Head of Digital Channels

Details
Reference number

431965

Salary

£54,415 - £64,995

G7 - National: £54,415 - £61,280; London: £58,040 - £64,995 (pro rata for part-time working) + Communications allowance £5,280

A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

GBP

Job grade

Grade 7

Contract type

Fixed term

Loan

Length of employment

2 Years

Business area

DSIT - Corporate Services - Communications

Type of role

Communications / Marketing

Digital

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, Cardiff, Darlington, Edinburgh, London, Salford

About the job
Job summary

DSIT

At DSIT we're all about improving people's lives by maximising the potential of science & technology.

We accelerate innovation, investment and productivity through world-class science, research and development.

We use technology for good by ensuring new and existing technologies are safely developed and deployed across the UK, with the benefits more widely shared.

We are driving forward a modern digital government which gives citizens a more satisfying experience and their time back.

We do all this to enable the Government's 5 national missions: kickstarting economic growth, making Britain a clean energy superpower, taking back our streets, breaking down barriers to opportunity and building an NHS fit for the future.

Above all, we focus on improving people's lives. Whether it's researching new treatments for disease, developing better batteries, reducing burdens through better public services, keeping children safe online, and much more, outcomes for citizens are at the heart of what we do.

Our Inclusive Environment

We offer flexible working benefits, employee well-being support and a great pension. We are enormously proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We support candidates with adjustments throughout our recruitment process. Information about disability confidence and just some examples of the adjustments that you can request can be found in the reasonable adjustment section below.

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 D&I Strategy.

Find Out More

We regularly run events where you can find out more about the department and tips for the application and interview process. You can sign up for upcoming events here:

You can also follow our LinkedIn Page:

Job description

At the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, we are leading the way in cementing the UK as one of the most innovative economies in the world – growing the economy and improving the lives of everyone in the UK through the jobs of tomorrow and new discoveries that advance the health and prosperity of society whilst ensuring users are protected online.

We are looking for an experienced digital communications expert to drive innovative and strategic use of social media channels to communicate the department's priorities and announcements to a range of audiences. Not only will you be expected to grow the reach and engagement of existing audiences and channels, there will also be a big focus on extending our reach using earned media, to target people who are impacted by the department's work, but unlikely to already be engaging with us.

So, what does the job entail? You will take a leading role in creating, managing and prioritising digital engagement plans and content for our social media channels, as well as building partnerships with cross government colleagues, stakeholders and digital content creators in this space. The role is a mix of strategy and delivery, where you may jump from planning for a long-term campaign one moment, to helping another colleague urgently draft some posts on a major breaking news story the next. We are a busy department with a lot to communicate about – and no two days are the same.

Our work has a strong audience focus. You will be at the forefront of finding and developing creative ways to engage with different groups interested in our work. Exceptional creativity, expert understanding of social media channels, excellent copy-writing skills, attention to detail, collaboration, and a passion for the work we do is key. As is the ability to manage team members to deliver several priorities under pressure and meet tight deadlines.

You will lead our content creator strategy, building strong relationships and developing a cutting-edge creator strategy that helps extend reach and builds public trust with new audiences.

We pride ourselves on having a great team culture and a focus on innovation, storytelling and making a difference in people's lives. Your team will work closely with the Creative Content side of the team, commissioning video, animation and graphic content, making sure that it demonstrates impact, is channel appropriate, has end users in mind, and meets strategic objectives as part of multidiscipline communications campaigns.

You will also work closely with the Media, Visits and External Affairs Team on ministerial led announcements and with our Campaigns and Marketing Team to deliver low/no cost and paid campaigns. We are looking for a strong and confident leader, who is able to influence senior stakeholders, including ministers and special advisers to support best practice digital communications and drive continuous improvement by building standards within your team, the wider Communications directorate and department.

This is a fast-paced role and you will need to work well under pressure and to tight deadlines, with an ability to adapt swiftly to changing circumstances. Occasional out of hours/weekend working will be needed.

A few examples of our recent work:

Online Safety Act video collaboration with content creators and Secretary of State:

Digital ID:

Using AI to improve efficiencies in healthcare – collaboration with a content creator:

Animation example:

Graphic carousel example:

Person specification

Key responsibilities:

Setting the strategic approach for the department's social media channels and earned media, ensuring we have strategies for each channel so that they are reaching and engaging with the right audiences on the departmental priorities that matter to them.

• Lead the Channels team to plan and deliver digital engagement plans around these priorities, including supporting them to use insight, draft copy, commission content, schedule content, drive up engagement, and continuously evaluate

•

Build and maintain strategic relationships with content creators across various platforms to support DSIT's communication objectives

•

Identify and evaluate emerging partnership opportunities that align with DSIT's values and communication priorities

•

Make sure the team is on top of the latest social media trends and platform/tech updates, keeping channel strategies up to date as platforms evolve.

•

Line management of staff in the team, delegating projects and tasks, helping them to develop their digital communications skills, meet tight deadlines, manage changing briefs, and action feedback.

•

Build relationships with partners and stakeholders to grow our following and extend the reach of our messages outside of our owned channels – we must ensure we're not communicating within a bubble.

•

Respond to reactive issues, supporting the Media Team on urgent news stories, provide transparency for the public, challenge misinformation and defend the department's reputation.

•

Prioritise and re-plan work and resource, not only empowering your team but able to jump in yourself during busy times to write copy, schedule content and manage relationships directly.

•

Working with the Head of Digital Content in your team, you will ensure that everything that goes out on our channels meets very high standards – an eye for detail is very important to this role.

•

Put insight and evaluation at the heart of all your work – from ideation to evaluation - to ensure we can measure impact and our communications is best developed to reach our intended audiences.

•

Leverage expert digital communication analytics to report findings and recommendations directly to senior officials and special advisers.

•

Take ownership over procurement and management of software such as social media management and listening tools, ensuring your team has the tools they need and that they are value for money.

•

Support, and be supported by, a friendly, welcoming team in a fast-paced, rewarding workplace.

As a line manager, you will be responsible for working with your members of staff to define their objectives, as well as managing their development and performance.

Essential Criteria:

Demonstrated expertise in managing social media channels on a day-to-day basis, delivering insight-led content and platform-specific plans to maximise reach, engagement, and audience growth.

A track record of developing effective owned and earned digital communications strategies that are aligned with broader communication objectives.

Proven success in collaborating with partners and content creators to amplify reach through earned media, enhancing visibility and driving stronger engagement.

Strong leadership experience, including managing and prioritising a team's workload to ensure consistently high-quality output and delivery. Supporting the development of junior team members by building their expertise, enabling them to perform at their best, and nurturing their potential as future leaders.

Experience of representing the team with credibility and confidence, including influencing senior stakeholders and navigating challenging feedback or strategic disagreements constructively.

Desirable Criteria:

Experience/knowledge of the Science and Technology sector.

Well-developed knowledge and networks within government and/or Science and Technology sector.

Behaviours

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

• Communicating and Influencing
• Leadership
• Working Together

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £54,415, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology contributes £15,764 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
• An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
• Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.

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.

Things you need to know
Selection process details

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

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Please use your personal statement (in no more than 750 words) to tell us more about the social media skills and leadership experience you have that you think will make you suitable for this role. Please include some specific examples of your work that demonstrate your skills and experience.

Applications will be sifted on CV and Personal Statement.

In the event of a large number of applicants, applications will be sifted on the personal statement.

Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

The interview will consist of behaviour questions.

Interviewees will be asked to deliver a presentation; further details will be provided nearer the time.

Sift and interview dates

Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.

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 for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Further Information

Reasonable Adjustment

We are proud to be a disability confident leader and we welcome applications from disabled candidates and candidates with long-term conditions.

Information about the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) and some examples of adjustments that we offer to disabled candidates and candidates with long-term health conditions during our recruitment process can be found in our DSIT Candidate Guidance. A DSIT Plain Text Version of the guidance is also available.

We encourage candidates to discuss their adjustment needs by emailing the job contact which can be found under the contact point for applicants section.

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

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

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

A location based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role become available within that period you may be offered this position.

Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

Any move to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology 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.

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).

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.

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- 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 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.

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.

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

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.

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 : Jenny Kendall
• Email :

Recruitment team

• Email :

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 you should contact in the first instance . If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: Click here to visit Civil Service Commission/Complaints.

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