Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Senior Delivery Manager (Recyclability Assessment Methodology)
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Job Summary
The Government is committed to transitioning to a circular economy, reducing waste, and improving how resources are used across the UK. Packaging plays a central role in this shift, and the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) is a key tool to ensure packaging is designed and managed in a way that supports effective recycling.
PackUK (Scheme Administrator) is responsible for delivering key elements of packaging policy, including the RAM, which underpins consistent, evidence-based recyclability assessments across the four nations of the UK. This framework supports regulatory decision-making, drives improvements in packaging design, and enables greater transparency for industry and consumers.
Job Summary – Senior Delivery Manager (Recyclability Assessment Methodology)
The Senior Delivery Manager for the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) is responsible for overseeing the technical & strategic development, delivery, and continuous improvement of the UK’s packaging recyclability assessment framework. The role ensures RAM remains accurate, evidence-based and aligned across the four nations, while supporting effective governance, stakeholder engagement, and consistent regulatory decision-making.
Key Responsibilities
- Support and deliver the RAM strategy, work programme, and improvement roadmap.
- Lead the annual review and update cycle, ensuring RAM reflects changes in packaging formats, recycling infrastructure, and materials management.
- Manage end-to-end project planning, governance coordination, progress tracking and reporting.
- Facilitate four-nation and regulator alignment to ensure consistent application of the methodology.
- Produce clear guidance, documentation, and governance papers, ensuring accuracy and high quality.
- Provide analytical insight and briefing material for Committee Chairs, decision-makers, and senior leadership.
- Lead presentations, workshops and industry engagement on RAM requirements and updates.
- Offer subject-matter expertise to internal teams, including training and technical interpretation.
- Oversee the process for handling producer enquiries and challenges to recyclability classifications.
- Liaise with regulators to support consistent, proportionate enforcement of RAM outcomes.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders including trade bodies, producers, and government agencies.
- Ensure effective risk and issue management within the RAM programme.
Key Deliverables
- Updated, annually reviewed Recycling Assessment Methodology.
- High-quality governance papers, decision packs, and technical briefings.
- Clear and accessible RAM guidance and communication materials.
- Regular stakeholder engagement outputs (workshops, presentations, written updates).
- Timely and robust responses to industry queries and challenges.
- Programme plans, risk logs, and progress reports to governance groups.
Person Specification
Knowledge & Experience
- Experience within packaging, waste, recycling or environmental compliance sectors.
- Strong project management experience, including delivery planning, risk management and strategic alignment.
- Demonstrated experience supporting or coordinating governance and approval processes.
- Experience working with senior leaders and supporting decision-making through clear insight and evidence.
- Ability to assess and interpret evidence on material flows, packaging formats and recycling processes.
- Proven experience engaging diverse stakeholders, including industry, regulators, and government.
- Experience managing or leading a small team, with strong interpersonal and people-development skills.
- Skilled at managing competing priorities, fast-paced workloads, and deadlines while maintaining attention to detail.
- Excellent communication skills, able to present complex technical information to varied audiences.
- Strong writing ability, capable of distilling complex material into clear, concise summaries.
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Additional Information
- This role requires strong analytical thinking, cross-government collaboration, and the ability to navigate complex policy and technical issues.
- The postholder will play a key role in ensuring recyclability assessments are trusted, transparent, and consistently applied across the UK.
- Occasional travel for stakeholder meetings, workshops or presentations may be required.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Delivering at Pace
- Communicating and Influencing
- Changing and Improving
Technical Skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Role requires strong technical knowledge of packaging materials, recyclability, and waste management, alongside project delivery expertise.
Salary
Alongside your salary of £42,665, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs contributes £12,360 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
Learning and Development
- Tailored to your role
- An environment with flexible working options
- A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
- A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
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.
Selection Process Details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles, and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a 500 word personal statement, CV and three behaviour statements. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the Personal Statement and CV. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to interview.
Interview
If successful at application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed on Behaviours and Technical skills.
Your interview will be conducted via MS Teams.
A presentation may also be included in the interview.
Location
As part of the pre-employment process for this post, successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. The agreed contractual workplace is then the substantive and permanent place of work for the successful candidate(s).
Where the location is ‘National’ the successful appointee should discuss and agree an appropriate contractual location in line with both Defra’s location policy and site capacity, prior to proceeding with pre-employment processes.
The agreed amount of time spent at a workplace for this post will reflect the requirement for Civil Servants to spend at least 60% of their working time in an organisation workplace with the option to work the remaining time flexibly from home. Working time spent at a workplace may include time spent at other organisational locations including field-based operational locations, together with supplier, customer or partner locations. This is a non-contractual agreement which is consistent with common Civil Service expectations.
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Travel costs to non-contractual workplaces will be subject to departmental travel and subsistence policies. Travel costs to contractual workplaces are the responsibility of the employee.
The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location, and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time.
Defra includes the core department, APHA, RPA, Cefas and VMD.
Reserve List
A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.
Merit Lists
Where more than one location is advertised, candidates will be appointed in merit order for each location. You will be asked to state your location preference on your application.
Reasonable Adjustment
If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.
If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:
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Contact Government Recruitment Service via defrarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
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Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.
Accessibility
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
Childcare Vouchers
Any move to DEFRA 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.
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service /Disclosure Scotland/Access NI 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-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk 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 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk
For further information on the Access NI confidential checking service telephone: the Access NI Helpline on 0300 200 7888 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email accessni@ani.x.gsi.gov.uk
All of these posts require the successful candidate to hold basic security clearance. Candidates posted to London may be subject to a higher level
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