Deputy Director of Policy and Strategy

Job summary

The ONS is the UK's largest producer of official statistics and home to over 5,000 colleagues. We create the data that drives decisions, from measuring economic growth and tracking population changes to informing policy on everything from housing to healthcare. Our statistics don't just sit in reports; they directly influence how billions of pounds are allocated, how services are planned, and how communities are supported across the country.

The role will be part of a newly formed group, Population, Census and Social Statistics (PCSS), which brings together our core demographic, migration and social statistics and the delivery of Census 2031. The three directorates are heavily interdependent and bringing them together under one umbrella provides a framework to harness synergies and deliver even better statistics in a collaborative environment.

This role will be critical to ensuring the group maximises these benefits and achieves its potential, working across all three directorates, setting the strategic direction for the wider population statistical system, and supporting the delivery of Census 2031 within this.

Census 2031 represents our most ambitious data collection project yet – a once-in-a decade opportunity to capture a complete picture of everyone living in England and Wales.

Building on the digital success of 2021, we're pioneering new ways to reach every household and community, ensuring no one is left uncounted. This vital work will provide the foundation for policy decisions, resource allocation, and community planning for the next decade. You will be responsible for ensuring the necessary legislation passes through parliament and taking forward the Strategy [published 4th March]. You’ll be part of a team that ensures everyone is counted—and every voice is heard.

We're building a culture that values collaboration, fresh thinking, and respect for diverse expertise. Whether you're a seasoned professional or bringing new perspectives, we aim to have a team that welcomes bold ideas, works transparently, and thrives on solving complex challenges together. As a senior leader within the PCSS group, you will be working on some of the nations most important data, data that will be used in decision-making across every level of government for the next decade.

Job description

This role will be responsible for setting the strategic direction for the Population, Census and Social Statistics (PCSS) group. Setting out a strategic vision for the architecture of the wider population statistical system, which delivers our headline publications (population estimates, migration estimates, population projections) and includes outputs from Census 2031 effectively. It will include important thinking about what a sustainable model beyond 2031 could look like.

The role will be crucial in designing and delivering strategic and policy elements of the Census 2031 programme. eg Census strategy, White Paper and associated legislation. It will provide policy advice for the group, identifying and addressing sensitive issues, ensuring effective and robust governance is in place to mitigate risks, responding to any legal, reputational or policy challenges as they arise.

A priority for the group is to improve the capability building activity and the post holder – supported by a small team – will lead on developing an approach that enables this. Set the strategic direction and lead the delivery of policy advice for the PCSS group, ensuring that the wider population statistical system effectively incorporates ongoing outputs and Census 31, and coordinates effectively across the group directorates.Deliver the Census strategy, and ensure the fundamental tenets are communicated effectively to key stakeholders and governance boards.

Provide policy advice on the design of the wider population statistical system, ensuring that a proposed future model maximises the benefits of the 2031 Census, and provides a sustainable model for beyond 2031. Deliver a coordinated approach to engagement and communications across the group, ensuring messaging is consistent and coherent.

Work across departmental boundaries with key stakeholders such as HMT and Cabinet Office, supporting the Census programme director and the SRO in Business Case and Spending Review settlement negotiations and ensure Census legislation progresses through Parliament.

Provide thought leadership and evidence-based responses to legal, reputational and policy challenges as they occur, including leading the team responsible for PQs, FOIs and Official Correspondence.Coordinate briefings and board papers to programme level and organisational level governance boards, ensuring there is an effective interrelationship between Census board, PSSC and the UKSA boards (inter alia).

Key Responsibilities:

• Ownership of strategic artefacts for the group, and their communication, with internal and external stakeholders.
• Develop and manage governance processes at a programme, group and board level to ensure robust decision-making and the mitigation of risk.
• Policy coordination across the group directorates to deliver a coordinated and coherent population statistical system.
• Provide thought leadership for the group on sensitive issues and draft responses for ministers and the press.
• Build and maintain a capability framework for the group, ensuring we maximise the potential of our staff.
• Support staff development via access to learning and development tools to build skills and establishing a development pathway for career progression within the group.
• Coordinate the engagement activity for key external stakeholders to ensure the Census and wider population statistics teams are complimentary.
• Build and maintain strong relationships across departmental boundaries to ensure the safe passage of legislation and optimising spending outcomes.
• Be a role model as part of the Senior Leadership Team: living the values and those expected of senior civil servants; building capability and inspiring ONS staff to achieve better outcomes; contributing to shaping the culture of the organisation; demonstrating and promoting good behaviour.

For more information, please refer to candidate pack attached.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

Candidates are expected to evidence these criteria within their CV and Personal Statement:

• A track record of developing lasting strategic delivery plans in a complex organisational context, understanding and synthesising multiple priorities into coherent action.
• Experience of working at Chief Executive and Executive Committee level, with some exposure to working directly with Boards or Ministers.
• Experience of supporting the effective governance of an organisation/programme.
• Outstanding stakeholder management skills, with the proven ability to influence very senior colleagues across a system (inside and outside of the organisation).
• Experience of developing legislation and an understanding of the legislative process.

Qualifications

Policy professional with experience of developing and delivering cross-government strategy.

Technical skills

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

• Practitioner level demonstration of the democracy and strategy pillars of the policy profession framework, with evidence of some standards at expert level - https://shorturl.at/HUkvw

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £81,000, Office for National Statistics contributes £23,465 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 Experience and Technical skills.

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.

If you are unsure that you meet the eligibility above, please read the information available on Gov.uk on this link, or contact the recruitment email on the advert before applying to discuss, as failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected and any offer of employment being withdrawn.

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

Selection Process

Applications should consist of your CV and Personal Statementcombined as one document and uploaded as a single attachment through Civil Service Jobs.​

A Curriculum Vitae of no more than 2 pages of A4 consisting of:​

• Details of your education and/or professional qualifications.​

• Full employment history, giving details (where applicable) of budgets and numbers of people managed, relevant key achievements in recent posts.​

• Details of your latest remuneration.​

A personal statement detailing in no more than 2 pages of A4 how you meet the essential criteria listed in the person specification. We recommend that you give clear examples for each describing your own contribution and the impact and value of your actions. ​

Applications will be acknowledged shortly after receipt. If you do not receive an acknowledgement within one week of applying for the post, please contact our SCS Recruitment Team at: SCS.Recruitment@ons.gov.uk​

Further information on the assessment approach for this role can be found in the candidate pack.

Expected Recruitment Timetable

Shortlisting meeting: w/c 6th April

Employee Engagement Exercise (EEE) - 16th April

Interviews - w/c 27th April - Held in ONS London, 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF

Please note dates are subject to change.

Informal conversations to discuss suitability with the recruiting manager are welcomed in advance of the application closing date and can be arranged via email.

Full terms and conditions are attached at the bottom of this advert

If you meet the required standard but the recruiting department is unable to offer you the job, you may be given the option of being added to a reserve list. Reserve lists may be shared with other Civil Service departments and professions who are recruiting for similar roles.

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.This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.

As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).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 : Mary Gregory
• Email : Mary.Gregory@ons.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : SCS.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 1A Permanent - ONS London Inclusive v1-00 Opens in new window (pdf, 83kB)Deputy_Director_of_Policy_and Strategy_SCS_Candidate_Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 885kB)