IT Service Delivery Lead

Job summary

The IT Service Delivery Manager (SDM) plays a critical role in ensuring that live IT services consistently deliver agreed outcomes for UKHSA. Operating within the Service Delivery and Supplier Management function, we are looking for two IT Service Delivery Leads to work closely with Technology teams, suppliers, and business stakeholders to ensure services are stable, resilient, and aligned to organisational priorities.

The SDM is engaged early in projects and upgrades, working alongside Service Design & Introduction to ensure new and changed services transition smoothly into live operation. The two roles are accountable for service availability, performance, and ongoing operational health, operating with a high degree of autonomy and making informed, risk-based decisions in line with Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) best practice.

Due to the nature of critical services, the two roles require flexibility, including participation in major incidents, service recovery, and service transition activities outside normal business hours where required.

Job description

Service Delivery & Operational Assurance

• Provide end‑to‑end oversight of live IT services, ensuring availability, stability, and performance.
• Lead service reviews with internal teams and third‑party suppliers to assure delivery against SLAs, KPIs, and service targets.
• Manage service go‑lives and early life support, ensuring services are supportable and resilient.
• Monitor service health, identify risks and capacity constraints, and recommend corrective actions.

Stakeholder & Supplier Management

• Act as the primary service contact for business stakeholders during live service operations and incidents.
• Coordinate and manage communications during planned and unplanned service interruptions.
• Lead supplier engagement and assurance activities, working closely with Commercial and Procurement teams.
• Represent Technology within governance forums, approval boards, and senior stakeholder discussions.

Incident, Problem & Continuity Management

• Support and influence Incident, Major Incident, and Problem Management activities.
• Contribute to root cause analysis and preventative actions.
• Influence Service Continuity Management activities, including SLAs and Business Impact Assessments (BIAs).

Continuous Improvement & Service Development

• Drive continual service improvement, applying ITIL principles.
• Influence technical and non‑technical stakeholders on the value of service management disciplines and investment.

Service Catalogue & Governance

• Manage the introduction, change, and retirement of services within the Service Catalogue.
• Work with Service Design & Integration to ensure service information remains accurate and aligned to business needs.

The above is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of these roles.

They will carry out any other duties as may reasonably be required. The job descriptions and person specifications may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the organisation.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

• Experience managing live IT services, including ownership of SLAs, KPIs, and service performance.
• Proven ability to maintain service availability and reliability in line with business outcomes.
• ITIL qualification (or equivalent) with extensive experience in IT Service Management, with a primary focus on Service Delivery.
• Experience working with senior stakeholders to deliver outcome‑focused services.
• Experience working with third‑party suppliers within a service delivery environment.
• Confidence representing Technology within governance and senior leadership forums.
• Ability to produce clear, insight‑led service performance reporting.
• Strong analytical skills to identify risks, trends, and service improvement opportunities.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience using ServiceNow or equivalent IT service management tooling.
• Experience working within a supplier delivered ITSM model.
• Experience applying formal continual service improvement or Kaizen approaches.
• Financial awareness, including experience considering cost, risk, and value when making service delivery decisions.
• Exposure to commercial activities such as contract management, renewals, or tender exercises.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £56,185, UK Health Security Agency contributes £16,276 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).

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.

UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.

Please visit our careers site for more information: UKHSA Hub , Civil Service Careers

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

Application & Sift (Competency-based)

At sift stage you will be assessed against the 8 Essential Criteria listed in this job advert. You will be required to complete an:

• Application form (‘Employer/Activity history’ section on the application)
• 1000 word supporting statement

This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge provide evidence of your suitability for the role. You will receive a joint score for your application form and statement.

The application form is the kind of information you would put into your CV – please be advised you will not be able to upload your CV. Please complete the application form in as much detail as possible. Please do not email your CV.

Healthjobsuk has a word limit of 1500 but your statement of suitability must be no more than 1000 words. We will not consider any words over 1000.

Longlisting

In the event of a large number of applications, we may longlist into 3 piles of:

1. Meets all Essential Criteria
2. Meets some Essential Criteria
3. Meets no Essential Criteria

Only those that 'Meets all Essential Criteria' will progress to Shortlisting.

Shortlisting

In the event of a large number of applications, we may conduct an initial sift on the following Essential Criteria:

• Experience managing live IT services, including ownership of SLAs, KPIs, and service performance.
• Strong practical understanding of ITIL principles and their application across core ITSM practices.

Desirable criteria may be used in the event of a large number of applications/successful candidates.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview.

Please note feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Interview (Competency-based)

You will be invited to a single face-to-face interview. Interview date(s) and location to be confirmed.

During the interview we will assess against the below in relation to the 8 Essential Criteria:

• Knowledge
• Experience
• Skills and Abilities

You will be asked to prepare a 10-minute presentation explaining how you would work with stakeholders, suppliers, and technical teams to restore confidence in the service and improve its performance based on the following scenario:

• A critical IT service is experiencing frequent outages, and confidence in the service has fallen among users and senior stakeholders.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Eligibility Criteria

Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants).

Salary Information

Grade: Civil Service Grade 7

Inner: £60,494 - £70,566
Outer: £58,340 - £68,574
National: £56,185 - £66,581
Per annum, pro-rata

Please be aware that the salary is based on the office location.

If you are successful at interview, and are moving from another government department, NHS, or Local Authority, the relevant starting salary principles for level transfers or promotions will apply. Otherwise, roles are offered at the pay scale minimum for the grade, but in exceptional circumstances there may be flexibility if you are able to demonstrate you are already in receipt of an existing, higher salary. Pay increases are through the relevant annual pay award for the role and terms.

Location

This role is being offered as hybrid working based at any of our core HQs in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, London Canary Wharf.

We offer great flexible working opportunities at UKHSA and operate using a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata, (averaged over a month) working at one of UKHSA's core HQs (Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, and London).

Our core HQ offices are modern and newly refurbished with excellent city centre transport links and benefit from co-location with other government departments such as the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

Security Clearance Level Requirement

Successful candidates must pass a basic disclosure and barring security check before they can be appointed.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Security Check (SC).

For meaningful National Security Vetting checks to be carried out individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 5 years as the role requires Security Check (SC) clearance. (delete as appropriate) UK residency less than the outlined periods may not necessarily bar you from gaining national security vetting and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

Qualifications and Registrations

For roles where specific qualifications or registrations are required, successful applicants will be asked to provide appropriate evidence. Employment cannot commence until satisfactory documentation has been received and verified.

Future location

UKHSA is investing in a new state-of-the-art National Biosecurity Centre in Harlow, Essex, which will eventually bring together teams currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale and Porton Down. For more details, please see: Huge biosecurity centre investment to boost pandemic protection - GOV.UK.

The new facilities will start becoming operational in the mid-2030s, with full completion by 2038. Staff will move in phases as facilities become available. If you're appointed to a role currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale or Porton Down, please note that we'll continue investing in these sites for the next decade. As we get closer to the transition, we'll provide full information about relocation support available to staff.

Reasonable Adjustments

The Civil Service is committed to making sure that our selection methods are fair to everyone. To help you during the recruitment process, we will consider any reasonable adjustments that could help you. An adjustment is a change to the recruitment process or an adjustment at work. This is separate to the Disability Confident Scheme. If you need an adjustment to be made at any point during the recruitment process you should contact the recruitment team in confidence as soon as possible to discuss your needs.

You can find out more information about reasonable adjustments across the Civil Service here: https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/reasonable-adjustments/

International Police Check

If you have spent more than 6 months abroad over the last 3 years you may need an International Police Check. This would not necessarily have to be in a single block, and it could be time accrued over that period.

Internal Fraud Check

If successful for this role as one aspect of pre-employment screening, applicant’s personal details – name, national insurance number and date of birth - will be checked against the Cabinet Office Internal Fraud Hub, and anyone included on the database will be refused employment unless they can show exceptional circumstances. Currently this is only for external candidates to the Civil Service.

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 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

The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).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 : Sarah Handy
• Email : sarah.handy@ukhsa.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@ukhsa.gov.uk

Further information

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, in the first instance, you should contact UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: Complaints@ukhsa.gov.uk

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk

http://www.healthjobsuk.com/job/v8169433