Project Manager
Job summary
Join us as a Project Manager and lead the successful delivery of high-impact projects that shape the UK’s key economic and social insights.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the UK’s largest producer of official statistics, covering a range of key economic, social and demographic topics. These include measuring changes in the value of the UK economy, estimating the size, geographic distribution, and characteristics of the population, and providing indicators of price inflation, employment, earnings, crime, and migration.
Working within the Portfolio Office of the Data Products Services, and Governance Directorate, you will be at the heart of coordinating projects that enable ONS to produce the official statistics that inform government policy and public understanding of society and the economy.
The Project Delivery Profession (PDP) leads and supports the delivery of some of the most complex and high-impact projects across government. With over 26,000 professionals managing programmes, portfolios and projects nationwide, the profession plays a vital role in implementing government policy and driving organisational change.
As a member of the Project Delivery Profession, you will benefit from access to a strong community of practice, professional development opportunities, and shared learning that supports successful delivery. The profession provides expert guidance, tools and career pathways to help you build your skills and progress your career, while contributing to delivering real outcomes for the public.
Job description
As a Project Manager, you will be responsible for driving and overseeing the delivery of mutiple projects across the Portfolio to ensure objectives are clearly defined and achieved within agreed time, cost, and quality constraints. The Project Manager plays a key role in project governance and works with stakeholders to ensure agreed project outputs are delivered, enabling benefits to be realised.
Responsibilities
- Creates and leads the project to deliver agreed outcomes within time, cost, and quality constraints, providing day to day management, leadership, and effective project controls.
- Providing effective leadership and management controls.
- Designs the project establishes project controls, selecting appropriate delivery methodologies, and managing transitions between project phases.
- Delivers the benefits and outcomes stated in the business case, ensures a suitable benefits realisation strategy is in place and monitors long-term benefit delivery against the business case.
- Identifies and manages stakeholder relationships, ensuring necessary senior-level support. Manages internal and external relationships appropriately.
- Identifies and monitors project risks and issues, develops mitigating actions and escalates when necessary. Collaborates with related projects to Identifies and monitors project risks and issues, develops mitigating actions and escalates when necessary. Collaborates with related projects to manage inter-dependencies.
- Supports effective governance and decision-making.
- Participates in assurance reviews and supports implementation of recommendations.
- Organises assurance processes, such as gateway reviews, when required.
- Ensures change management processes are in place to agree on and document changes to deliverables with stakeholders.
- Offers support, guidance, and coaching to the wider team, shows commitment to personal development, and promotes effective team performance.
- Communicates the vision and translates it into delivery objectives for the portfolio. Develops and maintains the Project Plan, sets project controls, manages performance, and reports progress to director and boards.
These qualifications would be advantageous alongside proven experience delivering projects, however training will be available for the successful candidate.
· PRINCE2 Practitioner
· Agile Project Management Practitioner.
· APM Project Management Qualification.
· APM Chartered Project Professional.
· Project Leadership Programme.
· PMI Project Management Professional.
· Managing Projects and Leading Workstreams.
· Government Project Professional accreditation.
Person specification
Essential Criteria
The successful candidate will have proven of experience of the following in a high complexity project/s:
- Leading the successful delivery of projects within budget, time, quality and user expectations across the whole project life cycle, tailoring their approach and applying the appropriate frameworks, methodologies, standards, tools and techniques.
- Active management of project plans, risks, issues, dependencies, and assumptions. Identifying threats and opportunities that arise, understanding their impact on key objectives - taking the appropriate approach to their management.
- Supporting decision-making by identifying, interpreting, analysing, and presenting information. Specifically providing detailed insightful reporting and clear briefings on complex issues to senior stakeholders and chairing boards within a formal governance framework.
- Management of a complex workload. Using innovative approaches and personal resilience to respond quickly and decisively to changing and challenging priorities and deadlines to deliver valued outcomes.
- Successfully leading across functional and organizational boundaries. Specifically, evidence of influencing decision-making through strong, collaborative relationships, inspiring and motivating people by providing clear direction amidst uncertainty, role modelling appropriate behaviors, and challenging inappropriate ones.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Communicating and Influencing
- Making Effective Decisions
- Delivering at Pace
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Frameworks & Methodologies (Practitioner Level) - Project Delivery Capability Framework
- Planning (Practitioner Level) - Project Delivery Capability Framework
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £56,861, Office for National Statistics contributes £16,472 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).The Office for National Statistics is part of the Civil Service, and as such we share a number of key benefits with other departments, whilst also having our own unique offerings to support our 5400 valued colleagues across the business.
Whether you are hearing about us for the first time or already know a bit about our organisation, we hope that the benefits pack attached (bottom of page) will give you a great insight into the benefits and facilities available to our colleagues, and our fantastic working culture.
Inclusion & Accessibility
At ONS we are always looking to attract the very best people from the widest possible talent pool, and we are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a member of the Business Disability Forum and a Disability Confident Leader we’re committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.
As part of our application process, you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process that you need. If you would like to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying, please contact the recruitment team in the first instance.
If you would like an accessible version of any of the attachments or recruitment documents below or linked to in this advert, please contact the recruitment team who will be happy to assist.
ONS are committed to flexible ways of working that support a healthy work-life balance. ONS has already considered how this job could be right sized for applicants working flexibly and we are happy to explore options with you about working part time, in a job share or flexibly, in line with our hybrid working policies.
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.Visa Sponsorship:
ONS are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. Applicants are expected to hold a valid right to work in the UK when employment commences. If you are applying on a time-limited visa, this will need to be valid for at least 18 months.
To work at the ONS, candidates must meet both UK right to work and security clearance requirements (where applicable).
If you are unsure whether you meet the appropriate right to work or security clearance eligibility criteria, please refer to the guidance on Gov.uk or contact the recruitment email provided in the advert before applying. Failure to meet these requirements will result in your application being rejected and employment offers being withdrawn.
Applicant Support
Number of Stages: 3 stage process
Stage 1: Civil Service Judgement Test
Stage 2: Application
Stage 3: Interview
Stage 1 – Civil Service Judgement Test
Upon submission of Part 1 your application form you will be sent an invitation to complete Civil Service Judgement online tests.
There will be full instructions on how to complete each test including an opportunity to practice before undertaking the actual test. These tests are not time limited.
If you pass a test, you will then receive a further invite to complete each subsequent test if there is more than one for this vacancy. If you fail a test your application will not proceed to the next stage.
If you pass all tests for this vacancy, you will be invited to complete the final stage of your application, this is where you will provide information such as your work history. Skills and experience and Personal Statement.
Stage 2 – Application
The assessment process at the application stage will be based on your work history skills, experience and personal statement. It is important that your application is tailored to highlight the skills, knowledge, and experience relevant to the role.
A personal statement is required at application stage, the maximum wordcount allowed is 1250, which should not be exceeded. You should provide evidence for each essential skill criterion listed in the person specification. As these criteria are scored, it is advisable to give clear examples for each one, including the impact of your actions, ideally utilising the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
Please note that Success Profiles Behaviour examples are not required at this stage of the application process.
When a high volume of applications are received, the sift pass mark may be adjusted. Candidates will be invited to interview based on their merit order, with those achieving the highest scores being prioritised. Applicants who score below the adjusted pass mark but still pass will be placed on hold and may be invited to interview at a later date.
Stage 3 – Interview
If invited to interview, you will be assessed using techniques aligned with the Civil Service Success Profiles framework, covering all behaviours listed in the job advert and any required technical skills.
Interviews will take place in person at our Newport Office. Please note that travel expenses will not be reimbursed. You will also be required to bring valid photo identification to your interview.
A reserve list may be held for a period up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made.
Important Dates:
The Sift will be conducted from: 13/08/2026
Interviews will be conducted from: 01/09/2026
Dates are subject to change.
For the full terms and conditions of the post, please see attachment.
Please note that all campaigns may be subject to withdrawal at any stage if the internal resource position changes.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a 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
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.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 :
Recruitment team
- Email : Recruitmentoperations@ons.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 recruitment.complaints@ons.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service CommissionAttachments
2721 Advert 1B Permanent - ONS National v1-00 Opens in new window (pdf, 83kB)Role1_Standard_Requirements (2) Opens in new window (docx, 25kB)Salary range
- £56,861 per year