Interaction Designer at Department for Transport in York

Job summary

Do you enjoy creating simple, accessible and effective digital experiences? Can you make complex services easier to understand and use? Are you confident collaborating with delivery colleagues and stakeholders to test and improve designs?

Active Travel England is looking for two Interaction Designers to help design and improve services that support walking, wheeling and cycling across England. Working as part of a multidisciplinary team, you will work to ensure our digital services meet user needs and organisational goals.

This is an opportunity to shape service delivery at an early stage, establish good user-centred design practice and help colleagues understand the value of inclusive, evidence-based design.

Active Travel England is an executive agency of the Department for Transport. We lead on all things walking, wheeling and cycling across England, helping people and communities be more active by making our streets safer and more accessible. We do this by building skills, providing expert design and planning advice, as well as strengthening the case for investment.

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 and 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 Active Travel England (ATE)

Job description

Active Travel England (ATE) is seeking a skilled UX/Interaction Designer to help shape exceptional digital products and services. You’ll play a key role in ATE’s growing digital portfolio, working on a strategic transformation programme and ensuring ATE’s growing digital service offering meets user needs and aligns with the Government’s Service Standard.

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

• Work with business analysts, delivery managers, engineers and stakeholders to understand problems and user needs.
• Turn research findings, service requirements and evidence into user journeys, interaction flows, wireframes and prototypes.
• Create and test designs at the right level of fidelity, from early concepts to detailed prototypes.
• Iterate designs in response to usability testing, data, accessibility findings and delivery constraints.
• Design inclusive and accessible experiences that meet relevant government standards and accessibility requirements.
• Use and contribute to established design patterns and components, identifying where new approaches are needed.
• Clearly communicate and document design decisions, assumptions, risks and unresolved issues.
• Plan and facilitate collaborative design sessions, bringing together users, stakeholders and multidisciplinary colleagues.
• Help teams embed user-centred design and agile ways of working, sharing good practice and constructively challenging assumptions.

Flexible resourcing

Colleagues are expected to work with a degree of flexibility, meaning responsibilities may change to support priority delivery.

For further information on the role, please read the 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

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

• Designing user experiences for digital services using user-centred and iterative design methods.
• Creating user journeys, interaction flows, wireframes or prototypes and adapting the fidelity to the stage of delivery.
• Using qualitative and quantitative evidence to develop, test and improve design ideas.
• Designing accessible and inclusive services, and applying relevant standards, patterns and guidance.
• Working collaboratively in a multidisciplinary team and involving users and stakeholders throughout the design process.
• Explaining complex design problems and decisions clearly to non-design colleagues, building consensus and constructively challenging assumptions.
• Managing design work across competing priorities while maintaining quality and focus.

Additional Information

This post is offered on a Fixed Term Appointment (FTA) basis to complete a finite piece of work.

For permanent Civil Servants, this role is only available on loan, so you must have your home departments approval to return to them at the end of the loan before you apply. There is no opportunity for a permanent Civil Servant to take on this role as a fixed term appointment. OGD applicants will be appointed on an inward loan and subject to the terms of the agreed inward loan. Internal candidates will return to their previous post at the end of the loan period, which will need to be agreed with your line manager in advance.

If you're employed by a non-departmental public body (NDPB) by moving jobs this will involve a change of employer and you may break the statutory rules on continuity of employment .

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week.

Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part-time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 35 hours per week.

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/visiting stakeholders. Your designated workplace will be your contractual place of work. There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

Occasional travel to other offices 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).

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that we do not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker Licence sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship. Candidates must ensure they have the appropriate rights to work in the UK before application.

Behaviours

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

• Working Together
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Working Together

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £45,900, Department for Transport contributes

£13,297 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).

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 (opens in a new window).

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 and Experience.

How to apply:

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

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV, behaviour and personal statement

Stage 2: Interview

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

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

• Behaviours – you will be asked to provide a 250-word statement on the following Behaviour: Working Together
• Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and personal statement (750-word count). Please provide evidence of your experience of the following:
• Designing user experiences for digital services using user-centred and iterative design methods.
• Creating user journeys, interaction flows, wireframes or prototypes and adapting the fidelity to the stage of delivery.
• Explaining complex design problems and decisions clearly to non-design colleagues, building consensus and constructively challenging assumptions.
• Managing design work across competing priorities while maintaining quality and focus.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead behaviour Working Together. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview.

The sift will take place week commencing 19/10/2026.

Stage 2: Interview

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

• Behaviours – (Communicating and Influencing (Presentation), Working Together, Managing a Quality Service and Delivering at Pace)
• Technical - Designing Together

You will also be required to create and deliver a presentation to assess the Behaviour Communicating and Influencing. Guidance will be provided if you are invited to interview.

The interviews will take place week commencing 02/11/2026.

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 (opens in a new window).

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

We will also hold a 12 -month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for.

Appointments for this position will be made in order of merit. If you are successful in the selection process but there are no further availabl