Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Deputy Director, Small Modular Reactor Programme: Great British Energy Nuclear - Sponsorship and Policy
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Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Darlington, Edinburgh, London, Salford
Job Summary
Nuclear power is a vital part of the country’s energy mix, providing clean, reliable, baseload power. In order to meet the government’s energy security, affordability, net zero and economic growth goals, a major ramp up in nuclear capacity is needed. That is why ministers have committed to working with industry to deliver a ‘golden age’ for nuclear and have already made the biggest commitment to new nuclear plants for fifty years.
As well as new large-scale plants at Hinkley Point and Sizewell C, the government also wants to see new designs – small and advanced modular reactors (SMRs and AMRs) – deployed, providing clean energy. The UK’s first SMR project will be the Gwyndod Power Station, developed by Great British Energy – Nuclear (GBE-N), the government’s nuclear delivery body, in partnership with Rolls Royce SMR. This will be sited at Wylfa in North Wales, providing enough energy to power the equivalent of three million homes.
This Deputy Director role is a crucial one within the nuclear policy team in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The post-holder will lead the Department’s shareholder and sponsorship relationship with GBE-N, providing strategic oversight of governance, performance, finance and risk. They will ensure alignment between organisational delivery and Government objectives, and act as the principal interface between DESNZ and GBE-N to support the successful delivery of the UK’s nuclear programme while maintaining robust assurance, accountability and value for money.
Working alongside another Deputy Director, the post-holder will lead a team of c.30 policy officials. They will work closely with ministers and other senior officials across the department, other government departments, the Welsh Government and local government.
This is a great opportunity to work in one of the most important areas of UK energy policy, leading a close-knit, collaborative and high-performing team.
Job Description
You will be responsible for:
- Leading the Department’s sponsorship relationship with GBE-N, building high-trust partnerships with the Chair, CEO, Executive Team and Board to ensure Government priorities are understood, delivery is achieved, and effective challenge, support and assurance are provided while respecting GBE-N’s operational independence.
- Leading engagement across government and the wider nuclear sector to secure the approvals, funding and strategic decisions necessary to deliver major programme milestones, to ultimately enable a project Final Investment Decision.
- Working with GBE-N to shape the delivery strategy, governance framework and organisational capability required to deliver the SMR Programme and wider Government nuclear ambitions.
- Supporting GBE-N in developing and implementing sustainable funding and financing arrangements that align with Government objectives and enable successful programme delivery.
- Managing the policy and sponsorship team, ensuring it is one in which members are supported and have growth and development opportunities.
- Leadership within the Department’s nuclear cluster, to ensure join up across policies and that the cluster is a destination of choice for civil servants to pursue their careers.
- Budget-holder responsibility for Department advisers, and oversight of Parliamentary handling and correspondence related to GBE-N / the SMR programme.
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Person Specification
Essential
The successful candidate will demonstrate:
- Outstanding stakeholder management skills. The ability to build and maintain relationships by; operating as an intelligent client and shareholder; providing effective support, challenge and assurance; and establishing trust and credibility with senior officials, ministers and industry stakeholders.
- Excellent leadership skills and the ability to maintain a positive, collaborative, inclusive culture within the team.
- A strong understanding of the key components of project delivery, including project finance.
- The ability to work at pace under considerable pressure and to exercise sound judgement on complex issues.
Desirable
- Experience of working on energy is welcome but not essential.
Occasional travel to Anglesey and elsewhere in England & Wales is expected
Alongside your salary of £86,000, Department for Energy Security & Net Zero 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 Energy Security and Net Zero 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
To apply for this post please follow the instructions on the CS Jobs website by no later than 23:55 Sunday 18th October 2026. As part of the application process, you are asked to complete the following:
- CV - Your CV should be no longer than two pages and cover your career history, skills and achievements. This should not be a list of posts but rather full details of the responsibilities you held, the scale of the role and what you delivered for each post. Detailing your achievements in this way will help the hiring manager understand the true depth of your experience and differentiate your application at shortlisting.
- Personal Statement (no more than 1000 words) - Your statement is not a cover letter for your CV, rather it's your chance to showcase how you meet each of the essential and desirable criteria for the role, as outlined in the role advert. The vacancy holder will be looking for specific examples of your work that demonstrates how you meet the criteria. Bullet points should be avoided, instead it is helpful to structure these examples with the situation, task, action and result to show the breadth of your experience.
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Final Interview - The final selection panel interview will be held week commencing 9th November 2026. The interview process will assess behaviours and experiences, and will include a presentation. The topic will be sent in advance of your interview.
The Behaviours That Will Be Tested At Interview
- Leadership
- Managing a quality service
- Changing and improving
- Making effective decisions
- Communicating and influencing
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview.
Arrangements for Interview
The final selection panel interview will be held virtually. You will receive full details in your invite.
Following your interview, you’ll receive the interview outcome and feedback within 2 weeks; successful candidates move to the offer and onboarding phase. If you meet the required standard but are not the top candidate, you will be placed on a Reserve List for up to 12 months for potential future similar roles. If unsuccessful, we recommend utilising the feedback to help guide your future job search and upskilling efforts.
Candidates Are Asked To Note The Timetable, Exercising Flexibility Through The Recruitment And Selection Process. The Anticipated Timetable Is As Follows
- Advert Closing Date – 23:55 Sunday 18th October 2026
- Shortlist Announcement – w/c 2nd November 2026
- Interviews – w/c 9th November 2026
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. 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.
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 meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (opens in a new window). See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
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
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