your future co-workers.”

Jessica Watson, former Policy and Communications Manager