Job description
Details
Reference number
416863
Salary
£56,070 - £72,466
Based on capability. The base salary of this grade is £61,005 for London and £55,403 for other locations. Offers made above this will be made up with a specialist pay allowance. £61,740 - £72,466 (London) £56,070 - £64,040 (National Locations)
GBP
Job grade
Grade 7
Contract type
Permanent
Business area
GDS - Office of the Chief Technology Officer
Type of role
Digital
Working pattern
Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time, Compressed hours
Number of jobs available
1
Contents
• Location
• About the job
• Benefits
• Things you need to know
• Apply and further information
Location
Bristol, London, Manchester
About the job
Job summary
The Government Digital Service (GDS) is the digital centre of government. We are responsible for setting, leading and delivering the vision for a modern digital government. Our priorities are to drive a modern digital government, by:
• joining up public sector services
• harnessing the power of AI for the public good
• strengthening and extending our digital and data public infrastructure
• elevating leadership and investing in talent
• funding for outcomes and procuring for growth and innovation
• committing to transparency and driving accountability
We are home to the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (I.AI), the world-leading GOV.UK and at the forefront of coordinating the UK’s geospatial strategy and activity. We lead the Government Digital and Data function and champion the work of digital teams across government.
We’re part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and employ more than 1,000 people all over the UK, with hubs in Manchester, London and Bristol.
The Government Digital Service is where talent translates into impact. From your first day, you’ll be working with some of the world’s most highly-skilled digital professionals, all contributing their knowledge to make change on a national scale.
Join us for rewarding work that makes a difference across the UK. You'll solve some of the nation’s highest-priority digital challenges, helping millions of people access services they need.
The Office of Chief Technology Officer (OCTO) in GDS leads the whole of the UK public sector to do technology well by providing know-how and tools to technologists and foster digital communities. A strong priority of the overall digital and technology vision is to keep our digital services resilient to cyber security and technology risks and their consequences.
Job description
You will be a Cyber Security Risk Manager in the Securing Digital Transformation team in OCTO, where you will work with central government organisations to develop guidance and provide expert advice on identifying and managing common cyber risks and improving resilience.
You will work with the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and Cabinet Office Government Security Group (GSG) to make government digital services secure and resilient through tailored technical guidance and advice, and will play a key role in driving the Government Cyber Security Strategy and delivery of strategic priorities.
At this role level, you will:
• be responsible for advising government departments on identifying, assessing, and managing cyber security risks based on the Secure by Design approach
• support risk-based decision-making across programmes, projects, and operational services
• explore the benefits of cross-government alignment and develop practical guidance in alignment with government frameworks such as NCSC guidance, GovAssure, and Secure by Design
• collaborate with cyber, digital, and business teams to ensure proportionate security controls are in place
• engage with senior stakeholders to communicate risks and recommend mitigation strategies
• monitor evolving threats and regulatory changes to ensure continued risk relevance and compliance
• contribute to risk governance processes, reporting, and assurance activities
• provide leadership and mentoring within teams
Person specification
We’re interested in people who have:
• proven experience in cyber security risk management and taking action to solve or mitigate problems by influencing colleagues across the organisation
• experience in developing guidance based on user needs and security frameworks and standards
• experience developing and maintaining risk registers and supporting governance processes
• ability to assess technical and non-technical risks and communicate them clearly to stakeholders
• strong stakeholder engagement and communication skills, including experience advising senior leaders
• familiarity with cyber threat landscape, risk treatment options, and control effectiveness evaluation
• experience in planning and managing delivery of a security work programme
• experience in facilitating workshops to gather, understand and analyse information as part of developing strategy in response to feedback and findings
Benefits
There are many benefits of working at GDS, including:
• flexible hybrid working with flexi-time and the option to work part-time or condensed hours
• a Civil Service Pension with an average employer contribution of 28.97%
• 25 days of annual leave, increasing by a day each year up to a maximum of 30 days
• an extra day off for the King’s birthday
• an in-year bonus scheme to recognise high performance
• career progression and coaching, including a training budget for personal development
• paid volunteering leave
• a focus on wellbeing with access to an employee assistance programme
• job satisfaction from making government services easier to use and more inclusive for people across the UK
• advances on pay, including for travel season tickets
• death in service benefits
• cycle to work scheme and facilities
• access to an employee discounts scheme
• 10 learning days per year
• volunteering opportunities (5 special leave days per year)
• access to a suite of learning activities through Civil Service learning
Any move to Government Digital Service 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. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk
Office attendance
The Department operates a discretionary hybrid working policy, which provides for a combination of working hours from your place of work and from your home in the UK. The current expectation for staff is to attend the office or non-home based location for 40-60% of the time over the accounting period.
DSIT does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home).
Things you need to know
Selection process details
The standard selection process for roles at GDS consists of:
• a simple application screening process - We only ask for a CV and cover letter of up to 750 words. Important tip - please ensure that your cover letter includes how you meet the skills and experience listed in the “person specification” section above
• a 90 minute video interview. This interview with feature a presentation and the details will be shared prior to the interview commencing for invited applicants.
Depending on how many applications we get, there might also be an extra stage before the video interview, for example a phone interview or a technical exercise.
While we value the use of AI technology to enhance our daily work, we also value the personal touch and urge applicants to write cover letters without the use of AI to emphasise their own unique experiences.
In the event we receive a high volume of applications, we will conduct the initial sift against the lead criteria which is: strong stakeholder engagement and communication skills, including experience advising senior leaders
In the Civil Service, we use Success Profiles to evaluate your skills and ability. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, increases performance and improves diversity and inclusivity. We’ll be assessing your technical abilities, skills, experience and behaviours that are relevant to this role.
For this role we’ll be assessing you against the following Civil Service Behaviours:
• working together
• making effective decisions
• leadership
• developing self and others
• seeing the bigger picture
• communicating and influencing
We’ll also be assessing your experience and specialist technical skills against the following skills defined in the Digital, Data and Technology Profession Capability Framework for the Security Architect role:
• Analysis
• Communication
• Enabling and informing risk-based decisions
• Research and innovation
• Security technology
• Understanding security implications of transformation
Recruitment Timeline
Sift completion: 4/8/25
Panel interviews: WC 11/8/25
Candidates that do not pass the interview but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.
A reserve list will be held for a period of 12 months, from which further appointments can be made.
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service DI Strategy.
Sponsorship
DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.
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 .
See our vetting charter .
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)
• 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
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code 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 .
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 the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy .
Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans 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 : gdsrecruitment@dsit.gov.uk
• Email : gdsrecruitment@dsit.gov.uk
Recruitment team
• Email : gdsrecruitment@dsit.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, you should contact gds-recruitment-complaints@dsit.gov.uk in the first instance.
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission by email: info@csc.gov.uk Or in writing: Civil Service Commission, Room G/8 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ.
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