Grade 7 Head of Office

Private Office to the Lady Chief Justice of England & Wales

Private Offices Directorate, Judicial Office

Role Summary

The Head of Office in the Lady Chief Justice’s private office is a recently created leadership role within the Private Office Directorate of Judicial Office. This is an exciting and varied role that provides unique opportunities to support the LCJ in the delivery of her strategic priorities.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead a busy, cross jurisdictional private office, working with the most senior members of the judiciary. The successful candidate will be based at the Royal Courts of Justice and will be working at the heart of the Judicial Office in this varied and stretching role. Under the overall leadership of the Principal Private Secretary, the post holder will oversee and coordinate the workload of the office. The Head of Office will line manage a SEO Deputy Private Secretary and an HEO Senior Personal Secretary.

The role of the Lady Chief Justice

The Lady Chief Justice, The Right Honourable Baroness Carr of Walton-on-the-Hill is the Head of the Judiciary of England and Wales and the President of the Courts of England and Wales.

The role, which in its modern form dates back to 1873, has some 400 statutory duties. Under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the LCJ’s key responsibilities include:

• Representing the views of the judges and magistrates of England and Wales to Parliament and Government.

• The welfare, training and guidance of the judges and magistrates of England and Wales. The LCJ discusses with Government the provision of resources for the judiciary, which are allotted by the Lord Chancellor.

• Discussing with Government the provision of resources for the judiciary, which are allotted by the Lord Chancellor, and engaging with the Concordat process under the Framework Document.

• Engaging with HMCTS on operational matters, including security issues.

The LCJ also:

• Sits on important cases in all jurisdictions. The LCJ gives judgments and lays down practice directions (these set out the approach that must be taken to cases in future) in many of the most important appeal cases.

• Shares responsibility with the Lord Chancellor for the Office for Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO), the body which investigates complaints made against judicial office holders.

• Chairs the Judicial Executive Board and the Judges’ Council, two bodies which assist in managing her responsibilities. The LCJ is also President of the Magistrates’ Association.

The LCJ is supported in her capacity as head of the judiciary by a private office of seven staff, based at the Royal Courts of Justice and led by the Principal Private Secretary. The private office provides legal, strategic policy and administrative support to the LCJ, Judges’ Council, and the wider judiciary across a range of issues, working closely with other parts of the Judicial Office, and wider government, as appropriate.

The Judicial Office

The Judicial Office is the organisation that supports the LCJ in delivering her wide range of functions as the Head of the Judiciary. It is a unique branch of the civil service, reporting direct to the LCJ. The Judicial Office consists of approx. 500 staff working across five directorates. The post holder will be part of the private office directorate, working to the deputy director, Head of Judicial Private Offices. For more information about Judicial Office please see: About us - Judicial Office - Judicial Office Intranet

Main activities/responsibilities:

The post holder will be expected to build strong relationships with the LCJ, Judicial Office Management Board and colleagues across Judicial Office, HMCTS and MoJ. They will ensure that all work coming through the offices is logged and dealt with appropriately. Duties will include:

• Ensuring comprehensive work plans are in place and that work is commissioned clearly and in a timely manner.

• Overseeing management and triage of the office email inbox and correspondence log, ensuring that all correspondence and emails are acknowledged, and replied to appropriately.

• Communications lead, working in close collaboration with Judicial Office Communications team colleagues to ensure messaging consistently reflects the LCJ’s priorities and voice.

• Stakeholder engagement, including developing a stakeholder management strategy, mapping, and tracker, working in close collaboration with Judicial Office Communications team colleagues.

• Overseeing all preparation for visits, speeches, and events, ensuring that the LCJ has the right information at the right time.

• Supporting the wider team in the management of their portfolios, ensuring that they have work plans and the right relationships in place with stakeholders relevant to their areas of work.

• Management of the team, including ensuring everyone has performance objectives, and that all HR matters are dealt with promptly, and in accordance with the relevant policies.

• Team lead for all corporate matters, including finance and accommodation.

• Act as ambassador for the LCJ and the office, communicating with senior stakeholders with accuracy and sensitivity towards views/concerns/questions as required.

• Co-ordination of briefings for the LCJ, ensuring that the Office and JO provide high-quality advice in a timely manner.

• Lead on specific portfolios within the office connected to co-ordination and management functions.

• Support the Principal Private Secretary as required.

Person Specification

• Excellent oral and written communication skills

• Strong organisation and planning

• Delivery focused.

• Resilience and the ability to produce work of a high quality in a fast-paced environment.

• An ability to maintain strong working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders at all levels.

• The ability to influence in areas where one does not have direct control.

Desirable Knowledge and Skills

• Experience of working closely with the judiciary, and an interest in the workings of the courts and tribunals system more widely.

• Experience of working with departments, or closely alongside, on the development of policy issues.

• Experience in corporate communications

Private office roles are unpredictable and can require working long hours, including at short notice, particularly as meetings often need to take place before or after court. The general expectation is that the Head of Office will be in the office when the LCJ is in the Royal Courts of Justice. However, there is greater flexibility during vacation when there are significant opportunities to work from home.

Eligibility

The post is available to existing Grade 7s on lateral transfer and to other candidates on promotion. This post is not suitable for job-share or reduced hours working.

Location

This post is primarily based in London, at the Royal Courts of Justice but occasional travel will be required.

Length of Deployment

We are looking for the successful candidate to be in post as soon as possible. This is a permanent post.

How to apply

Written application

Experience

You will be asked to provide a 500 word CV demonstrating your suitability for the role, relevant experience, career history and achievements.

Behaviours

You will be asked to provide examples of how you have met the following behaviours:

• Delivering at Pace

• Managing a quality service

• Communicating and Influencing 

• Working Together

Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview. Please note, feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview.

Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out in person at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on the 7^th July 2025. 

During the panel interview, you will be asked behaviour-based questions to explore in detail what you are capable of, and strengths-based questions to also explore what you enjoy, and your motivations relevant to the job role. 

There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well. You can refer to the CS Strengths dictionary for more details.

If you wish to discuss the role before submitting an application, please contact Clare Farren (Clare.Farren@judiciary.uk) Deputy Director, Head of Judicial Private Offices.