Deputy Director - Head of Communications at Government Legal Department in London

Job summary

From healthcare to artificial intelligence, energy to national security, we provide legal advice to government departments on nation-changing subjects.

At Government Legal Department we have a vital, single-minded purpose: to help the Government govern well within the rule of law. This is complemented by our exciting vision to be an outstanding legal organisation, committed to the highest standards of service and professionalism and a brilliant place to work where we can all thrive and fulfil our potential.

Our work touches almost every aspect of public life. We are the largest provider of legal services across government, working on high profile matters.

Our respected professionals are involved in everything from regulation and litigation to advice on drafting legislation. They provide expertise to the full range of government departments. We are at the heart of delivering the government’s priorities and our success depends on our people.

GLD is a non-ministerial government department headed by the Treasury Solicitor, our Permanent Secretary, and employs nearly 4000 people, including nearly 3000 legal professionals. We have offices nationwide, in Bristol, Leeds, inner and outer London and Manchester. Our lawyers can also be located within other departments and overseas.

GLD also depends on a range of cross-functional professionals to provide our corporate services. There are nearly 1000 colleagues playing an essential part in helping GLD to achieve its purpose and truly deliver much more than law.

This is an exciting time to join GLD, with cutting edge legal work on global issues and a transformation agenda which is ensuring the Department exemplifies the Modern Civil Service .

To find out more about what we do you can view our introductory film . On our website you can hear from team members, find out how to apply and learn about the benefits of working for GLD.

You can also read more about the future vision for GLD in our GLD Strategy 2024 – 2027 .

Job description

This is an opportunity to lead a fundamental transformation in how the government informs and connects with citizens in an era of rapid technological change, evolving media consumption, and the critical challenge of building public trust.

As the most senior communications advisor in your department and a member of the cross-government communications leadership group, you will actively lead and embrace change and innovation and have an entrepreneurial mindset bringing the team with you and championing continuous improvement.​

This is a pivotal role. You will operate at the heart of government decision-making, shaping how policies and priorities are communicated to the public. Your work will directly influence the impact of government policy, democratic engagement and the perception of government, both domestically and internationally.​

This is an exciting opportunity to lead the design and development of a new communications team working across the AGO and GLD, whilst providing direct support to the Attorney and Solicitor General. The post holder will lead a new approach to communications, building an integrated team to support the Law Officers and implement the GCS operating model. ​

Audience-focused and insight-driven, you will bring consumer marketing and storytelling expertise to public service communication. You will boldly champion modern communications - leading the cultural shift from reactive, press-first communications to integrated always-on campaigns, embracing digital innovation, leveraging responsible AI and boldly putting citizens at the heart of our planning and delivery.​

​You will be the senior communications leader across both departments, providing direct & personal counsel on all aspects of communication to the Attorney and Solicitor General, Special Advisors, Permanent Secretary and the AGO/GLD Executive Team. You will lead the design and implementation of a communications portfolio including content creation, campaigns, press office, speechwriting, events planning and. You will also lead internal communications across both departments, reaching an internal audience of nearly 4000 working across multiple locations. ​

​You will be part of a senior peer network of Government Communications leaders, collectively responsible for a Civil Service profession of over 7,000communicators across departments, agencies and arm’s-length bodies.​

And part of your role leading and working with other communications professionals will see you work closely with the communications teams in the CPS and SFO, as well as HMCPSI each of whom is sponsored or superintended by the AGO. ​

In what is a highly visible and influential role across AGO & GLD the postholder will have the opportunity to showcase and grow their leadership skills through a broad range of corporate opportunities across the departments. These include helping to bring the AGO and GLD closer together and supporting and generating the diverse and inclusive environment, something which AGO and GLD are passionate about and which is of fundamental importance to the Department’s long-term success. ​

​Key Responsibilities

• ​ Provide decisive, expert counsel to the Attorney and Solicitor General on the communication of departmental priorities and reputation management and work proactively with departmental senior leaders as their top comms advisor. ​
• Lead and develop a high performing, multi-disciplinary communications team , with accountability for ensuring your team has the highest professional standards and capabilities, delivers and gets things done, whilst championing an inclusive, future-focused culture and managing a budget of around £2m​.
• Shape the senior leadership of Government Communications across the profession - visibly co-leading the Modernising Govt Comms strategy, driving collaboration and building a truly mission-led profession​.
• Partner with policy and delivery colleagues to integrate communications thinking into the policy-making and delivery process, using insight, data, evaluation to strengthen policy outcomes and public engagement. ​
• Develop compelling narratives that connect government priorities to real‑world citizen stories, building partnerships with content creators, community partners, influencers and leaders across the system.​

Person specification

It is important through your CV and Personal Statement that you provide evidence and examples of proven experience of these selection criteria. Below are details of the essential criteria from the Civil Service Success Profiles that make up this role. Further guidance can be found at Success Profiles.

The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate:

Behaviours (all points assessed interview) ​

• Seeing the big picture​
• Changing and improving​
• Leadership​
• Communicating and influencing​
• Delivering at pace​

Key Skills and Experience (all points assessed at application and interview) ​

• Marketing and storytelling mindset with demonstrable experience of audience-led, insight-driven campaigns. You understand segmentation, targeting and positioning. You have proven success developing multi-channel campaigns and creative content strategies with clear evaluation metrics and measurable impact - including large-scale behaviour-change or trust-building campaigns. ​
• Senior advisory and influencing skills - excellent interpersonal and influencing skills as a trusted adviser with diverse stakeholders internally and externally, including at Board, C-suite and ministerial (or equivalent) level. You have experience advising and influencing at the most senior levels with political acumen and emotional intelligence.​
• Demonstrable experience leading digital transformation in communications, with deep understanding of how to harness the most effective digital platforms and traditional media.​
• Proven crisis management and transformation leadership - experience leading communications transformation with excellent judgement to manage crises, reputational risk and politically sensitive issues. An awareness of public sentiment and proven experience using this information to inform decision-making.​
• Exceptional leadership of multi-disciplinary teams - a resilient leader withexperience leading transformation, building capability and fostering a creative and impact-focused team​

Security Clearance Level

All GLD employees must successfully obtain Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) clearance before starting employment. In addition to BPSS all colleagues based in our London offices must hold Counter Terrorism Check (CTC) clearance. If London based, you can start your position pending this clearance level, however your continued appointment will be conditional upon obtaining and maintaining CTC clearance.​

This role Security Check (SC) clearance. You cannot start employment until your SC application is approved. If you are unable to obtain or maintain SC clearance, you may not be able to commence the role you have been appointed to and this may lead to the termination of your contract or offer of employment.​

Current SC clearance requirements typically include a 5 -year verifiable UK residency history , with no more than 6 months spent outside the UK in the preceding 12 months . ​​

As security vetting requirements are determined by the relevant vetting authority and may change over time, applicants are encouraged to review the latest UK Security Vetting guidance before applying via United Kingdom Security Vetting: Applicant Guidance . ​

If during pre-employment checks it is found that you are unable to gain the required level of security clearance for the role, your provisional offer of employment will be withdrawn. ​

Sponsorship and Visas

There is the possibility that GLD can provide sponsorship for skilled workers, as long as they meet the full eligibility criteria set down under current immigration legislation. GLD does not guarantee sponsorship will be provided or that an applicant will be successful in gaining a skilled worker visa. ​

Candidates with Limited Leave to Remain can apply but must have at least 12 months remaining on an existing visa which allows them to work for GLD when employment commences. Please allow three months for the onboarding process from the point of offer. ​

The expectation is that applicants have an existing visa, which at the point they start work with GLD has at least 12 months remaining on it. The share code you provide for your pre-employment checks must be linked to the visa that allows you to work for a minimum of 12 months in the role for which you have applied. This doesn’t not include having any outstanding visa applications in process during the recruitment process. ​

It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that they meet the criteria for sponsorship. They also have the responsibility to notify the Resourcing Team that they require Sponsorship at the start of the onboarding process into GLD. This applies to existing civil servants as well as external candidates. ​

Candidates with unlimited leave to remain can apply.​

Behaviours

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

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £86,000, Government Legal Department contributes

£24,914 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).

Learning and Development at GLD

GLD has a comprehensive learning and development offer for all employees.

We offer a programme of in-person/hybrid and virtual sessions providing learning on profession-specific, soft skills, technical skills, and different topics. For our SCS colleagues these include:

SCS Induction

• SCS Induction toolkit
• Quarterly SCS drop-in sessions. Focus o