The Role

The Head of Investigations role is an exciting opportunity for an experienced investigative journalist to get involved in a new, impact-focused project from the very beginning.

The project will bring together investigative journalism and advocacy work focused on issues related to chemical use in the UK. It will focus on chemical harms to both human health and environment and dig deeper into the influence of the chemicals industry. It’s a unique chance for an investigative journalist that’s passionate about preventing harms to health and environment to see their work have real-world impact.

Pesticide Action Network UK (PAN UK) is an independent, non-profit organisation, which works nationally and internationally to eliminate the use of the most hazardous pesticides and promote sustainable alternatives.

The organisation has an initial two-years of funding for this project (April 2026 to September 2028), with the aim of securing longer-term support so it can continue into the future.

What You Will Do

Working closely with the project’s Founder in a team of two, the Head of Investigations core responsibilities will be:

Investigations

• Design, conduct and publish investigations on issues related to UK chemicals.
• Provide the project with leadership, expertise and guidance on investigations and all related matters.
• Work with the Founder and external experts to manage all risks related to investigative work, including but not limited to defamation.

Collaborative Work

• Co-lead multi-disciplinary project teams comprised of investigative journalists and NGO policy experts.
• Use existing network to help secure collaborations and/or partnerships with other investigative journalists and outfits to participate in the project.

Communications

• Write public-facing communications, such as opinion pieces and blogs, ensuring their accuracy.
• Ensure that the project’s investigations reach the identified audiences/targets.
• Work with the Founder to create and manage the project’s social media channel/s.

Advocacy

• Contribute to strategy development and advise on how best to incorporate investigation findings into a wider strategy for change.
• Build the capacity of NGO staff to understand journalistic approaches and ways of working.

Other

• Support the project’s Founder by contributing to donor reporting and helping to secure additional funding.
• Participate in PAN UK organisational structures, such as weekly all staff meetings.

What We Are Looking For (Person Specification)

We are looking for someone that is truly passionate about protecting human health and the environment. The successful candidate must believe in the power of advocacy work and its ability to combine with investigative journalism to create positive and lasting impact.

The ideal candidate has:

• At least ten years’ experience as a journalist and a track record of bringing newsworthy stories of immoral or illicit activity conducted by public and private sector actors to public attention.
• Experience covering at least one (and ideally more) of the following topics: environment, public health, chemicals, science, wrongdoing in the public and/or private sector.
• Experience of using a wide range of investigative techniques, including cultivating sources and working with open source data and FoI and/or EIR requests.
• Strong strategic nous underpinned by an understanding of how change happens and the role investigative journalism plays within the wider advocacy eco-system.
• A collaborative approach and desire to work in multi-disciplinary teams with non-journalists.
• Project management skills and experience of running complex initiatives involving multiple organisations and/or individuals.
• Experience using social media to promote investigations and reach specific audiences.
• Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice.
• Proven ability to work on own initiative, meeting objectives and tight deadlines under pressure.
• The right to work in the UK.

In addition, we strongly prefer people with these skills and attributes:

• Understanding of the UK political system.
• Experience of working with NGOs and an understanding of how they operate.
• Ability to lead, guide and inspire and experience of managing and editing other journalists.

How To Apply

For the full Job Description please visit: https://www.pan-uk.org/vacancies/

If you are interested in applying, please email your CV and a covering letter of no more than two sides, explaining how you meet the person specification and what you can bring to the role to Josie Cohen, at josie@pan-uk.org by midnight on Sunday 17^th May 2026.

First round interviews will be held in Brighton on 27^th and 28^th May. Second round interviews will be in Brighton on 8^th and/or 9^th June.

PAN UK actively encourages applications from diverse backgrounds. We ask all applicants to complete this diversity form. Your responses will remain anonymous and will not be linked to your application.

If you would like to discuss whether you are eligible to apply for this role, please contact Josie Cohen at josie@pan-uk.org

Job Title: Head of Investigations
Salary: £55,000 p.a.
Reporting To: Founder – Special Projects
Location: Brighton/Hybrid (At least two days per week in Brighton Office)|
Hours: Full time – 35 hours per week
Length of contract: Two-year contract from 1^st September 2026 to 31^st August 2028 (extension subject to funding)
Travel Requirements: The post is likely to involve some UK travel