Data Governance Manager - External

Job summary

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the UK’s largest producer of official statistics, covering a range of key economic, social and demographic topics. These include measuring changes in the value of the UK economy, estimating the size, geographic distribution and characteristics of the population, and providing indicators of price inflation, employment, earnings, crime and migration.

The Data Governance function within the Office for National Statistics is critical to enabling the good and appropriate use and management of data across the organisation, ensuring that the data that the ONS relies on to produce official statistics, research, and other core purposes is reliable and trusted so that outputs are equally reliable and trusted. Data Governance professionals ensure that data is acquired correctly and well managed across the ONS so that it is findable, understandable, useable, and treated as a valuable asset.

We are seeking four motivated Data Governance Managers to join our Data Growth and Operations Directorate. These roles span a range of business areas across the Office for National Statistics, reflecting the critical importance of data governance in how data is collected, managed and used. You’ll be at the heart of the data life cycle, helping to ensure our data delivers value safely and effectively.This campaign is for external candidates who wish to be based at either our Newport or Titchfield site. Therefore this campaign has been linked with the internal advert 462420. If you are an internal candidate to ONS please apply via the other campaign. The selection and interview process will be combined, so you do not need to apply for both campaigns.

Job description

The Data Governance function within the Office for National Statistics is critical to enabling the good and appropriate use and management of data across the organisation, ensuring that the data that the ONS relies on to produce official statistics, research, and other core purposes is reliable and trusted so that outputs are equally reliable and trusted. Data Governance professionals ensure that data is acquired correctly and well managed across the ONS so that it is findable, understandable, useable, and treated as a valuable asset.

The function can cover multiple areas within the Office for National Statistics which reflects the critical role Data Governance plays and the lifecycle of data moving through the office.

You may work as part of the Data Governance Office Team to support the Chief Data Officer (CDO) and Deputy CDO to ensure good governance of all data within the ONS. This team engages across ONS with subject matter experts in a range of data management areas, tapping into their expertise to develop strategy and identify, collate and catalogue, policies, standards, guidance, and metadata. This team works with staff holding data governance roles & responsibilities to ensure that the strategy, policies, and standards are known, adopted, embedded and adhered to and supports the tracking and reporting of key performance indicators to demonstrate the effectiveness of this work.

All Data Governance roles within ONS apply relevant data and ethical frameworks and standards to their work and understand data governance good practice. Specifically, providing advice to users on the technical, ethical, data protection and security, and legal aspects (e.g. GDPR) of using data, and the benefits of using it.

You will be able to grasp statistical, economic, and social concepts quickly, identifying common needs for data and communicating appropriately and clearly between technical and non-technical audiences.

You will understand data and how they can be prepared for, and used in, statistics and research and how they can benefit policy and decision making, as well as understanding the economy and society better. You will need to build and demonstrate a good understanding of data and how it is used in the production of official statistics and research.

Responsibilities

• Lead the identification and capture of stakeholder needs, translating these into clearly defined requirements that support effective data governance and management.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with stakeholders to ensure data governance policies, standards and guidance are understood, adopted and embedded across the organisation.
• Provide expert advice on data governance, including data protection, security, ethical and legal considerations (e.g. GDPR), ensuring the appropriate and responsible use of data.
• Support the development, implementation and continuous improvement of data governance frameworks, policies and standards across the data lifecycle.
• Promote good data management practices, including data quality, metadata and standards, helping to ensure data is findable, understandable and reusable.
• Communicate complex data governance concepts clearly and effectively to both technical and non-technical audiences, tailoring messages to meet their needs.
• Identify, analyse and communicate factors that influence how data is managed and used, enabling informed decision-making.
• Contribute to the effective use of data across the organisation by supporting its governance, accessibility and appropriate use for statistical, research and operational purposes.
• Develop and maintain plans to deliver data governance activities, managing risks, dependencies and priorities to ensure successful outcomes.
• Monitor and support compliance with data governance policies and standards, using evidence to inform improvements and strengthen governance practices.
• Proactively identify opportunities to improve data governance processes and ways of working, contributing to wider strategic objectives.
• Line manage and support colleagues where applicable, fostering a culture of continuous development and high performance.

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• Stakeholder relationship management (Working) - Identify important stakeholders and communicate with them clearly and regularly. Tailor communication to stakeholders' needs and work with them to build relationships while meeting user needs. Build and reach consensus with stakeholders. Work to improve stakeholder relationships using evidence to explain decisions.
• Communicating between the technical and the non-technical (Working) - Communicate effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders. Support and host discussions within a multidisciplinary team, with potentially difficult dynamics. Be an advocate for the team externally. Manage differing stakeholder perspectives.
• Data Management (Working) - Follow organisational data governance, including policies on data access, sharing, dissemination and protection. Participate in or deliver data management across services or products. Use appropriate data management tools, procedures and methods with some support
• Data Governance (Working) - Demonstrate up-to-date knowledge of data governance theory, standard methodology and the practical considerations. Develop an end-to-end data governance framework (the processes, operational policies and standards needed to support data management). Work effectively with technical teams and other stakeholders to implement a data governance framework, and make recommendations to ensure compliance
• Strategic Thinking (Working) - Work within a strategic context and communicate how activities meet strategic goals. Contribute to the development of strategy and policies.

Behaviours

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

• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £41,985, Office for National Statistics contributes £12,163 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

The Office for National Statistics is part of the Civil Service, and as such we share a number of key benefits with other departments, whilst also having our own unique offerings to support our valued colleagues across the organisation.

Whether you are hearing about us for the first time or already know a bit about our organisation, we hope that our careers site will give you a great insight into the benefits and facilities available to our colleagues, and our fantastic working culture.

Inclusion & Accessibility

At ONS we are always looking to attract the very best people from the widest possible talent pool, and we are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a Disability Confident Leader we’re committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.

As part of our application process, you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process that you need. If you would like to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying, please contact the recruitment team in the first instance.

If you would like an accessible version of any of the attachments or recruitment documents below or linked to in this advert, please contact the recruitment team who will be happy to assist.

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 and Experience.

Security Clearance

For ONS the requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for 3 consecutive years immediately prior to applying and the department will consider eligibility by exception on a case-by-case basis. You will be asked to provide information regarding your UK residency during your application, and failure to provide this will result in your application being rejected.

At the point of SC application, you will need to provide or give access to the following evidence:

• Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)
• UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records
• Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency

• Security Services records

Visa Sponsorship

ONS are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. Applicants are expected to hold a valid right to work in the UK when employment commences. If you are applying on a time-limited visa, this will need to be valid for at least 18 months.

To work at the ONS, candidates must meet both UK right to work and security clearance requirements (where applicable).

If you are unsure whether you meet the appropriate right to work or security clearance eligibility criteria, please refer to the guidance on Gov.uk or contact the recruitment email provided in the advert before applying. Failure to meet these requirements will result in your application being rejected and employment offers being withdrawn.

Application Process

Number of Stages: 2 stage process

Stage 1: Application

Stage 2: Interview

Stage 1 – Application

The assessment process at the application stage will be based on your work history, CV, skills, experience, and personal statement. It is important that your application is tailored to highlight the skills, knowledge, and experience relevant to the role.

A personal statement is required at application stage, the maximum word count allowed is 1250 words, which should not be exceeded. You should provide evidence for each essential skill criterion listed in the person specification. As these criteria are scored, it is advisable to give clear examples for each one, including the impact of your actions, ideally utilising the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result).

Please note that Success Profiles Behaviour examples are not required at this stage of the application process.

In instances where a high number of applications are received, the sift pass mark may be adjusted, and candidates will be invited to interview based on merit order, i.e., those with the highest scores.

When a high volume of applications are received, the sift pass mark may be adjusted. Candidates will be invited to interview based on their merit order, with those achieving the highest scores being prioritised. Applicants who score below the adjusted pass mark but still pass will be placed on hold and may be invited to interview at a later date.

We often have similar roles available at different grades. If a candidate is suitable for a similar role or a lower grade than they have applied for, we may offer the candidate that role without the need to go through a further selection process providing the role has the same behaviours, and essential skills.

Stage 2 – Interview

If invited to interview, you will be assessed using techniques aligned with the Civil Service Success Profiles framework, covering all behaviours listed in the job advert and any required technical skills.

You will be required to provide a 10minute presentation at interview. The presentation topic will be emailed to candidates who have passed the initial online application stage, 1 week prior to interview. This presentation will assess candidates against the Success Profiles Behaviour Communicating and influencing.

Interviews will be via Microsoft Teams.

A reserve list may be held for a period up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made.

Important Dates

• Eligibility checks from 03/06 - 10/06
• Sift will be conducted from 11/06/2026
• Interviews will be conducted from 30/06/2026

For the full terms and conditions of the post, please see attachment.

Please note that all campaigns may be subject to withdrawal at any stage if the internal resource position changes.

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.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 : Government Digital and Data Recruitment
• Email : Government-Digital-and-Data-Recruitment@ons.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : Government-Digital-and-Data-Recruitment@ons.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 recruitment.complaints@ons.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission

Attachments

2721 Advert 1B Permanent - ONS National Opens in new window (pdf, 83kB)