Operational Leader

Job summary

Do you have an inquisitive mind? Do you enjoy engaging with customers? If so, we need you!

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy, and is responsible for helping people move into employment, supporting pensioners and protecting some of the most vulnerable people in our society. Counter Fraud, Compliance and Debt (CFCD) aims to reduce fraud, error and debt within the benefit system, to protect the public purse.

As part of CFCD, you will be at the heart of DWP’s efforts to reduce fraud and error in the benefit system. This is a hugely important public service, and our challenge is greater than ever.

If you want to join an organisation that recognises the importance of work-life balance, where you can develop new skills and progress your career, then CFCD is the place for you.

Job description

Leading a national Directed Surveillance Authority Team, you will be responsible for the authorisation, oversight, and management of surveillance activity across DWP in accordance with the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000. The role ensures compliance with legislative and regulatory frameworks, supports Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Office (IPCO) inspections, and provides expert advice on covert surveillance and Covert Human Intelligence Source (CHIS) activity.

You will lead and develop a national team responsible for delivering all aspects of surveillance authorisation for Serious and Organised Crime, Internal Investigations, Counter Fraud and Compliance operations, and Local Service cases. You will maintain a detailed understanding of surveillance activity, champion the CFCD quality agenda, and drive continuous improvement through robust quality assurance processes. Working collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders, you will provide accurate management information, support IPCO inspections, and ensure adherence to RIPA, the Data Protection Act (DPA), UK GDPR, the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act (CPIA), and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). You will also coach and develop colleagues to respond effectively to evolving criminal behaviours and emerging threats.

In addition, you will act as the lead for Record Product Management and governance of DWP surveillance records, ensuring compliance across Investigation teams and maintaining effective oversight of all surveillance material in line with legislative, regulatory, and departmental requirements.

What to Expect:

As the leader of a nationally dispersed team, you will play a critical role in ensuring the lawful, effective, and professional delivery of DWP's Directed Surveillance Authority function. You will provide strong leadership, set clear expectations and foster a culture of accountability, engagement, and continuous improvement.

You will:

• Provide leadership and optimise resources to meet performance objectives and set high standards for leadership across the business.

• Drive resource management as well as colleague engagement, wellbeing, and performance, creating an inclusive environment where individuals and teams can thrive.

• Show innovation and creativity to lead activities that support efficiencies and improvements to service delivery.

• Build individual and team capability through coaching, mentoring and development, maximising the use of professional learning opportunities and promoting a culture of continuous learning.

• Manage performance, quality, and attendance, undertaking regular one-to-one reviews, addressing risks to delivery, and ensuring workloads are effectively prioritised and managed.

• Lead internal governance activity, assurance reviews and reporting, ensuring robust oversight and compliance across all aspects of the service.

• Oversee specialist surveillance-related IT systems, ensuring data integrity, security, and compliance with legislative and departmental requirements.

• Prepare for, support and respond to Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office (IPCO) inspections, driving improvements and implementing recommendations where required.

• Ensure that surveillance activity is conducted lawfully, proportionately, and ethically, maintaining public confidence and supporting DWP's counter fraud objectives.

Due to the geographically dispersed nature of this team, this role may require periodic travel and overnight stays.

Person specification

• Leadership: Proven leadership with clear, confident communication to influence colleagues, partners, and stakeholders.

• Strategic Thinking: Able to present complex information clearly, offering solutions that align with business priorities, as well as make strategic decisions in a fast-paced, governance-heavy environment.

• Relationship Building: Builds trust and strong relationships across internal and external stakeholders, understanding business impacts.

• Performance Management: Uses data to drive performance, maintain quality, and address underperformance constructively.

• Inclusive Leadership: Champions diversity, continuous learning, and innovation. Leads remote, diverse teams through coaching, driving change aligned with DWP’s goals.

• Technical Expertise: A sound understanding of surveillance legislation, governance, and operational practice, with the ability to provide authoritative advice, support decision-making, and ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.

Essential Security Criteria

Please note that the role that you are applying for requires National Security Vetting (NSV) to the level Security Check. You can find more information at United Kingdom Security Vetting: Applicant - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) .

If you are successful in your application, you will need to attain SC clearance before you can take up the post. This is mandatory and is in addition to completion of Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS).

The purpose of the NSV process is to provide a level of assurance about an individual’s trustworthiness, integrity and reliability, and other factors that increase their vulnerability to corruption or risk of committing a security breach. It involves the investigation of an individual’s background and circumstances to achieve this aim.

For meaningful checks to be carried out, you will need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. Candidates are required to meet the UK residency requirements so that National Security Vetting (NSV) checks can be conducted. Depending on the level of NSV required, you must have resided continuously in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years, 2 of which must have been the immediately preceding years from the point of applying for this job.

The application process will ask for personal details about you, your address history, previous relationships, your parents, your employment history, your financial circumstances, and details of any pending, spent or unspent convictions. This list is not exhaustive.

Please view the Vetting explained - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) for more information.

If you require any further information, please contact the vacancy holder. The details are on the jobs portal through which you made your application.

If you are successful in your application, we recommend that you familiarise yourself with the NSV process and advise that you collate as much information as you can prior to starting your Vetting application.

Behaviours

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

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Leadership

Technical skills

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

• Current knowledge of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 and its operational application.
• Experience of supporting Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office (IPCO) inspections and implementing recommendations.
• Experience in Record Product Management, governance, and legislative compliance of sensitive operational records.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £38,772, Department for Work and Pensions contributes £11,232 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).

DWP have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:

• Working patterns to support work-life balance such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
• Generous annual leave – at least 23 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (pro rata for part-time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave.
• Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme.
• Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA, a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly).
• Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 year’s continuous service.
• Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes.
• An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Women’s Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.

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, Ability, Experience and Technical skills.

**Ensure that you read the full information about the selection process before starting your application. Please note the closing date for your full application (Application Form,Test, CV and Written Statements) is 23:55 on 22/09/2026**

Stage 1 – Application Form

Please complete the application form with your basic information, which includes your personal details, eligibility to apply and any reasonable adjustments required.

Stage 2 – Online Test

After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Management Judgement Test If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the final stage of the application.

Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the tests is 23:55 on 22/09/2026. If you fail to complete the online test before the deadline your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website.

Our online test supplier will be performing scheduled maintenance between 12:00 and 13:00 on 13/09/2026. You will be unable to access tests during this period.

If you are in the middle of a test when the maintenance begins, your progress will be paused. You will be able to resume your test from where you left off via your application centre once the downtime has ended. Please note that you will not be able to launch any new tests while the system is offline.

IMPORTANT: After the test deadline, we will look at all candidate scores to decide what the job’s pass mark will be. We will consider the impact on protected groups and the number of invitations to the next stage. We may decide to raise the pass mark for the job - if so, you will be informed, and you will be told if you have passed or failed at the raised standard. Meeting the minimum test requirements for a job level is no guarantee of an invite to continue the selection process.

Stage 3 - Curriculum Vitae (CV)

You will be asked to complete a CV with details of your job history and previous skills and experience.

You are not required to upload your personal CV.

In the previous skills/experience section you should detail your employment and/or education history relevant to this vacancy (we recommend a maximum of 500 words).

The CV will also cover your work history (we recommend you include up to the last 3 roles of employment history, plus any others that you feel are relevant).

Your CV will not be formally assessed, so please put the main evidence of your skills into your behavioural and technical examples.

Your CV will be used to add context to your behavioural and technical examples.

Stage 4 – Technical Skills Statements and Sift

In addition to the behavioural statement, you will also need to demonstrate three technical skills as part of your application.

In no more than 250 words for each Technical Skill, provide evidence demonstrating how you meet the requirements below:

1. Current knowledge of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 and its operational application. (Lead technical skill)

2. Experience of supporting Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office (IPCO) inspections and implementing recommendations.

3. Experience in Record Product Management, governance, and legislative compliance of sensitive operational records.

See below for information regarding the initial sift.

Stage 5– Behavioural Statement and Sift

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete an example of a Civil Service behaviour using no more than 250 words, further details below.

This should contain things you have done in the past and how your skills and experience demonstrate the Civil Service behaviour.

We'll assess you against the following behaviour during the selection process at Higher Executive Officer – Level 3.

• Leadership (Lead Behaviour)

It may help to use one or more examples of a piece of work you have completed or a situation you have been in and use the WHO or STAR model to explain:

• WHO - What it was, How you approached the work/situation and what the Outcomes were, what did you achieve? or

• STAR - What was the ituation? What were the Tasks? What Action did you take? What were the Results of your actions?

You don’t have to explain the whole process, just what you have done and the skills and experience you have used.

If you do not have work-based examples then please give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead behaviour, and the lead technical skill, if so, we will sift on:

• Leadership (Lead behaviour)
• Current knowledge of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 and its operational application. (Lead technical skill)

Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to an interview.

In the event we don’t receive a high number of applications we may not undertake a sift and progress all candidates to interview. For these reasons, the timeline is subject to change depending on the approach we take.

**The closing date for all stages of your application is 23:55 on 22/09/2026. If you fail to complete all stages before the deadline, your application will be withdrawn**

The sift is scheduled to be held from 23/09/2026 to 09/10/2026. These dates may be subject to change.

Following completion of the sifting period above, results will be collated, and candidates will receive confirmation of the outcome. Those candidates who have met the agreed pass mark will be invited to interview.

No feedback will be provided at this stage.

Stage 6 - Interview

If you pass the written application sift with the required score, you will be invited to a blended interview and will receive an electronic notification to your Civil Service Jobs account. If high application volumes are received, the benchmark / score for candidates to proceed to the interview stage may be raised.

The interviews will be conducted face-to-face. The location of the interviews will be determined at a later stage: candidates may be required to travel.

If you require any reasonable adjustments to attend a face-to-face interview, please ensure you state those on your application form when asked to do so.

Interviews are scheduled to take place between 09/11/2026 to 20/11/2026.

Please note these dates are only indicative at this stage and could be subject to change.

Interviews will be scheduled Monday to Friday, between 09:00 to 17:00.

Communications will be electronic and/or by SMS/telephone; therefore it is important that you check your Civil Service Jobs account regularly, as well as your spam/junk email folder. Telephone calls may show as a withheld number, it is important that you answer so that your interview can be confirmed. If you wish to opt out of SMS messages, please email this address, including the vacancy reference and your candidate ID CFCD.RECRUITMENTINBOX@DWP.GOV.UK.

As part of our commitment to improving the candidate experience, you may be contacted during the recruitment process to provide feedback.

Preparing for the Interview

The interview will take approximately 40 to 45 minutes and will consist of behaviour and strength-based questions.

A blended interview aims to be more of a conversation offering a more inclusive approach.

The questions explore what you, the candidate, can and have done, but also your potential.

Behaviours

You will be assessed against the Civil Service Behaviours listed atHigher Executive Officer – Level 3.

An example of a behavioural question would be “How did you lead by example to inspire and motivate your teams?”.

It may help to use one or more examples of a piece of work you have completed or a situation you have been in and use the WHO or STAR model above to explain:

Strengths

It is difficult to prepare for strength type questions. However, you can think through your answers, focus on your achievements and aspects you enjoy and decide how these can be applied in the organisation and role. While strengths questions are shorter and we do not expect a full STAR response, the panel is interested in your first reaction to the question and information or reasoning to support this.

If you do not have work-based examples then please give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in.

If you withdraw your application at any stage, it will not progress further.

Stage 7– Offer

Once all interviews have been completed, you will be notified of the outcome by email. Our current plan is that this will be week commencing 07/12/2026, but this may be subject to change. Offers will be made in strict merit order to the highest scoring candidate first.

The successful candidate will be notified of a start date following successful pre-employment and security checks, which is likely to be during March 2027.

Reserve List

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

If you are placed on a reserve list but we cannot immediately offer you a post, please note:

• If you are later offered the role you applied for, in a location you have expressed a preference for, and you decline the offer or are unable to take up the post within a reasonable timeframe you will be withdrawn from the campaign and removed from the reserve list, other than in exceptional circumstances (e.g. a contractual part-time working pattern cannot be accommodated in the initial role offered or in the case of serious ill health).

• If we make an offer of an alternative role or location to that which you originally applied for, and you decline that offer, you will be able to remain on the reserve list.

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that for these vacancies we recommend that candidates seek specialist advice on their eligibility for Visa Sponsorship (if applicable) when considering whether to apply for any role.

We can never guarantee sponsorship; requests will be considered in line with the relevant DWP guidance and Home Office policy in place at the time.

Location

The role available will be based in the following locations subject to space availability at the time of posting:

BASILDON - The Basildon Centre, St Martin's Square SS14 1FT.

BIRMINGHAM - 3 Arena Central, Bridge St, B1 2AX.

BROMLEY - Unicorn House, 28 Elmfield Road, BR1 1NX.

BRIGHTON - 15 Queen Square, BN1 3FD.

FOLKESTONE - Palting House, Trinity Road, CT20 2HR.

LIVERPOOL - Bechers House (Aintree Warehouse), Charnock Road, L9 7ET.

You should only apply for a suitable post where you can travel to and from your home office location daily within a reasonable time. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Relocation costs will not be reimbursed. Make sure the locations work for you before applying!

Hybrid working​

This role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. If a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for the role and for you, you will normally be required to spend a minimum of 60% of your contracted working hours from your DWP office. If you have a disability, caring responsibilities, or other circumstances that may affect your ability to meet the minimum office attendance requirement, please discuss this with us using the contact details in this advert.

Working pattern​

Part-time, part-year, term-time, compressed-hours and job-sharing working patterns within working hours will be considered but must meet business needs. We will do our best to let people with existing part-time contracts retain their contracted hours provided they are in line with current business needs. Please note that successful candidates with agreed alternative working patterns may be required to work full time for specific periods to complete all training and consolidation.

Hours of work ​

The full-time working week in DWP is 37 hours. You may be required to work at any time between the hours of: ​

• 7:45am and 8:00pm on any day between Monday to Friday, and​

• 8:45am to 5:00pm on Saturday.​

Managers will agree working patterns with successful candidates within these business hours and review these as appropriate. You will be given advance notice of your personal schedule.

Learning and Development

DWP takes development seriously. Our aim is for our colleagues in these roles to be appropriately skilled and qualified – as determined by the business. To support this aim you may be required to undertake a work based qualification, which may be in the form of an apprenticeship, which will support you in further developing your professional knowledge and skills for this role and your future career development. The qualification can be undertaken in work time, you agree to take this job on the basis that you may be required to undertake a work based qualification; a candidate’s failure to participate fully in the professional programme, once appointed, may be a breach of their employment contract.

Important: If you hold a level 3 qualification (2 A levels or equivalent) then please bring your certificates with you to the interview if you have them.

Further Information​

At the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce.

Find out more about working for DWP on the DWP Careers Hub.

Reserve List

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

If you are placed on a reserve list but we cannot immediately offer you a post, please note:

• If you are later offered the role you applied for, in a location you have expressed a preference for, and you decline the offer or are unable to take up the post within a reasonable timeframe you will be withdrawn from the campaign and removed from the reserve list, other than in exceptional circumstances (e.g. a contractual Part Time Working Pattern cannot be accommodated in the initial role offered or in cases of serious ill health).
• If DWP makes an offer of an alternative role or location to that which you originally applied for, and you decline that offer, you will be able to remain on the reserve list.

Disability Confident Scheme

If high application volumes are received, the benchmark for candidates to proceed to the next stage may be raised. In line with our commitment to the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS), we aim to advance all candidates applying under the DCS who meet the minimum standard. However, we may only progress those candidates who best meet the required standards.

Reasonable Adjustments

We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should contact the Government Recruitment Service via DWPRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the “Reasonable Adjustments” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Integrity, plagiarism and Civil Service Principles

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles.

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words.

Examples of plagiarism can include:

- Presenting the work, ideas and experience of others as your own

- Copying content or answers from an online or published source that is not your own

Disclosure and Barring Service and Internal Fraud Database Checks

To process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department, a criminal record check will be carried out.

Important

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