Corporate Affairs Manager

Job summary

Have you got experience or the drive to learn more about formal corporate communications?

Are you an effective communicator who can confidently build and maintain relationships with a diverse range of people to complete tasks?

Do you thrive working at pace, as part of a team and alone, to deliver quality results?

Can you manage multiple tasks with a keen attitude to ensure high standards are consistently met?

If you are seeking a role that is versatile, exploratory and fundamental to the VCA’s mission to ensure a safer, cleaner future through excellence, then look no further. This unique opportunity will enable a true insight into all aspects of the organisation, working closely with colleagues, customers, and stakeholders to address and respond to all formal corporate communications. For more information about this role, our Corporate Affairs team and what you can look forward to joining the VCA, please check out our role profile, candidate pack and this short video from our Senior Corporate Affairs Manager, Dawn Crooks.

About Us

Our work is focused on improving vehicle safety and environmental protection by providing robust testing and certification to national and internationally recognised standards. We are a part of the Department of Transport as the designated UK Vehicle Type Approval Authority. With more than 40 years’ experience, we have become one of the largest and well-respected approval bodies around. This position has been built on a reputation for technical expertise and quality, which is at the heart of everything we do, and what you could be a part of.

Job description

You will lead on Freedom of Information (FOI), Environmental Regulations and Data Protection. Offering advice and support at all levels within the organisation, you will ensure enquiries are dealt with effectively and efficiently.

The communications you manage will cover a broad range of topics at one time. Therefore, it is essential that you are confident managing multiple and often conflicting priorities, delivering quality at pace. Overseeing a varied workload will give an insight into all aspects of the Agency and will require you to collaborate with your team, colleagues, and stakeholders to obtain information and curate responses.

Working with colleagues at all levels of seniority, you will address diverse interests that need to be respectfully managed with a high-level of tact, diplomacy, and corporate spirit. It will be essential you can forge professional and robust relationships with those around you; championing best practice and influencing the uptake and engagement in the work you are leading and the importance of this.

We are passionate about supporting colleagues both mentally and physically; by offering a range of benefits and policies to ensure you can achieve a work-life balance. You will be a valued member of an organisation who cares about you, by giving the support you need to reach your full potential.

Your main duties will include but will not be limited to:

• Lead and manage the Agency’s responses to Freedom of Information (FOI) and Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) requests, as well as ensuring that Departmental ‘round robin FOI’s’ are dealt with appropriately and efficiently;
• Support Agency responses to Parliamentary Questions and Ministerial Correspondence, recording and monitoring performance against key targets;
• Manage the Agency responses to queries received through the general enquiries channel;
• Work with the Data Protection Champion to provide Data protection support and advice within the agency, ensuring compliance with the UK Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation;
• Lead and manage Agency responses to Data Protection Subject Access Requests.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

For further information on the role, please read the attached Role Profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

• A good understanding of FOI and EIR and / or Data Protection legislation or a willingness to undertake training to Practitioner certificate in Freedom of Information;
• Be able to read and understand often complex legislation;
• Effective communication skills, both written and spoken, with the ability to adapt your delivery to suit a variety of audiences;
• Excellent people skills with a high level of tact, diplomacy, and corporate spirit. Comfortable with challenging senior leaders and managers when required;
• Work on your own initiative, with the confidence to deal with complex enquiries/case work;
• Work well under pressure and manage multiple priorities and deadlines;
• Experience of using insight and evaluation to inform and continuously improve delivery;
• Experienced using Microsoft Office packages

Additional Information

This role is suitable for hybrid working, and therefore a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements. Hybrid working is a non-contractual arrangement where employees have the flexibility to work remotely combined with a minimum of 60% of their working time a month at either their principal workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, visiting stakeholders and colleagues, or carrying out detached duty in another VCA workplace. There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

If you have questions regarding how hybrid working is practiced within the business area, or any reasonable adjustments or flexible working arrangements you may currently have or need in place if successful in your application, please contact the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details).

Please note that whilst we welcome applications from candidates seeking part-time hours, with this role there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to work 22 hours per week, over three days – Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

VCA does not offer Visa sponsorship. Candidates should ensure they have the appropriate rights to work in the UK before application.

Qualifications

Level 2 qualifications in English, i.e., GCSE - grades 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 or grades A*, A, B, C

Willingness to undertake training to Practitioner certificate in Freedom of Information

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £35,663, Vehicle Certification Agency contributes £10,331 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Your wellbeing is important to us, which is why we’re pleased to offer a wide range of benefits to all our colleagues, inside and outside of work.

Find out more about the ways you can benefit in the attached Candidate Pack.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

Our 2-stage selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's qualifications, skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

Stage 1: Initial Experience-Based Sift

In this stage, we carefully review all applicants CV & Personal statement to shortlist candidates who meet the experience indicators (listed below) and possess the necessary qualifications.

Stage 2: In-person Interview

This stage involves an in-person interview, where selected candidates will be invited to visit one of our premises.

Merit List

Please note that candidates placed on the merit list will be considered for suitable positions as they arise. Being on the merit list may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role of Corporate Affairs Manager.

How to Apply

To apply you should provide a CV and personal statement. We will assess the following Experience Indicators from your CV & personal statement so you should tailor both to clearly explain how you meet them.

• Experience of where you have worked well under pressure and managed multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Experience of where you have demonstrated excellent people skills and where you have been comfortable in challenging senior managers and leaders
• Experience of reading and understanding often complex legislation.

Your personal statement should be a maximum of 1000 words and we recommend a minimum of 250 words for each of the bullet points above.

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Some guidance to help you with your application can be found in the candidate pack below.

Sift and Interview

The sift is due to take place from 2nd February 2026.

Interviews are likely to be held week commencing 16th February 2026.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.

You are encouraged to become familiar with the role profile, as you may be assessed against any of the criteria recorded within.

The Department for Transport, alongside other Government Departments recruit using Success Profiles. This means for each role we consider what you will need to demonstrate in order to be successful. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.

For further information on Success Profiles visit our Careers website.

Please note that VCA are unable to offer VISA sponsorship.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you cannot access the information on our website for any reason, please email DRGComms@dft.gov.uk for assistance.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit theHow We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Pre-employment Checking

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All External applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour

Threats or acts of violence

Illegal activity or substance misuse

Sexually explicit material

Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public.

Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle—it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture.

If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Pav Gill
• Email : Pav.Gill@VCA.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dftrecruitment.grs@cabineoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website Here

Attachments

Corporate Affairs Manager Role Profile Opens in new window (pdf, 184kB)VCA Candidate Pack Corporate Affairs Opens in new window (pdf, 6054kB)