Governance and Assurance Lead

Job summary

As Governance & Assurance Lead, you will play a crucial role in ensuring that decision-making at the QEII Centre is well managed, delivering support for the Centre’s Board, Committees, and Executive Team, providing advice and guidance on key policies and processes.

Job description

• Lead responsibility for maintaining and applying the Corporate Governance Framework. This includes engagement with MHCLG concerning the format and application of the QEII Framework Agreement.
• Ensure that QEII Policies are compliant and aligned with Civil Service best practice, Government Functional Standards, and new legislative requirements; supporting the review and development of policies where required.
• Line Management of Government Functional Standards Executive.
• Work with the PA to the CEO to ensure Board, Committee (including Senior Leadership Team and Executive Team meetings) and advisory and regulatory group meetings are properly scheduled to allow business to be conducted in the right forum, at the right time, and supported by high quality papers.
• To proactively identify gaps and weaknesses in existing governance activity and implement suitable fixes.
• Maintain and streamline governance processes (e.g. board/committee schedules, forward plans, escalation routes) and reviewing terms of reference to support effective and timely decisions.
• Drive improvements in data management practices, developing appropriate tools, and methods in line with governance policies.
• Driving the continuous improvement of Board and Committee activity by undertaking Board Effectiveness Reporting on an annual cycle and driving forward the resulting action plans.
• Coordinate GIAA and NAO audit activity, track findings and ensure completion of agreed actions, providing clear assurance reporting to SLT, Audit Committee and Board.
• Ownership of the complaints process, ensuring effective investigations are completed, appropriate responses delivered, accurate recording of decisions, lessons are learned and continuous improvements to the process are identified and embedded.
• Promote a culture of good governance, ethical conduct and continuous improvement in controls and processes by providing: -
• Governance training and guidance for leaders and policy owners.
• Governance dashboarding and reporting to Executive Team and Board/Committees.
• Work with Directors and Heads of Departments to ensure each business area has relevant governance systems and processes in place
• Oversight of the Centre’s compliance with Records Management GDPR and FOI requirements.

Person specification

Essential

• Experience of working in Governance, ideally at senior level, with a strong understanding of the expectations and rules relating to ALB governance requirements.
• Able to balance both strategic and operational governance priorities to successfully deliver both.
• Expert leadership on governance processes and requirements, with ability to lead and develop teams, develop advice and support to maintain and improve the quality, timeliness and presentation of papers, briefings and other materials.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with good awareness and engagement of the different needs of all stakeholders and the wider business.
• Ability to draft high quality documents including meeting minutes, decision notices, terms of reference, complex and sensitive correspondence, guidance notes and board papers.
• Influencing and negotiating skills to achieve a desired result, with resilience to overcome obstacles to delivery. Able to use judgement and experience to solve problems.

Desirable

• Ability to work at pace while maintaining attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently, understanding when issues can be dealt with and when they need to be escalated.
• Strong IT skills and demonstrable experience with Microsoft Office software.

Experience & qualifications

• Governance or Legal qualification
• Experience of working in a Governance team or similar role
• Experience of providing support to senior leaders and stakeholders

Behaviours

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

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace
• Making Effective Decisions

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £60,000, Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre contributes £17,382 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• Bonus scheme (discretionary) calculated on corporate and individual
• Membership of the Civil Service Pension Scheme with an employer contribution of 28.97%
• 25 days' annual leave with an additional day per year to a maximum of 30 days & 1 privilege day
• Subsidized staff restaurant/coffee bar
• Interest free season ticket loan
• Cycle to work scheme
• 3 days paid volunteering
• Participation at staff events; celebratory, educational, team
• Access to learning and development tailored to you
• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
• Regular employment engagement activities
• Dynamic hybrid environment

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.

Candidates should apply by submitting:

• a tailored CV to hr@qeiicentre.london setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements, of no more than two pages. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
• a personal statement – in no more than 500 words showing how you meet the criteria of the person specification evidence.

The closing date for applications is 9th March 2026 @ 23.59

We will be sifting applications using Experience from your job history, qualifications and personal statement on Wednesday 11th March 2026.

Interviews will take place on Wednesday 25th March 2026.

For candidates invited for interview, this vacancy is using the Civil Service Success Profiles Framework, and we will be assessing Strengths, Experience, Behaviours and Technical Skills.

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

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

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 counter-terrorist 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.

Medical

Successful candidates will be expected to have a medical.

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.

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

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 : HR Department
• Email : hr@qeiicentre.london
• Telephone : 02077984012

Recruitment team

• Email : hr@qeiicentre.london

Further information

The QEII Centre's recruitment processes are underpinned by the recruitment principles of the Civil Service Commissioner, which outline that selection for appointment be made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition. If you feel at any time your application has not been treated in accordance with the values in the Civil Service Code and/or you feel that recruitment has been conducted in such a waythat conf;icts with the Civil Service Commissioner's Recruitment Principles, you may make a complaint, by contacting the HR Department hr@qeiicentre.london in the first instance.

https://qeiicentre.london/about/join-the-team/

Attachments

Governance Assurance Lead JD March 26 Opens in new window (pdf, 117kB)

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