Head of Implementation Unit

Grade 6

Strategy, Priorities and Innovation Directorate

The MoJ’s central Strategy, Priorities and Innovation Directorate (SPI) is recruiting for a Head of Innovation Unit (grade 6). This campaign is being run internally to the civil service and so is open to all civil servants who consider themselves suitable for the role and meet the eligibility criteria in the wider advert within Civil Service Jobs.

Location:

Successful candidates will have the option to be based at one of the following HQ locations:

1. 102 Petty France, London

2. 5 Wellington Place, Leeds (occasional travel between Leeds and London may be required)

For SPI to meet its evolving business needs all staff are expected to attend their base location (102 Petty France or 5 Wellington Place Leeds) at least 2 days a week. This hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend their base location more frequently.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)

MoJ is one of the largest government departments, employing over 90,000 people, with a budget of over £10 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services across the UK - including at 500 courts and tribunals, and over 100 prisons in England and Wales.

Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

The Strategy, Priorities and Innovation Directorate

The Strategy, Priorities and Innovation Directorate sits at the heart of MoJ, and we work collaboratively to provide strategic, systems leadership across the MoJ, embedding longer-term thinking, supporting effective governance and surging high-capability teams into priorities for the justice system.

The Directorate is made up of several functions, including the MoJ’s Implementation Unit, Strategy Unit, innovation function, priority projects team and Board secretariat, that combine to surface, help establish and collectively embed strategic justice system priorities. We:

• Shape long-term strategic outcomes for the justice system

• Promote efficient integration across the MoJ family to serve the justice system

• Connect the justice system across the public sector and wider partners

The Implementation Unit

This is an exciting opportunity to lead the Implementation Unit, which sits at the strategic centre of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The team carry out deep-dives to support ministerial priorities, engaging with front-line staff and service users to better understand implementation issues and support the development of deliverable policies.

To inform our project findings we blend policy skills, data analysis and gather evidence from the frontline. We experiment with new technologies, tools and methodologies. We present our findings to Ministers and senior decision-makers, providing evidence-based recommendations and actions to improve policy implementation in priority areas.

The team has a wide range of experience - some have worked in different parts of MoJ and other government departments, while others have joined from outside the Civil Service. We have a friendly, supportive and collaborative team culture and invest heavily in learning and development. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and pride ourselves as being an employer of choice. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace, visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

The Role

As Head of the Implementation Unit, you will have the opportunity to build relationships and influence at the heart of the department and within the centre of government. The areas you work on will make a real difference to the department and those we provide services to. There will be a high degree of independent work and close engagement with senior stakeholders across the MoJ. 

You will:

• Provide leadership and set direction for the Implementation Unit including developing the Implementation Unit’s project pipeline, aligned with Ministerial priorities, drawing on an understanding of the big issues for the justice system and the wider political context. 

• Lead teams undertaking fieldwork ensuring they deliver high quality products and communicate project findings clearly and persuasively to Ministers and other senior stakeholders, using excellent oral and written communication skills. 

• Build and maintain strong networks across the department, navigating through complexity and disagreement.

• Be an active member of the senior leadership team, delivering an inclusive and positive working culture across all teams in the directorate.

• Champion the use of technology and innovative methodologies, learning from other departments and organisations and build capability across your team and the department, leading training sessions on Implementation Unit skills.

Skills and Experience

• Leadership - you will be an open and engaging leader, committed to building an inclusive and innovative culture within your team and the wider directorate and playing an active leadership and management role across the directorate and the MoJ, including setting direction for the team and supporting their development. 

• Building relationships - building strong interpersonal relationships and networks across the department and beyond to build the profile of the team and ensure that its work has maximum impact; being open to challenge and effectively navigating conflicting priorities. 

• Communication - understanding and clearly articulating complex issues to senior stakeholders and ministers, drawing on your understanding of the bigger picture to ensure communications are clear, effective and relevant. 

• Delivering projects - taking responsibility for project delivery and being accountable for outcomes and the quality of your team’s work; experience of effectively scoping, planning and managing delivery, mastering new areas quickly and supporting others to do the same.   

• Decision making - experience of managing large amounts of sometimes conflicting or incomplete information to make clear recommendations which take account of the broader context. 

Desirable

• Knowledge of the justice system. It would be beneficial for you to have existing experience of working in or alongside the justice system, including an insight into relevant policy and operational issues and the existing ways of working of the department and its agencies.

We may consider any evidence within the application form that demonstrates meeting the desirable criteria as set out in the job description. This will only be after essential criteria is scored and where there is a need to differentiate between closely scored candidates.

Application process

You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.

You will need to submit an anonymised CV and Statement of Suitability as part of your

application.

Your CV should be no more than two pages long and should show us your work history and

previous experience. It should be well structured, succinct, and written in clear language.

Your statement of suitability should be no more than 750 words and should demonstrate how you meet the skills and experience needed for this role, as set out above. Consider

giving examples that cover all the requirements and use work you have completed to

demonstrate your experience.

In the event of a large volume of applications, an initial sift will be carried out using the statement of suitability.

Candidates invited to Interview

You will be required to give a 5-minute presentation at interview. Details of this will be sent to those candidates invited for interview.

In addition to the presentation, you will be asked by the interview panel to provide examples of how you meet the behaviours listed below.

1. Leadership

2. Working Together

3. Making Effective Decisions

Interviews are expected to take place from July/August 2025.

Candidates applying from HMPPS should note that the Ministry of Justice does not have the same conditions of employment as HMPPS. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful. 

Contact information  

We will be running a Candidate Awareness Session on the 26^th of June 15:30 - 16:00. Here, you can find out more about the role and what it is like working in our team, If you would like to join please email Mark Zdybel, Mark.Zdybel@justice.gov.uk

For more bespoke questions, please contact: Rosalind Goodfellow, rosalind.goodfellow@justice.gov.uk