Taking part in involvement activities often includes drawing on your own personal experiences of cancer. At times, this may feel meaningful and empowering. At other times, it may feel difficult, emotional or upsetting.
As part of involvement activities, you may hear about other people’s experiences of cancer, treatment or healthcare. We may also discuss topics such as bereavement, trauma, mental health, discrimination, inequality or difficult experiences of care.
Where we can, we’ll let you know that we’ll be covering these topics in advance so you can choose if the activity or discussion is right for you.
You will always have a choice about what you share, how much you share and how you take part. The Involvement team will do their best to create a supportive environment and discuss any support or adjustments that may help you participate comfortably. However, it’s important to consider your own health and wellbeing.
What is motivating you to get involved and what do you hope to gain from the experience?
How do you feel about talking about your experience and hearing about other people's experiences of cancer?
Are there any topics or experiences that you find particularly difficult or upsetting?
What support, self-care or personal networks help you when you're feeling vulnerable?
Are there any circumstances, responsibilities or support needs that may affect how you take part?
Do you feel ready to take part in this opportunity, and are there any concerns or adjustments you would like to discuss with us?
Remember, being ‘ready’ is not a fixed state. You might be ready and in a good place to share your experiences or take part in a conversation one day, and not in the right place to do so the next day. This is ok. There is no expectation that you share anything you do not want to and choosing not to take part in an activity, or to pause your involvement, will not affect future opportunities to get involved.
We encourage you to think about these questions when deciding if now is the right time for you to apply for this role.
The following guidance is to support you whilst completing your application for an involvement role. Please read this guide in full before you start your application.
Section 1: Personal details
Section 2: Involvement role
Section 3: Your experience and motivation for joining the group
Section 4: Equal opportunities monitoring
Completing your application could take around an hour or so. Please give yourself plenty of time to consider your responses and use the role profile to help you.
The application form does not save responses as you go, so you'll need to complete and submit it in one session. If you're short on time, you may find it helpful to draft your answers in advance before entering them into the form.
It's important that you complete the application in your own words without using AI tools (e.g. Chat GPT, Gemini, Copilot) so that we can understand your experiences, perspectives, and motivations for joining the group.
Applications will be shortlisted using the information you provide in Sections 2 and 3 only. Personal details and equal opportunities information will not be visible to those involved in shortlisting. A person affected by cancer who already undertakes involvement activities with us may be involved in reviewing applications.
Applications will be assessed against the requirements outlined in the role profile. Following shortlisting, a smaller number of applicants will be invited to attend a virtual interview via Microsoft Teams.
As we expect interest in this opportunity to exceed the number of places available, we may not be able to invite all applicants to interview. There are no right or wrong answers, so please answer the questions as openly and honestly as you can.
We want our recruitment process to be as accessible and inclusive as possible. If there is any support or adjustments that would help you take part, please let us know.
Alternative document formats (such as large print or accessible digital formats).
Printed copies of information.
A telephone or video call to discuss information instead of receiving it in writing.
If completing a written application form is difficult for you, a member of the team can complete the from with you over the phone and submit the answers on your behalf and we will record your answers exactly as you give them.
We know everyone's needs are different and not all adjustments are listed above. If there is another type of support that would help you take part, please let us know. We will work with you to identify the adjustments that best meet your needs.
Requesting support or reasonable adjustments will not affect how your application is considered. Any information you share about your support needs will only be used to help us provide an accessible recruitment process.
Some of the questions in section 4 ask for personal information that is classed as special category data under data protection law.
This information will only be accessed by the Involvement team and will not be used as part of the shortlisting or selection process.
Answering the questions in section 4 is voluntary. If you would rather not provide this information, you can select "Prefer not to say".
We collect this information to help us monitor equality, diversity and inclusion, and to understand whether our involvement opportunities are accessible to a diverse range of people.
Your responses will be treated confidentially and stored securely in line with data protection law and Cancer Research UK's privacy policy.
You can withdraw your consent at any time, and we will delete your data where applicable.
Read the Cancer Research UK privacy policy
Only share experiences you feel comfortable sharing.
There is no expectation to take part in activities that don't feel right for you.
Support and reasonable adjustments are available throughout the application process.
Applications are assessed using information from Sections 2 and 3 only.
Equal opportunities information is not used as part of shortlisting.
We're here to help if you have any questions or need support.
We’re here to help. Get in touch if you have a question about the application process or need the application form in a different format. You can also contact us with any other question.
