Director for Working Age Services

Job summary

The Role of Director for Working Age Services sits in Digital and Transformation Group (DTG).

The Director will be accountable for both the live running and transformation activities for services including playing a key leadership role in the jobs and careers service programme. This is our flagship programme – outlined in the Get Britain Working White Paper - to transform how DWP provides employment support.

Virtual Engagement Session ​​

Date: 01/05/26 Time: 13:00-14:00pm​

This virtual session is an opportunity for you to find out more about the role and what it's like leading the Digital and Transformation Group. You'll get the opportunity to hear directly from the vacancy holder, Will Garner, HRD Beverley Morton, who will provide an overview of the role and hold a Q&A session. ​

Join the session here.​

Job description

• You will own the delivery strategy delivering transformation outcomes through our services, including working across Directorates to deliver policy intent through user-centred digital services. Ensuring that the right processes, procedures, and technologies align to delivering improved user, policy, and business-related outcomes. ​
• Development and execution of comprehensive roadmaps for those services, aligning organisational design, governance practices, capability, and 3rd party services to enable delivery of service design and delivery. ​Lead design, development, and delivery of large-scale user-centred services, utilising innovative technologies and data, integrated with DWP’s core platform capabilities. ​
• Lead multi-disciplinary teams to design, plan, deliver and maintain products - including user experience, development, data models, real-time analytics, machine-learning, APIs, development, and behaviour-driven testing​
• Lead creation of core capabilities to support the service and make available across DWP though loosely coupled services, leading and influencing matrixed architecture, security, and infrastructure operations teams. ​
• Play an active role within the DWP Director community, and as a senior Digital leader across the Government. ​
• Lead and embed new ways of working and technology-enabled innovation, driving and building sustainable digital capability across the Department to support Civil Service Reform. ​
• Role modelling inclusive leadership behaviours and creating the culture and conditions to empower people to work across organisational boundaries, in multi-disciplinary teams, in service of our priorities. ​
• Provide assurance and oversight of transformation programme activity, ensuring they are managed effectively and represent value to taxpayers. ​
• Maintain outstanding financial management and control standards, which require financial budgets to be managed to within 1% variance per quarter and per budget allocation. ​

In addition, the role will require you to: ​

• Contribute to and actively participate in the executive leadership of DWP as we deliver unprecedented change to the welfare system, and to the products and services it delivers. ​
• Manage complex relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders including partners and vendors​

Person specification

The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate their knowledge, experience and skills against the following essential criteria: ​​

• Significant experience of delivering high performing, transformational digital services at scale and to budget. ​
• Experience of building and leading high performing teams, proactively setting strategic priorities, communicating delivery impact and issues to senior colleagues. ​
• Demonstrable experience of shaping and sustaining organisational culture change that supports new ways of working across organisational and professional boundaries.​
• Experience in developing and continuously improving digital services, increasing service quality and performance whilst reducing cost. ​
• High levels of digital literacy and be capable of effectively engaging with design, delivery and technical colleagues, suppliers, and stakeholders to define the best approach to service design. ​
• Experience of building service strategy based on user-insight, driving value through delivering user-centred digital services. ​
• Experience of adopting innovative approaches to delivering and procuring services and managing relationships with suppliers. ​

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £100,000, Department for Work and Pensions contributes £28,970 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

DWP have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:

• Working patterns to support work/life balance such as job sharing and compressed hours.
• Generous annual leave – at least 25 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (pro–rata for part time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave.
• Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme.
• Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly).
• Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 year’s continuous service.
• Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes.
• An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Women’s Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.

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

1. Application Process​

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online application process outlined below no later than 12:00 noon on Monday the 11th of May 2026.​

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years;​​
• A personal statement (maximum 1250 words), explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities, and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential criteria in the person specification. ​​

Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.​

As part of the online application process, you will be asked a number of diversity-related questions. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say’. All monitoring data will be treated in the strictest confidence and will not be provided to the selection panel. The information you provide when submitting your application will help us monitor our progress towards the Civil Service becoming the most inclusive employer.

2. Shortlist​

A panel, including the hiring manager, will assess your application to select those demonstrating the best fit with the role by considering the evidence you have provided against the criteria set out in the person specification section of this pack. Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.​

The timeline later in this pack indicates the date by which a decision is expected to be made, and all shortlisted candidates will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible thereafter.​

3. Assessment​

If you are shortlisted, you will be asked to take part in a Staff Engagement Exercise on the 03/06/2026 and Individual Leadership Assessment in advance of the interview. This assessment will not result in a pass or fail decision. Rather, it is designed to support the panel’s decision making and highlight areas for the panel to via MS Teams explore further at interview. ​

Shortlisted candidates may have the opportunity to speak to Will Garner, prior to the final interview. This is an informal discussion to allow candidates to learn more about the role and is not part of the assessment process.​

4. Interview​

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend a panel interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the person specification. You may be asked to prepare a 5-minute presentation. Full details will be provided prior to the interview.​

Your interview will be a face-to-face in Caxton House, London on 16th June 2026. The interview panel will be chaired by the Commissioner, Elizabeth Walmsley who will be supported by additional panel members. The final panel interview will be a blended interview, covering Technical skills, Strengths and Experience. A blended interview aims to be more of a conversation exploring the candidate’s capability for the role.

​**Please note that these dates are only indicative at this stage and may be subject to change, if you are shortlisted and unavailable for any of the dates, please contact the senior recruitment team at your earliest convenience.

5. Offer and Feedback​

Regardless of the outcome, we will notify all candidates as soon as possible. We will offer the opportunity to discuss feedback for all candidates who reached interview. ​

A reserve list will be held for up to 12 months, which we may use to fill future similar vacancies for candidates who are considered appointable following interview.​

More information can be found in the candidate pack attached to the advert.

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 : DWP SCS Recruitment Team
• Email : senior.recruitment@dwp.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : senior.recruitment@dwp.gov.uk

Further information

What do I do if I want to make a complaint?​
The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles. ​If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact: senior.recruitment@dwp.gov.uk ​If you are not satisfied with the response, you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission.

Attachments

Candidate Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 634kB)