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The Department of Biochemistry, a large and flourishing academic community that enjoys a world-class reputation for both teaching and research, is embedded in the School of the Biological Sciences. A new and exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and efficient individual to join the Department as a Secretary & Receptionist - a key member of the Department's Secretariat team.

Based in a busy and friendly professional services team, and reporting to the PA to the Head of Department, the successful candidate will join a dynamic and dedicated team of reception, clerical and general administrative support specialists who work as a team to underpin the Department's performance and reputation as a modern, progressive academic teaching and research institution.

The successful candidate will provide a full secretarial service to departmental academics and/or senior management and will take an active role on reception in the Department's two buildings on a rotational basis. This is a key role in support of the smooth and efficient operation of the Department's work and time.

The successful candidate will contribute to the committee work of the Department and be central to the smooth running of operations and governance by providing an efficient, friendly and 'can-do' secretarial and reception service. Due to the nature of the role, the position is office-based, Monday to Friday.

Educated to at least A-level or equivalent, the ideal candidate will be experienced in administrative office work and have a clear understanding of general reception and secretarial responsibilities, along with a strong sense of team playing and working flexibly across a varied workload.

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 3 years in the first instance.

Applications are welcome from internal candidates who would like to apply for the role on the basis of a secondment from their current role in the University.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

Interviews are expected to be held on Monday 12th May 2025.

Informal discussions are welcome; please contact the Departmental Administrator & General Manager, Dr Katherine Wallington (email: da@bioc.cam.ac.uk).

For further assistance, please contact the Biochemistry HR team via email: personnel@bioc.cam.ac.uk

Please quote reference PH45464 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

The post Innovate Cambridge announces its first Innovation Advisory Council appeared first on Cambridge Enterprise.

A postdoctoral position is available in the Henderson group.The role is to perform computational analysis of single read nanopore data for patterns of DNA methylation. The role holder should have excellent competency in relevant programming languages, for example C, Python, or R. Experience with nanopore data is beneficial and will have excellent skills working in teams and communicating complex research projects. The successful candidate should have a degree in a relevant area of bioscience or computer science.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

Please notice that if you have not received any news from us 1 month after the closing date you should consider that on this occasion your application has not been successful.

Please quote reference PD45456 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

A major review of over 67,000 animal species has found that while the natural world continues to face a biodiversity crisis, targeted conservation efforts are helping bring many species back from the brink of extinction.

Using advanced analysis based on full genome sequences, researchers from the University of Cambridge have found evidence that modern humans are the result of a genetic mixing event between two ancient populations that diverged around 1.5 million years ago. About 300,000 years ago, these groups came back together, with one group contributing 80% of the genetic makeup of modern humans and the other contributing 20%.

For the last two decades, the prevailing view in human evolutionary genetics has been that Homo sapiens first appeared in Africa around 200,000 to 300,000 years ago, and descended from a single lineage. However, these latest results, reported in the journal Nature Genetics, suggest a more complex story.

“The question of where we come from is one that has fascinated humans for centuries,” said first author Dr Trevor Cousins from Cambridge’s Department of Genetics. “For a long time, it’s been assumed that we evolved from a single continuous ancestral lineage, but the exact details of our origins are uncertain.”

“Our research shows clear signs that our evolutionary origins are more complex, involving different groups that developed separately for more than a million years, then came back to form the modern human species,” said co-author Professor Richard Durbin, also from the Department of Genetics.

While earlier research has already shown that Neanderthals and Denisovans – two now-extinct human relatives – interbred with Homo sapiens around 50,000 years ago, this new research suggests that long before those interactions – around 300,000 years ago – a much more substantial genetic mixing took place. Unlike Neanderthal DNA, which makes up roughly 2% of the genome of non-African modern humans, this ancient mixing event contributed as much as 10 times that amount and is found in all modern humans.

The team’s method relied on analysing modern human DNA, rather than extracting genetic material from ancient bones, and enabled them to infer the presence of ancestral populations that may have otherwise left no physical trace. The data used in the study is from the 1000 Genomes Project, a global initiative that sequenced DNA from populations across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

The team developed a computational algorithm called cobraa that models how ancient human populations split apart and later merged back together. They tested the algorithm using simulated data and applied it to real human genetic data from the 1000 Genomes Project.

While the researchers were able to identify these two ancestral populations, they also identified some striking changes that happened after the two populations initially broke apart.

“Immediately after the two ancestral populations split, we see a severe bottleneck in one of them—suggesting it shrank to a very small size before slowly growing over a period of one million years,” said co-author Professor Aylwyn Scally, also from the Department of Genetics. “This population would later contribute about 80% of the genetic material of modern humans, and also seems to have been the ancestral population from which Neanderthals and Denisovans diverged.”

The study also found that genes inherited from the second population were often located away from regions of the genome linked to gene functions, suggesting that they may have been less compatible with the majority genetic background. This hints at a process known as purifying selection, where natural selection removes harmful mutations over time.

“However, some of the genes from the population which contributed a minority of our genetic material, particularly those related to brain function and neural processing, may have played a crucial role in human evolution,” said Cousins.

Beyond human ancestry, the researchers say their method could help to transform how scientists study the evolution of other species. In addition to their analysis of human evolutionary history, they applied the cobraa model to genetic data from bats, dolphins, chimpanzees, and gorillas, finding evidence of ancestral population structure in some but not all of these.

“What’s becoming clear is that the idea of species evolving in clean, distinct lineages is too simplistic,” said Cousins. “Interbreeding and genetic exchange have likely played a major role in the emergence of new species repeatedly across the animal kingdom.”

So who were our mysterious human ancestors? Fossil evidence suggests that species such as Homo erectus and Homo heidelbergensis lived both in Africa and other regions during this period, making them potential candidates for these ancestral populations, although more research (and perhaps more evidence) will be needed to identify which genetic ancestors corresponded to which fossil group.

Looking ahead, the team hopes to refine their model to account for more gradual genetic exchanges between populations, rather than sharp splits and reunions. They also plan to explore how their findings relate to other discoveries in anthropology, such as fossil evidence from Africa that suggests early humans may have been far more diverse than previously thought.

“The fact that we can reconstruct events from hundreds of thousands or millions of years ago just by looking at DNA today is astonishing,” said Scally. “And it tells us that our history is far richer and more complex than we imagined.”

The research was supported by Wellcome. Aylwyn Scally is a Fellow of Darwin College, Cambridge. Trevor Cousins is a member of Darwin College, Cambridge.

 

Reference:
Trevor Cousins, Aylwyn Scally & Richard Durbin. ‘A structured coalescent model reveals deep ancestral structure shared by all modern humans.’ Nature Genetics (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41588-025-02117-1

Modern humans descended from not one, but at least two ancestral populations that drifted apart and later reconnected, long before modern humans spread across the globe.

Our history is far richer and more complex than we imaginedAylwyn ScallyJose A. Bernat Bacete via Getty ImagesPlaster reconstructions of the skulls of human ancestors

The text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright ©University of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

Yes

Using advanced analysis based on full genome sequences, researchers from the University of Cambridge have found evidence that modern humans are the result of a genetic mixing event between two ancient populations that diverged around 1.5 million years ago. About 300,000 years ago, these groups came back together, with one group contributing 80% of the genetic makeup of modern humans and the other contributing 20%.

For the last two decades, the prevailing view in human evolutionary genetics has been that Homo sapiens first appeared in Africa around 200,000 to 300,000 years ago, and descended from a single lineage. However, these latest results, reported in the journal Nature Genetics, suggest a more complex story.

“The question of where we come from is one that has fascinated humans for centuries,” said first author Dr Trevor Cousins from Cambridge’s Department of Genetics. “For a long time, it’s been assumed that we evolved from a single continuous ancestral lineage, but the exact details of our origins are uncertain.”

“Our research shows clear signs that our evolutionary origins are more complex, involving different groups that developed separately for more than a million years, then came back to form the modern human species,” said co-author Professor Richard Durbin, also from the Department of Genetics.

While earlier research has already shown that Neanderthals and Denisovans – two now-extinct human relatives – interbred with Homo sapiens around 50,000 years ago, this new research suggests that long before those interactions – around 300,000 years ago – a much more substantial genetic mixing took place. Unlike Neanderthal DNA, which makes up roughly 2% of the genome of non-African modern humans, this ancient mixing event contributed as much as 10 times that amount and is found in all modern humans.

The team’s method relied on analysing modern human DNA, rather than extracting genetic material from ancient bones, and enabled them to infer the presence of ancestral populations that may have otherwise left no physical trace. The data used in the study is from the 1000 Genomes Project, a global initiative that sequenced DNA from populations across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

The team developed a computational algorithm called cobraa that models how ancient human populations split apart and later merged back together. They tested the algorithm using simulated data and applied it to real human genetic data from the 1000 Genomes Project.

While the researchers were able to identify these two ancestral populations, they also identified some striking changes that happened after the two populations initially broke apart.

“Immediately after the two ancestral populations split, we see a severe bottleneck in one of them—suggesting it shrank to a very small size before slowly growing over a period of one million years,” said co-author Professor Aylwyn Scally, also from the Department of Genetics. “This population would later contribute about 80% of the genetic material of modern humans, and also seems to have been the ancestral population from which Neanderthals and Denisovans diverged.”

The study also found that genes inherited from the second population were often located away from regions of the genome linked to gene functions, suggesting that they may have been less compatible with the majority genetic background. This hints at a process known as purifying selection, where natural selection removes harmful mutations over time.

“However, some of the genes from the population which contributed a minority of our genetic material, particularly those related to brain function and neural processing, may have played a crucial role in human evolution,” said Cousins.

Beyond human ancestry, the researchers say their method could help to transform how scientists study the evolution of other species. In addition to their analysis of human evolutionary history, they applied the cobraa model to genetic data from bats, dolphins, chimpanzees, and gorillas, finding evidence of ancestral population structure in some but not all of these.

“What’s becoming clear is that the idea of species evolving in clean, distinct lineages is too simplistic,” said Cousins. “Interbreeding and genetic exchange have likely played a major role in the emergence of new species repeatedly across the animal kingdom.”

So who were our mysterious human ancestors? Fossil evidence suggests that species such as Homo erectus and Homo heidelbergensis lived both in Africa and other regions during this period, making them potential candidates for these ancestral populations, although more research (and perhaps more evidence) will be needed to identify which genetic ancestors corresponded to which fossil group.

Looking ahead, the team hopes to refine their model to account for more gradual genetic exchanges between populations, rather than sharp splits and reunions. They also plan to explore how their findings relate to other discoveries in anthropology, such as fossil evidence from Africa that suggests early humans may have been far more diverse than previously thought.

“The fact that we can reconstruct events from hundreds of thousands or millions of years ago just by looking at DNA today is astonishing,” said Scally. “And it tells us that our history is far richer and more complex than we imagined.”

The research was supported by Wellcome. Aylwyn Scally is a Fellow of Darwin College, Cambridge. Trevor Cousins is a member of Darwin College, Cambridge.

 

Reference:
Trevor Cousins, Aylwyn Scally & Richard Durbin. ‘A structured coalescent model reveals deep ancestral structure shared by all modern humans.’ Nature Genetics (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41588-025-02117-1

Modern humans descended from not one, but at least two ancestral populations that drifted apart and later reconnected, long before modern humans spread across the globe.

Our history is far richer and more complex than we imaginedAylwyn ScallyJose A. Bernat Bacete via Getty ImagesPlaster reconstructions of the skulls of human ancestors

The text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright ©University of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

Yes

Applications are invited for a trainee laboratory technician to support the research work in the Loke Centre for Trophoblast Research (Loke CTR), starting in late July 2025. This is an exciting opportunity for somebody passionate about getting started in scientific research to join a vibrant and friendly team of researchers in the heart of Cambridge and work in a state-of-the-art laboratory.

About the role

The role will support the research activities of the groups operating in the Loke CTR shared laboratory space based in the department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience (PDN). There are 6 research groups based permanently in the shared lab space, led by Prof Kathy Niakan, Prof Bill Colledge, Prof Erica Watson, Dr Thorsten Boroviak, Dr Courtney Hanna, and Dr Claire Senner. The role will provide direct support for approximately researchers across these groups, including the Loke CTR Next Generation Fellows.

This is an exciting role with varied responsibilities. You will support our tissue culture facilities, a molecular biology lab, histology preparation room, and placental, endometrial and human embryo shared facility. You will provide laboratory housekeeping to ensure a well-functioning laboratory environment, including performing tissue culture and histology techniques, preparing stock solutions, monitoring and replenishing stocks, and contributing to the health and safety culture of the research groups. You will also provide support for the Biology of the Human Uterus in Pregnancy and Disease Tissue Bank, which is used by Loke CTR researchers across the University with an interest in pregnancy and early development.

The Loke Centre for Trophoblast Research (Loke CTR)

The Loke Centre for Trophoblast Research (Loke CTR) is a centre of excellence to promote scientific study of the placenta, early development and maternal-fetal interactions during pregnancy. The Loke CTR unites 28 group leaders across 10 departments and affiliated institutes and provides diverse opportunities for scientific interaction through events, training and shared state-of-the-art facilities to support world leading trophoblast-related research across Cambridge.

What you will need You should be educated to a minimum of A-level or NVQ level 3 in a biological or other related subject and/or relevant laboratory experience in molecular biology. You should have a good understanding of molecular biology and previous research experience would be an advantage.

Good communication skills and the ability to work effectively within a team are essential. You should have meticulous documentation and note-keeping skills and be able to manage your time and work effectively.

The position is flexible to suit individual needs. We will make an appointment for 1 year in the first instances and welcome applications from candidates interested in full-time work or part-time work for a minimum of 3 days per week. Due to the nature of the work, you will be required to work on site.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

The closing date for applications is 21st April 2025.

To find out more about the Loke CTR please visit our website at: https://www.trophoblast.cam.ac.uk/

For an informal conversation about the role, please contact Erin Slatery, Loke CTR Executive Manager (execmgr.lokectr@pdn.cam.ac.uk). If you have any queries about the recruitment process, please contact Tracey Flack, Chief HR Administrator (pdnhr@pdn.cam.ac.uk).

Please quote reference PM45421 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

The Medical Research Council (MRC) Toxicology Unit is a leading International Research Institute within the School of Biological Sciences, University of Cambridge.

We are looking to appoint an IT Specialist to provide IT support for the research and administrative functions of the Toxicology Unit.

Main duties and responsibilities include:

General IT Support

¿ First-tier technical support, including general AV and IT troubleshooting for Windows, MacOS, and mobile devices ¿ Ensure user and instrument devices are updated/University compliant ¿ Manage computer life cycle ¿ Prepare and update standard operating procedures ¿ Prepare user guides and provide training to users at all levels

System Management and Support

¿ Manage user account life cycle ¿ Hands-on experience managing and maintaining Windows and Linux services, including AD, group policy, DNS, DHCP, Hyper-V, SQL Server, and Mongo DB

Network Management and Support

¿ Manage/maintain network infrastructure, including configurations, patching and tuning ¿ Ensure the network is secure and working efficiently. Troubleshoot network problems, collect performance statistics and create reports

You will be educated to degree level/level 6 vocational qualification or equivalent level of experience with demonstrable hands-on experience in IT support on different platforms. You will be a good communicator, highly proactive and able to develop and maintain technical knowledge.

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available until 31 March 2027 in the first instance.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

If you have any queries regarding the application process, please contact hradmin@mrc-tox.cam.ac.uk

Further information can be found on our website: https://www.mrc-tox.cam.ac.uk

Please quote reference PU45415 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

The Sawarkar/Willis lab at the MRC Toxicology Unit is looking for a Research Assistant to contribute to its programme on neurodegeneration, epigenetics and antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) RNA therapeutics.

The project will use state-of-the-art molecular cell biology technologies, combined with ex vivo cell culture models, to improve delivery of ASO therapeutics and assay for related toxicity in neurodegeneration.

You will need to hold or be close to completing a Masters' degree in an appropriate field (e.g. Molecular biology) and/or have relevant experience at an equivalent level, together with demonstrable hands-on experience in RNA/ protein analytical techniques, microscopy and tissue culture. You will be able to work both independently and as part of a team, have excellent communication, organisational and problem-solving skills and ideally have experience of working on an independent research project. Enthusiasm for working in a diverse inter-disciplinary team is desirable.

The MRC Toxicology Unit is an internationally renowned institution focussed on the delivery of field-changing mechanistic insights into toxicology and disease. The Unit is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities including mass spectrometry, microscopy, and bioinformatics, and offers excellent opportunities for scientific career development.

Fixed-term: This post is funded by ERC until 31 August 2026 in the first instance.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

If you have any queries regarding the application process, please contact hradmin@mrc-tox.cam.ac.uk

Further information can be found on our website: https://www.mrc-tox.cam.ac.uk

Please quote reference PU45409 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

We invite applications for a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join the research group of Dr. Antoine Hocher in the Department of Genetics, based in central Cambridge. Our lab explores molecular mimicry and chromatin evolution. We combine molecular biology, phylogenetics, proteomics and genetics.

This postdoctoral position focuses on studying and engineering proteins that mimic DNA. Molecular mimicry is a powerful evolutionary strategy observed across diverse organisms, from insects to vertebrates. While striking examples of phenotypic mimicry are well-documented, systematic approaches to identify and manipulate molecular mimicry remain largely unexplored.

The successful candidate will lead wet-lab projects aimed at:

• Developing high-throughput environmental DNA screens to uncover new cases of molecular mimicry.
• Engineering DNA-mimicking proteins using directed evolution platforms.
• Dissecting the mechanisms of action of newly identified DNA mimics.

By applying cutting-edge approaches, this work aims to systematically uncover DNA mimics and their targets, with potential applications in inhibiting DNA-binding proteins and advancing our understanding of molecular mimicry as a biological phenomenon.

This position provides a unique opportunity to develop expertise in diverse high-throughput techniques (proteomics, transcriptomics, directed evolution). The successful candidate will benefit from the lab's combined expertise in wet-lab molecular biology and computational biology.

Prior experience in microbiology, protein biology or experimental evolution is advantageous. Computational biology expertise is not required. A curious, persevering, and independent mindset is essential.

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 2 years in the first instance.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

For informal enquiries about the role please contact Dr Antoine Hocher ah2368@cam.ac.uk

Please quote reference PC45382 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

Join us for a performance and in-conversation by Anne Tallentire marking the culmination of her commission for Here is a Gale Warning: Art, Crisis & Survival.

This in-person conference will bring together religious practitioners, scholars and theologians from around the world for a multi-faith conference which aims to revitalise non-violent theologies of peace for our troubled world.

Join Common Threads Press for a panel discussion on craft as a source of hope and survival.

Join us for art, music, talks, making and more, with a chance to see our exhibition Here is a Gale Warning: Art, Crisis & Survival out of hours.

The Public Engagement Team at the University of Cambridge is delighted to announce the Cambridge Creative Encounters Exhibition as part of Cambridge Festival, with a retrospective exhibition on the creative outputs from the last 3 years.

The University of Cambridge ThinkLab is excited to announce our upcoming event on neurodiversity, disability, inclusion and the future of work.

We are delighted to welcome Professor David Daokui Li and Professor Rana Mitter as our speakers for the Clare Hall Tanner and Tanner Founder’s Lecture 2025, exploring the future of relations between China and the West.

Come along to the book launch of "Religion, Theology, and Stranger Things" co-edited by one of Ridley's own, Dr. Andy Byers, both in person at Ridley and online on Zoom!

A Research Assistant or Research Associate (post-doc) position in AI and Neuroinformatics is available to work with Prof Zoe Kourtzi (Adaptive Brain Lab, Univ of Cambridge; https://www.abg.psychol.cam.ac.uk) and Prof Eleni Vasilaki (School of Computer Science, Univ of Sheffield).

The position will focus on developing AI-guided tools for understanding brain functions (e.g. learning and adaptive behaviour) and improving early detection of brain disorders. This position is well-suited for candidates eager to develop and translate theoretical AI models into tools that can: a) help understand brain mechanisms in health and disease, b) be deployed in clinical settings.

Successful candidates will engage in developing AI models to synthesise and analyse diverse data sets, including brain imaging, genetic, cognitive, and epidemiological data. The research activity is at the core of a funded programme that brings together multidisciplinary experts in neuroscience, machine learning, clinical practice, clinical informatics with healthcare innovation and pharmaceutical industry partners.

You will receive multi-disciplinary research training at the interface of machine learning, neuroscience, and clinical translation. You will be integrated in a diverse collaborative team and will have the opportunity to participate in workshops as well as exchange visits across labs to facilitate cross-disciplinary training and collaborative working. You will be member of the AI-deas Hub for brain and mental health (https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/AI-deas-launch). The Hub fosters collaborations between mathematics, statistics, computer science, medicine and industry aiming to develop analytics tools for brain research and healthcare.

Desired Skills and Experience:

• Applicants should have a MRes or PhD (or have submitted by the time of appointment) together with a strong academic track record, in a relevant area: Mathematics, Engineering, Physics, Computer Science, Data Science, Biostatistics, Neuroscience, or Medicine.

  • A strong academic track record and programming skills are essential.

• Experience with machine learning, data science, computational neuroscience, biostatistics, cognitive or clinical neuroscience are highly desirable

• Strong mathematical skills, knowledge of recurrent neural networks, foundation models and a focus on explainable machine learning models, would bring added value to the position.

• The successful applicant should demonstrate enthusiasm for generating new knowledge, openness to learning new approaches, and ability to contribute to a multidisciplinary team across sectors (academia, healthcare, industry).

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for 18 months in the first instance.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

Please ensure that you upload your Curriculum Vitae (CV) and a covering letter in the Upload section of the online application. If you upload any additional documents which have not been requested, we will not be able to consider these as part of your application.

For informal inquiries, please contact Zoe Kourtzi at zk240@cam.ac.uk

Closing Date: Sunday 6th April at 12 Midnight

Interview dates: TBC

Please quote reference PJ45385 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and encourages applications from all sections of society.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.