Lead Data Governance Manager

The ONS operates a flexible hybrid working model across the UK, with colleagues linked to one of our contractual locations working between office and remote throughout the week. The locations for this role are Newport, Titchfield (Fareham), London and Manchester.

All colleagues are required to work from their contractually allocated site for at least 40% of their working time.

The induction process for the role will be conducted in person.

Job Summary
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.

The Data Acquisition Division supports ONS, Government and Academic analysts answer the questions of the day by working with data partners to negotiate and enable access to sustainable data sources, putting in place, maintaining and managing data governance frameworks for safe data sharing and usage, and implementing and supporting the data strategy.

It involves understanding and consolidating analysts' requirements for producing and developing their statistics, matching these with the available data, negotiating access to these data for statistical and research purposes, and making tactical recommendations on the creation of data assets. Successful delivery will put in place robust processes and documentation, working closely across Data Acquisition, the directorate and the rest of the organisation.

It also involves implementing the data strategy both directly and indirectly, ensuring that all Data Acquisition activity contributes to the wider aims of the Office for National Statistics. Ensuring and demonstrating compliance with Data Governance frameworks, standards and accreditations.

Job Description
Data Acquisition lead and support on the development of agreements with external parties and enable bringing these data into ONS, working to deliver mature data governance processes that deliver sustainable data for ONS' need.

You will apply relevant data and ethical frameworks and standards to your work, understanding data governance good practice. Specifically, providing advice to users on the technical, ethical, data protection and security, and legal aspects (e.g. GDPR) of using administrative data, and the benefits of using it.

You will be able to grasp statistical, economic, social, and concepts quickly, identifying common needs for administrative data and communicating appropriately and clearly between technical and non-technical audiences.

You will understand data and how they can be prepared for, and used in, statistics and research and how they can benefit policy and decision making, as well as understanding the economy and society better. You will need to build and demonstrate a good understanding of administrative data and how it is used in the production of official statistics and research.

*Responsibilities*

• Own the process of capturing stakeholder needs, assessing, defining and justifying those needs to arrive at an agreed schedule of requirements that defines the projects objectives. Working with senior stakeholders and sponsors to ensure their expectations are reflected.
• Oversee the stakeholder engagement activity of acquisitions within your remit.
• Own the process of the development of documentation for data sharing. Providing guidance and encouraging standardisation, driving efficiencies.
• Accountable for all data sharing documentation within your remit, ensuring alignment with data sharing legislation, best practice and ONS policies to get maximum return for ONS, cross government and wider use.
• Talk about data confidently and clearly, such that you can impact, influence and lead the agenda with different audiences with different levels of familiarity/understanding and difference levels of influence.
• Develop an engagement strategy for your supplier/s that empowers your team to anticipate/mitigate critical negotiation factors, leveraging data knowledge into skills.
• Shape and promote the efficient and appropriate use of administrative data for statistics through collaboration with data experts across government and the wider data landscape.
• Be accountable for all projects in their area, ensuring all work is adequately resourced, challenge where demand does not match resource and own the process of reporting progress against transformation programme milestones and engagement with senior leaders.
• Lead and inspire your team and the wider division to deliver to the highest possible standards, managing change and ambiguity effectively and ensuring that we're fit to meet the challenges of the future. Identify own development needs and ensure these are aligned to your goals and the goals of your team.
• Lead and inspire activity that benefits the strategic aims of the division or directorate, ensuring it is the best possible place to work.

Data Acquisition lead and support on the development of agreements with external parties and enable bringing these data into ONS, working to deliver mature data governance processes that deliver sustainable data for ONS' need.

You will apply relevant data and ethical frameworks and standards to your work, understanding data governance good practice. Specifically, providing advice to users on the technical, ethical, data protection and security, and legal aspects (e.g. GDPR) of using administrative data, and the benefits of using it.

You will be able to grasp statistical, economic, social, and concepts quickly, identifying common needs for administrative data and communicating appropriately and clearly between technical and non-technical audiences.

You will understand data and how they can be prepared for, and used in, statistics and research and how they can benefit policy and decision making, as well as understanding the economy and society better. You will need to build and demonstrate a good understanding of administrative data and how it is used in the production of official statistics and research.

*Responsibilities*

• Own the process of capturing stakeholder needs, assessing, defining and justifying those needs to arrive at an agreed schedule of requirements that defines the projects objectives. Working with senior stakeholders and sponsors to ensure their expectations are reflected.
• Oversee the stakeholder engagement activity of acquisitions within your remit.
• Own the process of the development of documentation for data sharing. Providing guidance and encouraging standardisation, driving efficiencies.
• Accountable for all data sharing documentation within your remit, ensuring alignment with data sharing legislation, best practice and ONS policies to get maximum return for ONS, cross government and wider use.
• Talk about data confidently and clearly, such that you can impact, influence and lead the agenda with different audiences with different levels of familiarity/understanding and difference levels of influence.
• Develop an engagement strategy for your supplier/s that empowers your team to anticipate/mitigate critical negotiation factors, leveraging data knowledge into skills.
• Shape and promote the efficient and appropriate use of administrative data for statistics through collaboration with data experts across government and the wider data landscape.
• Be accountable for all projects in their area, ensuring all work is adequately resourced, challenge where demand does not match resource and own the process of reporting progress against transformation programme milestones and engagement with senior leaders.
• Lead and inspire your team and the wider division to deliver to the highest possible standards, managing change and ambiguity effectively and ensuring that we're fit to meet the challenges of the future. Identify own development needs and ensure these are aligned to your goals and the goals of your team.
• Lead and inspire activity that benefits the strategic aims of the division or directorate, ensuring it is the best possible place to work.

Person specification

*Essential Criteria:*

• Communicate negative and positive information to stakeholders
• Identify and resolve issues, influence stakeholders and manage relationships effectively
• Build long-term strategic relationships and communicate clearly and regularly with stakeholders
• Work with subject matter experts across the organisation to introduce data standards best practice
• Lead on monitoring and improving areas of data maturity

Behaviours

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

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Leadership
• Managing a Quality Service

Alongside your salary of £56,020, Office for National Statistics contributes £16,228 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

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 valued colleagues across the organisation.

Whether you are hearing about us for the first time or already know a bit about our organisation, we hope that our careers site 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 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.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Security Clearance
For ONS the requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for 3 consecutive years immediately prior to applying and the department will consider eligibility by exception on a case-by-case basis. You will be asked to provide information regarding your UK residency during your application, and failure to provide this will result in your application being rejected.

If you are unsure that you meet the eligibility above, please read the information available on on this link or contact the recruitment email on the advert before applying to discuss, as failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected and any offer of employment being withdrawn.

At the point of SC application, you will need to provide or give access to the following evidence:

• Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)
• UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records
• Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency
• Security Services records

We may also reach out to you mid-campaign to confirm eligibility for this role.

Application Support
Artificial intelligence (AI)
software such as ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot and Gemini are powerful tools that can create and review text in ways that mimic what people can do. These tools can help you enhance your application and prepare for the process, but it is essential you use them appropriately.

They must also not be used to provide misleading or false information at any stage of the application journey.

It is also important to understand that while AI can help you prepare for an interview, you must not use it to produce responses during an interview.

For full guidance in relation to the use of AI through the recruitment process, please click here.

Application Process
Number of Stages: 2 stage process
Stage 1:
Application

Stage 2:
Interview

Stage 1 – Application
The assessment process at the application stage will be based on your work history, skills, experience, CV, 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, it will state the maximum word count allowed (1250 words), which should not be exceeded. Where it is a requirement to make a personal statement, 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.

In instances where a high number of applications are received, the sift pass mark may be adjusted, and candidates will be invited to interview based on merit order, i.e., those with the highest scores.

Stage 2 – 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 may be in person or via Microsoft Teams.

A presentation will be required at interview.

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

The Sift will be conducted from 04/12/2025

Interviews will be conducted from 15/12/2025

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.

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

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.

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.

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 the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

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 :

• Name : Government Digital and Data Recruitment
• Email : Government-Digital-and-Data-

Recruitment team

• Email : Government-Digital-and-Data-

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 If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission