Lead User Researcher - Quantitative

Job summary

The Government Digital Service (GDS) is the digital centre of government. We are responsible for setting, leading and delivering the vision for a modern digital government.

Our priorities are to drive a modern digital government, by:

1. joining up public sector services
2. harnessing the power of AI for the public good
3. strengthening and extending our digital and data public infrastructure
4. elevating leadership and investing in talent
5. funding for outcomes and procuring for growth and innovation
6. committing to transparency and driving accountability

We are home to the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (I.AI), the world-leading GOV.UK and at the forefront of coordinating the UK’s geospatial strategy and activity. We lead the Government Digital and Data function and champion the work of digital teams across government.

We’re part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and employ more than 1,000 people all over the UK, with hubs in Manchester, London and Bristol.

The Government Digital Service is where talent translates into impact. From your first day, you’ll be working with some of the world’s most highly-skilled digital professionals, all contributing their knowledge to make change on a national scale.

Join us for rewarding work that makes a difference across the UK. You'll solve some of the nation’s highest-priority digital challenges, helping millions of people access services they need

Job description

We are recruiting a Lead User Researcher - Quantitative for GOV.UK.

GOV.UK is the trusted online home for government information and services, every week millions of people rely on it to complete essential and often life-changing tasks. GOV.UK also supports government colleagues to publish content, ensuring accurate and accessible information is always available to the public.

We expect this to be a practitioner role, though the responsibilities may be adapted to meet shifting business needs, while still maintaining the core, practitioner-focused nature of the work.

You will be a core part of the User Research leadership group and your respective directorate leadership group and work closely with senior stakeholders. You will lead, oversee and deliver research to build a deeper understanding of our users, inform product and strategic decisions and support the delivery of impactful outcomes.

Join us, if you want to:

• make a real difference: work on and tackle some of the toughest challenges in public infrastructure, improving millions of people’s lives through effective strategies and solutions that are informed by high quality insights
• deliver work that matters: work with multi-disciplinary leadership, to proactively identify transformational opportunities that will drive change, and deliver better value and outcomes for users and government
• shape the future of craft, culture and impact: grow with us as a leader in an environment that empowers bold thinking and experimentation to learn, fall fast, reflect and grow. With dedicated development resources, training and cross-government networks, you will have plenty of opportunities to influence, mentor and develop your skills and others

As a Lead User Researcher - Quantitative, you will be an expert practitioner in GOV.UK and your main responsibilities include:

• be a core part of the leadership group for your responsible area(s) and work closely with the senior stakeholders (including director/deputy director levels), multidisciplinary leads and research leadership groups to ensure research delivers impactful outcomes
• design and implement research strategy based on GDS visions and strategic outcomes. This includes proactively identifying research opportunities, getting buy-in for important research initiatives that can provide high quality strategic insights/foresights for senior stakeholders and influence the innovation/solution space
• deliver high-quality quantitative and applied experimental UX research, informed by psychology, behavioural science, and human–computer interaction, to understand and evaluate user behaviour and experience in complex, high-risk, or strategically significant contexts, and to benchmark solutions and strategies to inform future product and strategic decisions
• develop user behaviour models and segmentation, grounded in mixed-methods research, to deepen understanding of different user types, behaviours, and priorities at scale
• assess when and how quantitative research adds value, including understanding scale, distribution, impact, risk and trade-offs to support product and strategic decision-making
• apply causal reasoning, experimental thinking, and statistical analysis to understand why behaviours and outcomes occur, and translate complex evidence into clear, actionable recommendations
• work closely with researchers and collaborate with other data professions to build a shared understanding of how qualitative and quantitative UX research, performance analytics, and other data sources contribute to robust evidence
• support or pair up with researchers to develop and ensure best practices are applied in their work and the work delivered is high-quality, reliable for decision making and meeting the delivery pace
• be the user insights and knowledge expert for your area of responsibility, and proactively share important learnings with the directors, senior leadership groups, wider organisation and beyond. This includes leading on the creation and maintaining of documentations/artefacts related to our understanding of needs, problems, opportunities and user groups to direct prioritisation effort, and building reusable, accessible consolidated insights
• help colleagues understand when and when not to do research, the diverse range of research methods, advocate the value of research and demonstrate the importance of research by making sure the impact made by research is tracked and visible to others
• be a visible leader and model of craft, culture and impact. Build positive and influential relationships with multidisciplinary leaders and colleagues and continuously strengthen trust and seamless cross-functional collaboration.Lead through practice as a visible expert, strives to improve their own practice continually, strengthening the User Research community by developing quantitative research capability, setting standards and best practice, leading the selection and adoption of tools and platforms, and continuously improving methods and ways of working

Person specification

You don't need government experience to apply for this role. We’re interested in people who are exceptional and recognised research experts, with strong, demonstrable, tracked records of delivering impactful results and changes in craft, culture and impact in organisations:

As Lead User Researcher - Quantitative, we are interested in people who can demonstrate:

• significant experience designing and conducting high-quality, complex quantitative UX research, including comparative and experimental approaches, with strong applied understanding of causal reasoning, experimental design, and statistical inference, and demonstrated expertise applying methods informed by psychology, behavioural science, or HCI in real-world product and service delivery contexts
• experience of leading and developing quantitative research capability, including training and mentoring researchers and embedding ethical, high-quality research standards and best practice. Demonstrates leadership maturity through reflective practice and continuous improvements
• a proven track record of shaping agendas and delivering high-impact research that has changed product, service or strategic decisions, direction, or prioritisation at senior level
• proven ability to develop user behaviour models or segmentation that explain meaningful differences between users, and to use quantitative research to amplify qualitative insight at scale where it adds value
• experience working as part of a senior or multidisciplinary leadership team, building trusted relationships and contributing to collective decision-making through a whole-system perspective that balances user evidence with product, technical, policy, operational, and business considerations
• strong collaborative and leadership capability, including working closely with researchers and other data professions, and leading through practice by training and developing quantitative UX research skills in others while remaining hands-on in delivery
• strong analytical and synthesis skills, going beyond descriptive analysis to uncover underlying insights, root causes, impacts, and trade-offs, and actively communicate and share research learnings as clear, actionable recommendations with teams, and senior and non-technical stakeholders
• experience adapting methods and approaches to organisational contexts, constraints and maturity, creatively using available data and tools, and applying high levels of professional judgement and resilience to navigate complexity and uncertainty with a tenacious, impact-oriented approach that enables positive change

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £67,126, Government Digital Service contributes £19,446 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

There are many benefits of working at GDS, including:

• flexible hybrid working with flexi-time and the option to work part-time or condensed hours
• a Civil Service Pension with an average employer contribution of 28.97%
• 25 days of annual leave, increasing by a day each year up to a maximum of 30 days
• an extra day off for the King’s birthday
• an in-year bonus scheme to recognise high performance
• career progression and coaching, including a training budget for personal development
• a focus on wellbeing with access to an employee assistance programme
• job satisfaction from making government services easier to use and more inclusive for people across the UK
• advances on pay, including for travel season tickets
• death in service benefits
• cycle to work scheme and facilities
• access to an employee discounts scheme
• 10 learning days per year
• volunteering opportunities (5 special leave days per year)
• access to a suite of learning activities through Civil Service learning

Any move to Government Digital Service from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

Office attendance
The Department operates a discretionary hybrid working policy, which provides for a combination of working hours from your place of work and from your home in the UK. The current expectation for staff is to attend the office or non-home based location for 40-60% of the time over the accounting period.
DSIT does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home).

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

The standard selection process for roles at GDS consists of:

• Stage 1: An application screening process - We ask for a CV and cover letter up to 750 words.
• Stage 2: Interview. We will use this to understand your work, experience, and assess in terms of competency and behaviours. You will receive a brief beforehand if preparation is needed. This will be conducted over video conferencing.
• Stage 3: Final stage. Research technical exercise session. In this session, we will assess your research practices and skills using a series of hands-on tasks. You will receive a brief with more info about this before attending the exercise session. This will be conducted over video conferencing.

Depending on how many applications we get, there might also be an extra stage before the video interview, for example a phone interview or a technical exercise.

While we value the use of AI technology to enhance our daily work, we also value the personal touch and urge applicants to write cover letters without the use of AI to emphasise their own unique experiences.

In the event we receive a high volume of applications, we will conduct the initial sift against the lead criteria which is:

• significant experience designing and conducting high-quality, complex quantitative UX research, including comparative and experimental approaches, with strong applied understanding of causal reasoning, experimental design, and statistical inference, and demonstrated expertise applying methods informed by psychology, behavioural science, or HCI in real-world product and service delivery contexts

In the Civil Service, we use Success Profiles to evaluate your skills and ability. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, increases performance and improves diversity and inclusivity. We’ll be assessing your technical abilities, skills, experience and behaviours that are relevant to this role.

For this role we’ll be assessing you against the following Civil Service Behaviours:

• Seeing the big picture
• Communicating and influencing
• Leadership
• Changing and improving
• Developing self and others
• Delivering at pace
• Making effective decision

We’ll also be assessing your experience and specialist technical skills against the following skills defined in the Government Digital and Data Capability Framework for the Lead User Researcher role:

• User research methods
• Agile research practice
• Analysis and synthesis
• Inclusive research
• Research management, leadership and assurance
• Stakeholder relationship management
• User-Centred practice and advocacy

Recruitment Timeline

Sift completion: 20/04/2026

Panel interview stage: W/C 04/05/2026

Technical interview stage: W/C 11/05/2026

Candidates that do not pass the interview but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.

A reserve list will be held for a period of 12 months, from which further appointments can be made.

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.

Sponsorship

DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.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.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 : gdsrecruitment@dsit.gov.uk
• Email : gdsrecruitment@dsit.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : gdsrecruitment@dsit.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact gds-complaints@dsit.gov.uk in the first instance.

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission by email: info@csc.gov.uk Or in writing: Civil Service Commission, Room G/8 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ.