Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
Deputy Director for Digital Standards and Inclusive Design
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Bristol, London, Manchester
Job Summary
The Deputy Director of Digital Standards and Inclusive Design is one of three Deputy Director portfolios within the Government Digital Enablement (GDE) directorate, alongside Digital Devolution and Workforce & Capability. Together, these teams are responsible for improving how public services are designed and delivered, strengthening digital capability across the public sector, and supporting the government's ambitions for digital transformation and devolution.
The role sits at the heart of an increasingly interconnected agenda. Alongside leading work on standards, accessibility and inclusive design, you will work closely with colleagues driving digital devolution, workforce reform, capability development, data sharing, interoperability and digital commercial approaches. Together, these portfolios help create the conditions for more joined-up, effective and user-centred public services across central and local government.
As part of the wider GDS and Digital Transformation landscape, the successful candidate will collaborate with colleagues across policy, service transformation, data, architecture, AI, capability and commercial functions, helping ensure that standards and inclusive design support the delivery of better public services and meaningful real-world outcomes.
This is an opportunity to join a growing and high-profile directorate at a time of significant ambition and change, helping shape work that influences how public services are delivered across the wider public sector.
Job Description
As Deputy Director for Digital Standards and Inclusive design your key responsibilities will include:
- Develop and incubate innovative ideas that drive comprehensive service transformation across government, including through evolution of the digital Service Standard, accessibility and inclusive design work
- Identify and seize opportunities to enhance public service delivery from an end to end perspective, including through AI-enabled solutions
- Pilot new concepts to demonstrate effective and efficient public service models
- Develop the means by which we set standards for and measure the quality and accessibility of digital government services
- Monitoring a portfolio of products, service standards, accessibility and transformation initiatives through to delivery
- Oversee the timely responding to parliamentary, NAO reporting and Public Accounts Committee correspondence associated with this portfolio
- Drive up service quality, embedding service and product centred ways of working, to ensure continuous improvement.
- Collaborate with government departments, academia, think tanks, and industry partners to generate and test new ideas
- Drive different ways of working across public and private sectors, using innovative procurement and commercial methods to build mutually beneficial partnerships and (build and) access SMEs and scale ups
- Engage with Senior Leaders across DCMS and public sector more widely ensuring service standards and accessibility opportunities are identified and developed
- Identify and prioritise opportunities to create simple, joined-up, and proactive experiences with a focus on driving the delivery of solutions and experiences that transcend departmental boundaries
Person specification
Essential Requirements - The Successful Candidate Will Demonstrate
- Able to set a clear strategic direction, build effective partnerships and influence stakeholders at all levels across the public sector, bringing people with them to deliver change.
- Recognised thought leader on service design, service transformation and standards, working openly to share expertise and drive adoption of best practice across government.
- A visible and credible advocate for digital government, championing data-led decision making, experimentation, continuous improvement and modern ways of working.
- Proven ability to build, lead and motivate multidisciplinary teams, fostering an inclusive and high-performing culture across digital, data, accessibility, standards and research disciplines.
- Strong understanding of end-to-end service delivery and user-centred design, with experience of incubating and piloting innovative ideas that improve outcomes within complex organisational environments, including a commitment to accessible and inclusive design.
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Alongside your salary of £86,000, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology 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).
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.
- A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need.
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
How To Apply
To apply for this post please follow the instructions on the CS Jobs website by no later than 23:55 Thursday 8th October 2026. As part of the application process you are asked to complete the following:
- A CV setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role, relevant achievements in recent posts, together with reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
- A Statement of Suitability (no more than 1000 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference clearly linked to the essential criteria in the person specification.
Final Interview
For further information on the application process and an overview on what to expect, please visit the Civil Service Careers website.
Should you encounter any issues with your online application please get in touch with: scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
This role has a minimum assignment duration of 1 year. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.
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As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) 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) (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
Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.
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.
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 a 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 : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Recruitment team
Email : dsitresourcing.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
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
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