Head of External Communications (Ref: 23817)

Job summary

This position is based Nationally

Job description

Head of External Communications

Office of the Public Guardian

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) helps people in England and Wales to stay in control of decisions about their health and finance and make important decisions for others who cannot decide for themselves. Our communications must make complex services and legal processes clear and accessible, build public understanding and confidence, and support OPG priorities.
We are looking for an experienced and inspiring communications leader to head OPG’s external communications function. This senior role is responsible for setting the strategic direction for OPG’s public-facing communications, including campaigns media and and ensuring activity is insight-led, audience-focused and delivers measurable outcomes.
The Head of External Communications will oversee integrated strategies that improve public understanding of OPG services, reach audiences who may face barriers to accessing them, protect and enhance OPG’s reputation, and support organisational and service transformation. The postholder will provide expert advice to OPG’s Executive Team and senior leaders on communications opportunities, risks and priorities, ensuring communications considerations are embedded in organisational decision-making.
Working closely with the Head of Communications, Head of Channels and Creative, Head of Internal Communications, customer and operational teams, policy colleagues and partners across the Ministry of Justice, the postholder will join up communications across disciplines and channels. They will also build effective relationships with external stakeholders, government departments, agencies and suppliers.
This is a significant leadership role requiring strong strategic judgement, the confidence to advise and constructively challenge senior decision-makers, and the ability to lead teams through complex delivery, organisational change and periods of heightened scrutiny.

Key responsibilities

1. Strategic communications leadership

• Lead the development, implementation and evaluation of OPG’s external communications, translating organisational and service priorities into clear, measurable communications objectives and plans.
• Provide authoritative, evidence-led advice to the Executive Team and senior leaders on external communications, corporate reputation, customer communications, service changes, emerging risks and opportunities.
• Ensure external communications are aligned with OPG’s organisational narrative, business planning and customer needs, and support public understanding of complex services and legal processes.
• Deputise[DS1.1] for the Head of Communications when required alongside other team leads and contribute actively to the leadership, governance, prioritisation and resourcing of the wider communications function.

2. Integrated campaigns and external communications

• Lead insight-led, integrated and accessible public communications and behaviour-change campaigns, from initial strategy and audience research through creative development, delivery, optimisation and evaluation.
• Oversee OPG’s strategic approach to proactive storytelling and reputation management, ensuring effective media handling of sensitive, high-profile or rapidly developing issues.
• Work with the Head of Channels and Creative and other communications specialists to bring together campaigns, media, digital, content, and stakeholder activity around shared objectives.
• Ensure activity is coordinated with colleagues across OPG, the Ministry of Justice, other government organisations and external partners, making effective use of paid, owned, earned, shared and partnership channels.

3. Audience insight, partnerships and reputation

• Champion an audience-first approach, ensuring strategy, messages, content and channel choices are informed by customer needs, research, data, behavioural insight and accessibility considerations.
• Horizon-scan for changes in the external environment and public attitudes, identifying communications opportunities and reputational risks and recommending appropriate action.
• Ensure OPG communicates inclusively with diverse audiences, particularly people who may face practical, informational or confidence barriers when accessing its services.

4. Delivery, evaluation and team leadership

• Provide visible, inclusive and supportive leadership to the external communications team, setting clear priorities, managing performance, building capability and enabling colleagues to deliver high-quality work.
• Oversee budgets, agencies, suppliers and other resources, ensuring work is appropriately commissioned, governed and assured, delivered on time and within budget, and meets government accessibility and professional standards.
• Ensure meaningful evaluation is built into communications activity from the outset, using evidence and performance data to improve delivery, demonstrate impact and inform future priorities.
• Champion innovation, collaboration and continuous improvement, strengthening planning, evaluation and professional capability while supporting colleagues’ development and wellbeing.

Skills, experience and attributes

Essential criteria

• Significant senior-level experience of developing and leading complex, insight-led external communications strategies and integrated, multi-channel activity.
• Strong strategic judgement and political awareness, with the confidence to advise and constructively challenge executive-level leaders on communications, reputation, risk and organisational priorities.
• A strong track record of translating complex policy, legal, regulatory or operational subjects into clear, accessible and audience-focused communications.
• Experience of leading campaigns or public communications designed to improve understanding, change behaviour or increase the take-up of services.
• Strong media and reputation-management experience, including handling sensitive issues, emerging risks or communications activity under significant scrutiny.
• Excellent leadership and line-management capability, with experience of setting direction, developing people and creating an inclusive, collaborative and high-performing culture.
• Experience of managing budgets, agencies or suppliers and ensuring activity is delivered to agreed standards, timescales and outcomes.
• Confidence in using research, audience insight, data and evaluation to shape communications decisions, optimise delivery and demonstrate impact.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate clearly and persuasively with senior, professional and public audiences.

Desirable criteria

• Experience of communications within government, an arm’s-length body, regulatory organisation or another complex public-service environment.
• Experience of leading communications for organisational transformation or service change. A relevant communications, journalism, marketing or public-relations qualification, or equivalent professional experience.

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Behaviours

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

• Delivering at Pace
• Leadership
• Making Effective Decisions
• Seeing the Big Picture

Technical skills

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

• GCS - Insight
• GCS - Implementation

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £58,511, Office of the Public Guardian contributes £16,950 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

• Access to learning and development
• A working environment that supports a range of flexible working options to enhance your work life balance
• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
• Annual Leave
• Public Holidays
• Season Ticket Advance

For more information about the recruitment process, benefits and allowances and answers to general queries, please click the below link which will direct you to our Candidate Information Page.

Link: https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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, Experience and Technical skills.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) 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.

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 : SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team
• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk
• Telephone : 0345 241 5359

Recruitment team

• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles and would like to raise this, please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com) in the first instance. If the role has been advertised externally (outside of the Civil Service) and you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitm…

https://jobs.justice.gov.uk/careers/JobDetail/23817?entityId=23817