Head of Online Crime Centre

Job summary

The growth of fraud and online crime has seen criminals increasingly exploit digital platforms, data and financial systems, requiring a proactive approach to disruption that denies access to the tools and services they misuse, strengthens intelligence sharing, and addresses vulnerabilities across the UK's financial and technological infrastructure.

A new capability being developed to help with the response to Serious Organised Crime is the Online Crime Centre (OCC) - a new national capability established through the UK Fraud Strategy. Building on more than a decade of the National Economic Crime Centre’s public–private partnership model, the OCC represents the next evolution in coordinated, system-wide action against online crime.

Led jointly by the Home Office and the National Crime Agency (NCA), and delivered in close partnership with the City of London Police, the OCC brings together law enforcement, the UK Intelligence Community and the private sector to tackle online-enabled crime in a more coordinated and systematic way.

Designed to operate as a multi-agency intelligence-led hub, the OCC integrates convening, operational, analytical, technological and industry capabilities to drive action at scale. It is focused on preventing, detecting, blocking and disrupting fraud and high-volume cybercrime - targeting the infrastructure, platforms and enablers that underpin criminal activity, and coordinating impactful responses across the UK and internationally.

Job description

This is a senior leadership role within the National Economic Crime Centre (NECC), offering a unique opportunity to shape and deliver a nationally significant capability at a formative stage of development. We are seeking a strategic and influential leader with a proven track record of operating across complex systems and driving delivery in multi-agency and cross-sector environments.

As Head of the Online Crime Centre (OCC), you will lead and inspire teams both directly and through partner organisations, aligning diverse capabilities, managing competing priorities, and driving collective delivery through collaboration. A core focus of the role is ensuring that the OCC delivers tangible, sustained operational impact against the UK's most significant online crime types.

We are seeking an exceptional senior leader to take on the role of Head of Department for the OCC, a high-profile and strategically important leadership position within the NCA.

As Head of the OCC, you will be responsible for shaping, building, and delivering a new national capability to tackle online crime. Central to this role is visible and effective leadership of staff, creating a strong, cohesive team culture and ensuring clarity of purpose, accountability, and high performance.

You will lead multidisciplinary teams and coordinate activity across law enforcement, government, the intelligence community and industry, driving delivery of operational outcomes against online crime. This will include overseeing the prioritisation and execution of interventions to prevent, detect, and disrupt those engaged in fraud and cyber-enabled criminality.

Operating across a complex system, you will align partners behind a shared strategic direction, ensuring activity is intelligence-led, targeted at the highest harms, and delivers measurable impact. You will be responsible for translating strategy into delivery - ensuring the OCC not only shapes the UK response to online-enabled crime but reduces harm through coordinated action.

Drawing on your knowledge and experience of the online crime, fraud and economic crime landscape, you will ensure that OCC activity is targeted, intelligence-led, and operationally effective. You will play a key role in shaping the UK response to online-enabled crime influencing strategy, capability development, and the coordination of activity across a multi-agency environment.

This role sits within the National Economic Crime Centre (NECC), reporting to the Deputy Director Fraud, and forms part of the NECC Senior Management Team. The successful candidate will be comfortable operating at senior levels, demonstrating strong strategic leadership, a clear focus on delivery, and the ability to influence across organisational boundaries to achieve system-wide outcomes.

INTERVIEWS - Please note that interviews will be conducted in person in our London (Stratford) head office. They are expected to take place in late August 2026; exact date(s) to be confirmed.

SECURITY VETTING - To be considered for this role, you must be able to obtain DV (Enhanced) security clearance prior to starting and achieve DV STRAP clearance within your first 12 months in post. Please check the Vetting Requirements carefully (detailed below).

Duties and Responsibilities

Deliver operational outcomes - Drive the delivery of operational outcomes at scale, testing and embedding capabilities, technical solutions and new ways of working. Lead the transition from pilot activity to fully operational, business-as-usual capability.

Lead and inspire multidisciplinary teams - Lead, develop and inspire high-performing, multidisciplinary teams. Foster a culture of pace, innovation, accountability and continuous improvement.

Strategic leadership - Set the strategic direction for the OCC, ensuring alignment with national priorities to tackle online crime, fraud and economic crime. Oversee delivery through senior leaders, ensuring robust governance and effective day-to-day operations.

System leadership - Provide system-wide leadership across the UK response to online crime. Influence, align and mobilise partners across law enforcement, government, the intelligence community and industry. Build and sustain trusted senior relationships across a complex, multi-agency environment.

Stakeholder engagement and collaboration - Drive cross-government and cross-sector collaboration, working in close partnership with law enforcement, the intelligence community, government departments and industry to deliver coordinated action and shared outcomes.

Influence decision-making - Represent the NCA at senior forums, shaping decision-making at the highest levels, including with senior civil servants and ministers.

Integration across the system - Ensure the OCC is fully integrated within the NCA and aligned with wider system capabilities. Maintain a strong focus on strategic coherence, interoperability and long-term impact.

Accountability and performance - Hold overall accountability for the performance, outcomes and impact of the OCC. Set clear success measures and ensure robust performance management, evaluation and continuous improvement to deliver against strategic objectives and national priorities.

Financial leadership - Oversee resource allocation and investment decisions to maximise operational impact and value for money. Secure and manage funding, including through effective engagement with industry partners.

Person specification

Law enforcement / intelligence experience - Recent experience of operating within a law enforcement or intelligence-related environment, with a strong understanding of operational, analytical and intelligence-led approaches.

System leadership and influence - Demonstrated ability to operate effectively across complex systems, shaping direction and aligning activity in multi-agency and cross-sector environments. Proven track record of influencing senior stakeholders across government, law enforcement, the private sector and international partners.

Strategic leadership and direction-setting - Strong strategic leadership capability, with the ability to set a clear vision, align activity to organisational and national priorities, and drive delivery through others at scale.

Operational delivery and impact - A strong track record of delivering outcomes at pace, balancing immediate operational priorities with long-term capability development, and ensuring sustained impact.

Subject matter expertise - Deep understanding of online crime, fraud, cyber or technology-enabled threats, and the operational and system-level responses required to tackle them. Strong awareness of the wider public and private sector ecosystem.

Leading high-performing teams - Proven ability to lead and develop senior, multidisciplinary teams, driving high performance, accountability and cultural change within complex organisations.

Relationship building and partnership working - Exceptional ability to build, maintain and leverage trusted relationships across a diverse range of stakeholders, enabling effective collaboration and collective delivery.

Communication and influencing - Highly developed communication skills, with the ability to translate complex issues into clear, actionable insight and advice for senior leaders, including ministers, and to influence decision-making at the highest levels.

Strategic thinking and innovation - Strong strategic thinking skills, with the ability to anticipate future challenges, identify opportunities, and shape innovative, forward-looking approaches that deliver organisational objectives.

Governance, risk and legal frameworks - Experience of operating within robust government frameworks, including managing legal, regulatory, risk and data-sharing considerations in complex environments.

Data governance and information sharing - Strong understanding of data governance, data-sharing frameworks and associated legal considerations, particularly in multi-agency and intelligence-led contexts.

Behaviours

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

• Delivering at Pace
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture

Technical skills

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

• Strong knowledge and understanding of the online crime, fraud and wider economic crime landscape, and the operational and system-level responses required to tackle them effectively.
• Knowledge and experience of applying data-sharing frameworks and information assurance processes within complex, multi-agency environments.
• Proven experience of leading multidisciplinary teams and fostering a culture of pace, innovation and collaboration to deliver high performance.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £85,021, National Crime Agency contributes £24,630 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).

New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.

If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).

Other benefits include:

• Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements)
• Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum
• Learning and Development opportunities
• Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits
• Housing schemes - Key Worker status
• Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway , Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
• Staff support groups/networks
• Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC)

Further information is available on the NCA Website.

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, Experience and Technical skills.Your application will be assessed against the following:Technical - this will be assessed by 250 word examples on:

• Strong knowledge and understanding of the online crime, fraud and wider economic crime landscape, and the operational and system-level responses required to tackle them effectively.

• Knowledge and experience of applying data-sharing frameworks and information assurance processes within complex, multi-agency environments.

• Proven experience of leading multidisciplinary teams and fostering a culture of pace, innovation and collaboration to deliver high performance.

Experience - This will be assessed:

CV

Please include your full career history, training, qualifications, key responsibilities, and achievements. Explain any employment gaps in the last two years. Ensure all accreditation dates are accurate.

Details of what is expected within your CV are as follows: Please submit an up-to-date CV that clearly demonstrates how your skills, knowledge, and experience meet the requirements outlined in the person specification, especially your experience of operating within a law enforcement or intelligence-related environment.

Your CV must include your full employment history and any relevant qualifications or professional accreditations. Any gaps in employment over the past five years must be fully explained.

Your CV must be no longer than 2 pages, using a font no smaller than 10pt.

To assist with your application, and the presentation at interview, please ensure you review the Fraud Strategy 2026-2029 document attached to the bottom of the job advert.

PLEASE NOTE - Your CV will be used for Longlisting. This means that it will be assessed on a scale of 1–7, with a minimum score of 4 required to progress to full sift. Candidates who do not provide sufficient evidence in their response will receive a score of 3 or below; in such cases, the remainder of the application will not be assessed and will be recorded as “0 – Not Assessed” across all remaining criteria.

A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.

You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.

We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.

Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.

For guidance on the application process, visit:
NCA Applying and Onboarding

Assessment 1

The format of this assessment will be Interview which will be tested on the criteria listed in the Success Profiles at Assessment section.

Additional assessment methods used alongside InterviewAs part of the assessment process Presentation will be required to assess the criteria outlined below:Candidates will deliver a 10-minute presentation, followed by a 5-minute Q&A, at the start of their in-person interview. The presentation will assess a Behaviour criterion. Format is flexible, and the topic will be provided in advance.

Success Profiles at Assessment

Behaviours

• Delivering at Pace

• Leadership

• Communicating and Influencing

• Seeing the Big Picture

Assessment OutcomeOutcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal.
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months.
Reserve lists can be used to fill similar role types across the Agency where the assessment criteria is considered a match by the recruitment team and the business area.

In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order:

1. Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
2. If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised)
3. If still tied, application sift scores will be used

Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records. We encourage all candidates to visit the NCA Careers Page for more information.Full advert details for this vacancy can found on the advert on the NCA Recruitment Portal. Please follow the link to apply at advertisers' site.

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

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is developed vetting (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

Open to UK nationals only.

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 : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk
• Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk
• Telephone : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Further information

If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk (quoting the vacancy reference). If unresolved, you may escalate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission.

Attachments

Fraud Strategy 2026 to 2029 - GOV.UK Opens in new window (pdf, 1320kB)Offer T&Cs Opens in new window (docx, 135kB)