PoliceAI: Programme Manager Internal & Strategic

College of Policing

Scotland

Remote

Expires: Expiring in less than 3 weeks

Full time

£47,720 - £59,330 per year

Job summary

This post is open to applicants who can meet the College’s nationality, UK residency and vetting requirements.

PoliceAI is a nationally significant technology and transformation programme in UK policing. Backed by central government investment and positioned at the heart of the police reform agenda, PoliceAI is the new National Centre for AI in Policing, helping to shape how policing uses data, technology and artificial intelligence to tackle crime, protect the public and modernise frontline operations.

We bring together operational policing, technical expertise, product delivery, assurance and the responsible use of AI to develop and scale capabilities that improve public safety outcomes. Our work helps forces respond more effectively to demand, strengthen investigations, identify risk and harm earlier, and free up frontline time for the activities that matter most to communities.

This is an opportunity to contribute to a programme with national reach and meaningful public service impact, helping to define how AI is developed, governed and adopted across one of the UK’s most important public services. The work is varied and complex, moves at pace, and has the potential to deliver better tools for policing, better outcomes for the public, and stronger foundations for the responsible use of AI.

PoliceAI is hosted within the College of Policing.

About the College of Policing:

Our mission is: Leadership, Standards, Performance. This guides our work with individuals, forces, and policing partners towards our vision. We exist to support police officers, police staff and volunteers to deliver the best service to the public. Only through high quality leadership, consistent standards and continual performance improvement can everyone in policing reach their full potential. Our mission guides our work with individual, forces and partners towards our vision.

Additional Information:

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles.

Due to our status as Public Servants, we are not eligible to participate in the Civil Service transfer process. Therefore, while successful candidates can transfer in on their existing terms and conditions, any subsequent transfer out of the College to the Civil Service cannot be guaranteed on existing terms and conditions, and new starter/modernised terms may apply.

The College embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we comply with the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) and apply the minimum selection criteria at sift stage of the recruitment process.

Job description

We are looking for people who are motivated by public service, interested in responsible innovation, and comfortable working collaboratively across organisational, operational and technical boundaries. Joining PoliceAI means contributing to a supportive, multidisciplinary team that is helping to shape the future of policing and ensure AI is used in ways that are effective, responsible, operationally useful and worthy of public trust.

The National Centre for AI in Policing is leading one of the most ambitious capability programmes in modern policing, helping forces across the country adopt artificial intelligence in a responsible, assured and operationally effective way. As Programme Manager for Internal & Strategic Projects, you will play a critical role in strengthening the organisation's delivery capability by developing and embedding portfolio management frameworks, governance arrangements and reporting processes that support effective decision-making and long-term strategic success.

We're looking for an experienced PMO, programme or portfolio management professional who can combine strategic thinking with a structured, delivery-focused approach. You'll be confident influencing senior stakeholders, managing priorities across a complex portfolio and providing clear insight that enables informed decisions. Success in this role will come from your ability to build effective governance arrangements, drive continuous improvement, connect individual initiatives to wider organisational objectives and ensure high standards of delivery are consistently applied.

Location

Remote working (anywhere in the UK). Please note, some travel may be required.

Person specification

Some of your responsibilities will include:

Developing and maintaining portfolio management frameworks, methodologies, governance processes and reporting standards that support consistent organisational delivery.
Leading the intake, assessment and prioritisation of new AI opportunities to support strategic decision-making and investment choices.
Providing portfolio-level oversight of internal and strategic programmes, monitoring progress, dependencies, risks and overall strategic impact.
Identifying and managing cross-cutting risks and issues while supporting project teams and stakeholders to maintain alignment with governance expectations and organisational priorities.
Producing and presenting high-quality portfolio reporting, assurance and strategic insight for senior leaders, governance boards and key stakeholders.

To be successful in this role you’ll need:

Significant experience in a senior PMO, programme or portfolio management role, including designing and implementing governance and delivery frameworks.
Strong knowledge of portfolio, programme and project management methodologies and best practice, alongside governance, prioritisation and resource planning approaches.
Proven ability to lead strategic planning, portfolio prioritisation and business improvement initiatives within a complex organisational environment
Experience influencing senior stakeholders, securing buy-in and supporting adherence to agreed standards and governance processes.
Strong analytical, problem-solving and communication skills, with confidence presenting complex information, risks and recommendations to senior leadership audiences.

Please see the attached job description which contains full details of the role.

Behaviours

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

Making Effective Decisions
Managing a Quality Service

Technical skills

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

Describe a time you brought control to a portfolio of programmes or projects with competing priorities and limited resources. How did you manage stakeholders, and what did you learn?

Benefits

The College is a great place to work. We're passionate about our people and offer a wide range of benefits. The benefits we can offer include:

Defined benefit pension scheme with an employer contribution of 28.97%
Up to 30 days holiday (this is in addition to 8 public holidays and 2.5 privilege days)
Educational funding and study leave
Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption leave
Flexi-time (for certain grades)
Flexible working hours
Childcare vouchers
Benenden Healthcare
National Dental Plan
Discount scheme which provides cut-price on-line shopping
Free employee support line
Interest free loans for travel.
Staff networks: You will have the opportunity to join our employee-run networks to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be heard. There are currently 6 staff networks; Diversity Champions, LGBT, Carer’s, Women’s, Parenting and our Diverse Ethnic Action network. Each network has access to an executive level sponsor.

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 and Technical skills.

College vacancy reference: 7230 - please quote in correspondence.

This role is available for 24 months as a fixed term appointment for external candidates or as a secondment opportunity to:

colleagues employed directly by the College or the Civil Service. Please note you will be required to obtain the written support of your line manager prior to submitting your application.
serving police officers substantive in the rank of Inspector/Chief Inspector, or those officers suitably qualified for temporary promotion in the rank of Sergeant. All applicants must have the support of their Chief Officer which must be of NPCC rank, i.e., CC, ACC or DCC and this must accompany an application.
serving police staff at the equivalent rank of Inspector/Chief Inspector/Sergeant who have their chief officer's approval. Chief Officer’s approval must be of NPCC rank, i.e., CC, ACC or DCC. Approval for a secondment must accompany an application.

Central service conditions may apply.

Please ensure you return the attached secondment approval form either as an attachment when submitting your application or via email to recruitment@college.police.uk.

For further information on applying for a secondment please visit the “Secondments into the College” page.

For fixed Term contracts:

Whilst this fixed term contract is offered on the understanding that it will only last as long as the stated contract length, there could be a possibility that it could be extended or made permanent should circumstances allow.

Internal College applicants who are at risk of redundancy or in need of redeployment and pass the recruitment process, will be given priority over other applicants.

How to apply and contact information:

As part of the application process, you will be required to complete the following:

Curriculum Vitae (CV), not exceeding two sides of A4
Personal Statement (750 words maximum)
Behaviours x2
Technical question

To ensure you are assessed on merit alone, we ask you to anonymise your application. This means removing personal identifiers such as your name, age, and place of education. You do not need to remove your employment history, job titles, or any information about your work.

An initial sift based on the Technical Question/Skill may be held if a large number of applications are received. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

Anticipated interview dates: 3rd and 6th November

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, and as Public Servants we follow the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles.

We embrace diversity and promote equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

For further information visit our ‘Work for us’ page.

What it's like working at the College of Policing

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 for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

We believe that a diverse workforce brings many benefits to the organisation including diversity of thought and improvements to the way we work internally and with partners and communities. We strive to be fully inclusive but we know there is more to do. We genuinely encourage people from all backgrounds and underrepresented groups to apply for this role.

We want to continually improve our recruitment processes and to remove any barriers to equal opportunities that could disadvantage those from particular backgrounds. In order for us to have the information to do this, we ask you to please complete the diversity section of the online application process. We use a “blind” shortlisting process and we hope that by using this method we will be able to promote greater diversity in our workforce and remove any subconscious decisions based on biases.

The College is committed to support the Greening Government Commitment and reducing our Environmental impact. We have a dynamic Environmental Management Plan in place which encompasses various objectives, including our pledge to reduce business travel. To support our green agenda we have, in phase one, installed Electric Vehicle Charging Points at our sites in Ryton (12 points) and Harperley Hall (4 points). We encourage employees to become an Environment Champion to help with promoting and delivering our Environmental Management Plan. Our One Step Greener approach encourages all College staff to make small changes to create a better future for everyone.

Please note that in order to work for the College of Policing you must have the Right to Work in the UK with indefinite leave to remain. In addition, you will also be required to provide an address history in the UK for the preceding 3 years. Applicable vetting level NPPV2, with a willingness to apply for NSV SC.

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

Security

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

Salary range

£47,720 - £59,330 per year