Systems Reform Lead

Job summary

We are MHCLG

Are you able to build strong relationships that will enable you to influence and challenge at all levels?

If so, we have an exciting opportunity for a Systems Reform lead to join our team at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and we'd love to hear from you!

The Resettlement Directorate leads the Department’s work to support the welcome, resettlement and integration of people seeking safety in the UK through protected routes. This includes leading within the Department on resettlement, including responding to any future humanitarian or resettlement event alongside responsibility for the Homes for Ukraine programme, an innovative scheme that has supported over 160,000 people. We work collaboratively with the Home Office, Ministry of Defence and councils to support the successful resettlement, including accommodation and integration, or those who have arrived in the UK as part of Afghan Resettlement Programmes, with overall responsibility for the Communities for Afghans Programme. We also oversee the Home Kong British Nationals (Overseas) Welcome Programme.

Our work includes strong collaboration with a range of departments, local and devolved government, civil society, and international partners to ensure we are helping these cohorts to secure appropriate accommodation and access the services they need to integrate into their new communities. We ensure that decision making considers community cohesion, housing, homelessness and other local government considerations.

The System Reform team is a relatively new team within the Resettlement Directorate. The key functions of the team are to be outward and forward thinking, and to think about the system as a whole e.g. what happens downstream if we make this change over here – bringing additional rigour to decision making. We want to provide a service for the rest of the Directorate - and further afield – in considering questions or overarching themes which others can benefits from the results of. We are in a consultative phase with key stakeholders to further define this role, but one current workstream includes coordinating MHCLG policy development in response to measures announced in the Home Office’s Asylum Policy Statement in November 2025, working closely with the Home Office and DWP.

Job description

The successful candidate will:

• Take an overarching view of the Resettlement and Asylum systems, understanding the various interactions and processes within those systems.
• Highlight areas of synergy or difference across the system, spotting risks, and seeking out opportunities for improvement.
• Utilise links into other areas of the department and other key partner departments – particularly the Home Office and DWP – to best present these risks and/or opportunities, and consider appropriate escalation to relevant senior forums.
• Take a particular focus on the provision of housing and communities.
• Forge links into wider parts of MHCLG, particularly housing, homelessness and strategy.
• Form strong relationships within the department, and with other key partner departments, and keeping abreast of key policy and strategy developments.

Person specification

• Ability to see the bigger picture, to spot risks and opportunities, and to judge effectively when to dive deeper into the detail or to deploy other experts.
• Experience of systems thinking and/or strategic thinking when approaching projects or problem solving.
• Experience of working with senior stakeholders across multiple parts of an organisation, and effectively judging when and how to escalate issues for consideration.
• Experience of managing challenging conversations with stakeholders
• Experience of drafting high quality briefing and advice, at pace, for a range of different stakeholders.
• Experience of working across multiple government departments or organisations in pursuit of a common objective, whilst successfully navigating competing priorities.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £56,167, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government contributes £16,271 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.At MHCLG we offer many benefits that range from tailored career pathways and flexible working to MyLifestyle Childcare Voucher and Cycle to Work Schemes. For more information, please click here.

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 and Selection
The application process will be split into 2 stages, testing the following Success Profiles:

Behaviours , Strengths

Stage 1: Sift

• Behaviour (Lead Behaviour): Seeing the Big Picture
• Behaviour: Making Effective Decisions
• Behaviour: Communicating and Influencing
• Behaviour: Working Together

There is a 250-word limit per question.

When writing your application, remember:

• the assessor won’t be reading your answers sequentially

• do not assume that the same assessors will have read all of your answers

• if talking about something in your first answer, make sure that you write the second answer as if you had not written the first (and so on!)

Most of our campaigns utilise multiple assessors and so it is possible that each of your answers would be viewed by different assessors.

In the event that we receive a large number of applications, we may conduct an initial sift using the lead behaviour listed in the advert. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview.

If you run into any technical problems when applying through Be Applied (for example, trouble logging in or submitting your application), their support team can help. Please contact them at hello@beapplied.com.

Stage 2: Interview

• Behaviours: Seeing the Big Picture, Making Effective Decisions, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together

• Strengths: The strength-based questions will require natural responses from the candidates.

Sift and Interview Dates

Sifting is envisaged to take place the week commencing 23rd March 2026.

Interviews are envisaged to take place the week commencing 6th April 2026 and are currently being held remotely via videocall. This could be subject to change.

How We Recruit

Find out more about our recruitment processes here.

• Applying

• Sifting

• Interview

• Interview Results & Feedback

• Reserve List

• Near Miss

• Civil Service Grades

• We are a DCS, RIS & GPTWV employer

• Reasonable Adjustments

How to Apply

Find out everything you need to know before applying here.

You must review the following information from the MHCLG Career's Site before submitting your application. This step is essential to ensure your eligibility for the role and that your application is completed correctly.

• Security Clearance Requirements

• Civil Service Nationality Requirements

• Right to Work

• Artificial Intelligence

• Civil Service Code and Recruitment Principles

• CV Declaration

• Sponsorships

• Salary and Grade

• Existing Civil Servants

• Conflict of Interest

• Location and Flexible Working

• Fixed Term Contracts

• Internal Fraud Database - Internal Fraud Register

• Appeals and Complaints

• Conflict of Interest

Security Clearance Requirements

National Office:

London Office: + CTC

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 counter-terrorist 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

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 : Rosie Grigalis
• Email : rosie.grigalis@communities.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@communities.gov.uk

Further information

If you are unsure about any part of the process or require additional information about the post to enable you to progress your application, you should speak to the Resourcing team - recruitment@communities.gov.uk. Candidates can appeal at any stage of the recruitment process if they believe there has been:

a procedural irregularity

an infringement of the Civil Service equal opportunities policy

exceptional circumstances which were not notified to the interview panel which might have affected performance on the day.

It is important to note that these are appeals about the process not the decision. In the first instance, an appeal should be directed to the MHCLG Resourcing Hub at recruitment@communities.gov.uk.

If the MHCLG Resourcing Hub is unable to satisfactorily resolve your complaint, you may contact put your complaint in writing to the Civil Service Commission, Room G8,1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ or by email to: info@csc.gov.uk