G6 Head of Geospatial Analysis

Details
Reference number

436811

Salary

£69,501

A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

GBP

Job grade

Grade 6

Contract type

Permanent

Type of role

Analytical

Geography

Working pattern

Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time

Number of jobs available

1

Contents

• Location
• About the job
• Benefits
• Things you need to know
• Apply and further information

Location

Birmingham, Hastings, Leeds

About the job
Job summary

Transport is at the heart of the UK economy – and evidence and analysis are central to the design and operation of our transport system. Data and statistics are vital for underpinning decision making on public investment in transport and its subsequent evaluation and in understanding the network's operation.

Are you passionate about geospatial analysis?

Have you got experience developing new geospatial tools and using geospatial techniques to generate new insights from data?

If so, we'd love to hear from you

The Analysis Directorate strives to ensure that every DfT policy and decision is driven by high-quality data, research and analysis. They take a strategic view of the department's analytical requirements and provide support and challenge to teams across the DfT family. They provide cross-cutting work that sets the analytical standards, supports evidence gathering and makes innovative use of new analysis.

This role will lead the newly created Geospatial analysis team within the Analysis Directorate. We have an ambitious vision for the directorate utilising new data and technology to drive innovation in what we do. This team will generate an enhanced offer for geospatial and visualisation for the department leveraging modern methods and technology to enhance our work.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays a privilege day for the King's birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below

Find out more about what it's like working at the Department for Transport: Department for Transport Central - Department for Transport Careers

Job description

This role will be the new DfT Head of Geography Profession, reflecting the importance of geospatial analysis and data to the work of DfT. The role combines exciting opportunities for innovation with functional leadership so will influence not only within their group but across the department as a whole, with their impact felt more widely across the sector.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren't limited to:

• Developing the DfT's first Geospatial strategy.
• Work with key partners (DSIT, MHCLG, Ordnance Survey and others) across government to delivery transport spatial data priorities and cross cutting opportunities as part of the government's missions.
• The development and implementation of best practice in spatial data standards, geography boundaries, geodesy and cartography across the department.
• Develop novel geospatial analysis, insights and tooling to aid enhanced decision making
• Line management of one G7 and one SEO initially with scope to grow on successful delivery

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

For further information on the role, please read the attached role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

Required experience:

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

• Should be a member of the government geography profession (if an existing civil servant) or a chartered geographer (or equivalent), or able to meet the criteria required to obtain chartership

• Significant experience of leading and delivering geospatial analysis, including understanding user requirements and translating them into geospatial products. You will be able to demonstrate a level of expertise in the application of geospatial analytical techniques such as integrating large geospatial datasets, spatial analysis and statistics, and geovisualisation at the principal level from the

• Evidence of working with other analytical professions / multi-disciplinary teams

• Engaging with customers using geographical evidence, communicating geographic insights to senior stakeholders
• Experience working with geospatial data storage in the cloud and cloud-based data platforms and data lakes.
• Experience of python or R, and the application of these tools to develop analytical or data processing pipelines, and perform spatial analysis and visualisation. Knowledge and use of open libraries for producing reproducible geospatial analysis
• Experience of geospatial analysis platforms such as ArcGIS/QGIS, being able to deploy cartographic products as web maps, story maps, shiny dashboards, static maps
• Experience of building capability/teams in geospatial analysis

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week.

Occasional travel to our other offices and stakeholder locations will be required, which may involve overnight stays.

If you have a question about hybrid working, part time/job share hours, flexible working, travelling for work, or require a reasonable adjustment, please contact the Vacancy Holder during the recruitment process to avoid possible disappointment later in the process should your working arrangements not be compatible with the requirements of the role (see below for contact details).

This role is suitable for hybrid working, which is a non-contractual arrangement where a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements.

The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time a month will be spent at either your designated workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, in another office/work location. There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

Behaviours

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

• Working Together
• Changing and Improving
• Communicating and Influencing

Technical skills

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

• Geospatial Analysis (principal level from geographic analyst role)

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £69,501, Department for Transport contributes £20,134 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave).
• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King's birthday.
• Access to the staff discount portal.
• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.
• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Find out more about the benefits of working at DfT and its agencies .

Things you need to know
Selection process details

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

How to apply:

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's qualifications, skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours: Changing and Improving
• Experience:
• Leading and delivering geospatial analysis to drive impact
• Experience of building capability in geospatial analysis platforms and tooling

You will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and personal statement (750-word count).

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead Success Profile element – Experience of leading and delivering geospatial analysis to drive impact. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

Please note: the sift will be completed on a rolling basis whilst the campaign is still live, so you may receive your sift scores before the advert closing date.

The sift will take place from 26/11/2025

Stage 2: Interview

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – working together, changing and improving, communicating and influencing
• Experience – Significant experience of geospatial analysis, engaging with customers, communicating geospatial insights, cloud working
• Technical – Geospatial analytical techniques, python or R and application to geospatial analysis

You will also be required to create and deliver a presentation to assess your communication skills. Guidance will be provided if you are invited to interview.

The interviews will take place week commencing 08/12/2025

This interview will be conducted online via Microsoft Teams. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site .

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further information on the selection process

Feedback on your application can only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

We will also hold a12-month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for. You can read more about our reserve lists here.

AI Tools and Platforms

Artificial intelligence (AI) can be a useful tool to support your application, but all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate, and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism is identified (such as 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 for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the "Assistance required" section in the "Additional requirements" page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you're deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

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

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you cannot access the information on our website for any reason, please email for assistance.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Pre-employment Checking

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.

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)
• 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.

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 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 : Sam Rose
• Email :

Recruitment team

• Email :

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 Government Recruitment Services via email:

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

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