User-centred Design Lead

Job summary

The Test, Learn and Grow (TLG) team is at the heart of the UK government’s initiative to drive innovation and reform in public service delivery. Through the TLG Programme, our team collaborates with local authorities, mayoral strategic authorities, government departments and the wider public sector across the United Kingdom to design, test, and grow innovative solutions that enhance public service outcomes.

Job description

As UCD Lead, you will focus on providing leadership, coaching, line management and professional oversight to design practice (including design, user research and content design) across the Test, Learn and Grow programme. You will work with the Head of Design to set the strategic design direction, build design capability, and assure the quality of design across multidisciplinary teams working on place-based initiatives.

Mapped to the Lead Service Designer role in the Government Digital and Data capability framework, you will bridge policy, digital, and user-centred design practices. You will work closely with senior leaders, local authorities, and policy leads to ensure test and learn approaches are grounded in clear theories of change, while nurturing a high-performing design culture.

This role will require travel within the UK to work closely with local partners.

Responsibilities

You will:

• Work closely with the head of design to set overall design direction across the programme.
• Provide leadership, coaching, line management and professional oversight to designers and user researchers across the TLG programme, building capability and setting high design standards.
• Look for and use opportunities to leverage design across the whole programme ecosystem
• Assure the quality of design across multiple complex place-based projects and teams.
• Work with senior leaders and departmental stakeholders to frame systemic problems, map service ecosystems, and build consensus around evidence-based cases for change.
• Champion inclusive, equitable, accessible, and ethical design practices across all programme interventions.
• Build and maintain relationships across government digital and policy networks, driving shared design patterns and cross-organisational collaboration.

Person specification

It's essential that you have:

Leading design practice & coaching

• Proven track record of leading teams of designers and/or user researchers, setting design direction, defining quality standards, and providing coaching, mentoring, and professional oversight to designers and researchers across complex portfolios.
• Ability to build and nurture inclusive, high-performing design communities and establish best practice across teams.

Designing strategically & systems thinking

• Expertise in using constraints, risks, and opportunities in policy, technology, and governance to shape high-level design strategies.
• Ability to negotiate critical design decisions with senior stakeholders, directors, and external partners.
• Capability to apply systems thinking frameworks to navigate complex, multi-agency public service ecosystems.

Design communication

• Ability to frame complex systemic problems, map end-to-end service ecosystems, and present clear, evidence-based cases for change.
• Exceptional capability in facilitating senior stakeholders, driving consensus, and building strategic alignment.

Designing for everyone

• Deep commitment to embedding accessibility, equity, ethics, and sustainability into public services.

Evidence-based & iterative design

• Strong experience steering multidisciplinary teams to prototype complex service and policy concepts in agile environments.

It's desirable that you have:

Policy design & public sector reform

• Understanding of the policymaking cycle and experience integrating participatory design, relational practice, and lived experience into policy development.

Additional information:

Cabinet Office policy is that a minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace. For some roles, due to their nature and the business need, this may be up to 100%. Requirements to attend other locations for official business will also count towards this level of attendance.

Behaviours

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

• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving
• Communicating and Influencing

Technical skills

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

• Leading design practice
• Designing strategically
• Iterative design
• Designing together
• Design communication
• Evidence-based design
• Designing for everyone

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £71,734, Cabinet Office contributes £20,781 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).

• Learning and development tailored to your role.
• An environment with flexible working options.
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity.
• A Civil Service Pension which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and employer contributions of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30.

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, Experience and Technical skills.

Application process

As part of the application process you will be asked to submit a CV and 750 word personal statement, outlining suitability based on the essential skills and experience listed in the job advert.

If a high volume of applications is received, an initial sift may be conducted on the personal statement using the lead criterion: "Proven track record of setting design direction, defining quality standards, and providing coaching, mentoring, and professional oversight to designers across complex portfolios".

Interview process

This vacancy uses Success Profiles and will assess your Behaviours, Experience, and Technical skills.

Behaviours

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

• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving
• Communicating and Influencing

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills from the Government Digital and Data Capability Framework during the selection process:

• Leading design practice
• Designing strategically
• Iterative design
• Designing together
• Design communication
• Evidence-based design
• Designing for everyone

Security clearance BPSS required.

Expected timeline (subject to change)

Expected sift date – mid-late October

Expected interview date/s – late Oct-mid Nov

Interview location - Hybrid

Further Information

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

Any move to Cabinet Office 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; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website.

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact Government Recruitment Service via cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ 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 an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

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

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service/Disclosure Scotland 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.

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

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

Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply, but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) 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.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 : psreoperations@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
• Email : psreoperations@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles.
If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and wish to make a complaint, then in the first instance you should contact Government Recruitment Service at: cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.
If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission at: info@csc.gov.uk.
For further information on the Recruitment Principles, and bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission, please visit their website at: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk.

Attachments

Cabinet-Office-Employee-Offer Opens in new window (docx, 762kB)Cabinet Office Terms and Conditions - External 2025-02-20 Opens in new window (docx, 83kB)