Port and Vessel Traffic Services Innovation Lead

Job summary

Can you lead innovation in UK ports, shaping the future of autonomous shipping and alternative fuels?

Do you proactively seek out emerging maritime technologies and build strong relationships across industry?

Have you got port industry experience and the drive to influence safety, policy, and innovation in Vessel Traffic Service?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is seeking a Port and Vessels Traffic Services Innovation Lead. This role will be working within Ports and Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) in the Marine Safety Services (MSS) Branch, which sits within the UK Technical Maritime Services directorate of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

The Directorate of UK Technical Maritime Services (UKTMS) is responsible for the UK's Flag and Port State function including the survey and inspection operations, the UK's safety, security and environmental regulatory regimes, navigational safety, and civil hydrography programme. The Directorate is responsible for all vessels registered on the UK flag operating anywhere in the world, the UK's domestic passenger ship and fishing vessel fleet, and foreign flagged vessels in UK waters.

The MSS Branch sits within UKTMS and has responsibilities around Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS V), Marine Licensing, Offshore Renewable Energy Installations, the Port Marine Safety Code, Categorisation of Waters, and Vessel Traffic Management, International Maritime Organisation (IMO ) Routing Measures and Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT).

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at: Maritime and Coastguard Agency - Department for Transport Careers

Job description

As a Port and Vessel Traffic Services Innovation Lead, you will lead MCA’s input on emerging port technologies, driving their integration into UK safety frameworks and VTS operations. You will shape policy on alternative fuels and digitalisation, monitor international developments, and ensure UK alignment with IMO and International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities ( ) standards. You will represent MCA in key forums, providing expert advice, developing guidance, and supporting Port Marine Safety Code (PMSC) health checks, audits, and industry compliance across UK ports and marine facilities.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

1. Monitoring and influencing policy development for emerging technologies in ports, including alternative fuels, digitalisation, and PNT initiatives.
2. Drafting guidance and legal documentation for port and VTS developments, including Marine Information Notices (MINs), Marine Guidance Notes (MGNs), Statutory Instruments (SIs), and Codes of Practice.
3. Providing strategic advice on integrating autonomous shipping (MASS) into UK port safety frameworks and VTS operations.
4. Supporting the development of standards and guidance for smart ports, digital platforms, and data-driven navigation systems such as S-100.
5. Liaising with industry and international bodies to ensure UK policy keeps pace with global innovation in port operations and vessel traffic management.
6. Shaping and evolving MCA’s role in port and marine facility safety policy, aligning with stakeholder needs and emerging technologies.
7. Advising and representing on port safety matters, including regulatory frameworks, Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) recommendations, and national/international working groups.
8. Supporting and delivering PMSC health checks, VTS audits, and steering group input, ensuring alignment with UK legislation and international standards.

For further information on the role, please read the attached role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

Essential licenses:

1. A valid passport for international travel
2. A full UK driving license

You will be required to provide evidence that you hold any essential licenses at some point during the recruitment process. If you cannot provide evidence, your application will be withdrawn.

Required experience:

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

1. A maritime professional with experience of working within Marine Operations in the ports industry
2. A good working knowledge of the Port Marine Safety Code and an understanding of VTS. Additional training for VTS may be provided for a successful candidate, if required.
3. Ability to influence stakeholders and improve outcomes, as you will be required to conduct both PMSC health checks and VTS audits

Additional Information

Operational Delivery Profession (ODP) is the largest and most diverse professional community across the Civil Service. Many of us will have an association with several professional communities or specialisms, ODP applies to all public facing roles / or a role that is primarily aligned to supporting the work of those with public facing roles. All critical to the delivery of UK public services.

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week. Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 30 hours per week.

This role is suitable for hybrid working, which is a non-contractual arrangement where a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements.

The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time a month will be spent at either your designated workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, in another office/work location/visiting stakeholders. Your designated workplace will be your contractual place of work. There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

Regular travel to other offices will be required, which may involve overnight stays.

If you have a question about hybrid working, part time/job share hours, flexible working, travelling for work, or require a reasonable adjustment, please contact the Vacancy Holder during the recruitment process to avoid possible disappointment later in the process should your working arrangements not be compatible with the requirements of the role (see below for contact details).

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that we will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. Therefore, this role is not open to applications from those who require sponsorship – candidates must ensure they have the appropriate right to work in the UK before applying. Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

Licences

1.A valid passport for international travel
2.A full UK driving license

Behaviours

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

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Communicating and Influencing
• Changing and Improving
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions
• Delivering at Pace

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

• Communicating and Influencing

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £44,241, Maritime and Coastguard Agency contributes £12,816 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave).
• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King’s birthday.
• Access to the staff discount portal.
• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.
• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Find out more about the benefits of working at MCA (opens in a new window).

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 Experience.

How to apply:

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's qualifications, skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV, Personal statement and Behaviour example.

Stage 2: Interview

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – you will be asked to provide a 250-word statement on the following Behaviours: Communicating and Influencing
  
  
• Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and personal statement (500-word count). Please provide evidence of your Experience of the following:
  • A maritime professional with experience of working within Marine Operations in the ports industry
  • A good working knowledge of the Port Marine Safety Code and an understanding of VTS. Additional training for VTS may be provided for a successful candidate, if required.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead Success Profile element, Experience - A maritime professional with experience of working within Marine Operations in the ports industry. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

Please note: the sift will be completed on a rolling basis whilst the campaign is still live, so you may receive your sift scores before the advert closing date.

The sift will take place week commencing 8/6/2026

Stage 2: Interview

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours –
  • Seeing the Big Picture
  • Communicating and Influencing
  • Changing and Improving
  • Managing a Quality Service
  • Making Effective Decisions
  • Delivering at Pace

• Experience

You will also be required to create and deliver a written assessment to assess the Behaviours - Seeing the Big Picture and Communicating and Influencing. Guidance will be provided if you are invited to interview.

The interviews will take place week commencing 15/6/2026

This interview will be conducted online via Microsoft Teams. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site (opens in a new window).

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

If your application is successful but you have been dismissed from the Civil Service, your application could be removed at the pre-employment checking stage depending on the nature of the dismissal.

Pre-employment Checking

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.

All External applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour

Threats or acts of violence

Illegal activity or substance misuse

Sexually explicit material

Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public.

Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle—it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture.

If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

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.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.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 : Fran Ratcliffe
• Email : fran.ratcliffe@mcga.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.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, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.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 Here

Attachments

Ports & Vessel Traffic Services Innovation - Role profile Opens in new window (pdf, 233kB)