Ministry of Justice

Directorate: Strategy, Analysis and Change 

Workstream:  Data, Analysis & Insight Team 

About us  

HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales. Our roles support our service users and colleagues, where people and businesses access potentially life-changing justice.  We’re looking for individuals who are committed to public service and want to make a difference in people’s lives in delivering justice. If you’re interested in developing a career with a real purpose, please apply. 

HMCTS has a vision to modernise and upgrade our justice system so that it works even better for everyone, from judges and legal professionals, to witnesses, litigants, and the vulnerable victims of crime. This will help consolidate the UK’s position at the forefront of an increasingly competitive international legal market as well as ensuring access to justice for all. This is an exciting time to join the organisation and be part of work to make a real difference. 

As part of this transformation, in 2021 HMCTS published its Data Strategyhttps://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1039270/HMCTS626_Data_Strategy_v3.pdf, setting out its ambitions to become a truly data-driven organisation. The Strategy, Analysis and Change (SA&C) directorate supports this strategy by enabling senior leaders to make strategic, data driven business decisions.   

The Data, Analysis & Insight (DAI) team is based in Strategy, Analysis and Change (SA&C) directorate and plays a key role in delivering the Data Strategy and supporting HMCTS’s overall service provision. We provide HMCTS, the MoJ and the Judiciary with timely, accurate and accessible operational management information and analysis that underpins strategic and operational decisions. To support this, we have built a new cloud-based strategic data platform and have transitioned to using Power BI and R for the delivery of data and analysis.   

About the role 

We are looking for an enthusiastic, resilient and resourceful individual to help HMCTS drive its Data Strategy forward and to lead our Data Governance Office. This strategy is one of the key enablers of the transformation of the courts and tribunals in England and Wales. 

As Data Governance Lead, you will be at the centre of our ambition to lead the management, and optimisation of HMCTS’s data assets using governance principles to ensure that data serves as a valuable resource that HMCTS can use to deliver justice. The successful candidate will use their data governance expertise, and technological understanding to help HMCTS make better decisions about how it collects, stores, uses and shares its data to achieve its strategic objectives, while ensuring data integrity, security, and compliance. 

The successful candidate will work closely with senior stakeholders in HMCTS and build relationships across HMCTS and the MOJ to gain a deep understanding of the use of data in government. You will direct and develop a team to drive improvements in the governance of HMCTS data, including developing your team to take on the responsibilities of a data governance office. You will lead a team of two SEOs and report directly to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery. The team will sit within the Data Analysis and Insight Division (DAI), which plays a key role in making HMCTS a data driven organisation.  

This role will give you a fantastic opportunity to build experience in data governance, enabling you to think strategically about how to use and manage data in an organisation that provides an essential public service.  

Your role as the Data Governance Lead will be accountable to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery and encompasses several key aspects (but not limited to): 

Shaping the strategic agenda for data governance improvement at HMCTS by: 

• Defining, implementing, and managing data governance frameworks, policies and standards in HMCTS. Including the design and implementation of practical data governance solutions to support organisational needs and reduce data risks. 

• Providing authoritative advice and updates to the Data Governance Committee (DGC) on plans to improve key aspects of data governance at HMCTS, including drafting high-quality papers and recommendations on implementing relevant policy guidance. 

• Leading on the establishment and management of Data Ownership responsibilities within HMCTS and establishing wider data governance competencies within the organisation (such as governance of metadata and data standards). 

• Leading on the governance for Master and Reference Data (MRD) maintenance and improvement, including the development and upkeep of documentation related to MRD processes, ensuring it is current and accessible to relevant users.  

• Collaborate with the HMCTS Data Quality team to develop an enhanced data quality structure and framework, ensuring that data quality aspects are integrated into decision-making processes about data and take responsibility for incorporating them into data governance frameworks. 

• Championing best practice approaches to data governance across HMCTS boundaries, to develop and maintain a wide stakeholder network and awareness of emerging best practices and understanding of the changing landscape. Utilise external engagement to stay abreast of evolving best practices, ensuring HMCTS remains at the forefront of data governance excellence.  

• Provide expert advice and drive the effective use of appropriate governance routes and boards to optimise the safety and value of data throughout the data life cycle. 

 Providing leadership to the Data Governance team by: 

• Drive a culture of service excellence within the team by providing leadership coaching, career development opportunities, and ensuring the team’s continuous professional development to maintain business and technical expertise.  

• Working creatively with the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery to improve the data governance framework and initiatives. 

• Driving and managing the implementation of processes to maintain and evolve data governance across the organisation over time. 

• Communicating the work of the Data Governance team to internal and external audiences to ensure the work is visible and understood. 

• Embed organisational values and behaviours within the team, ensuring wellbeing, inclusion, diversity and equality is at the forefront of all people activities. Ensuring staff understand how their performance contributes to the achievement of organisational objectives 

• Performing any other duties to support business needs in line with this grade and deputising for the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery when required. 

Please refer to the attached role profile for a comprehensive overview of the role. 

Who are we looking for? (Person Specification) 

The ideal candidate for this position should demonstrate:  

Essential  

• Data Governance. Demonstrable experience and knowledge of up-to-date data governance approaches, standard methodologies and practical considerations facing public sector organisations in the use of data. The ability to develop an end-to-end data governance framework, including processes, operational policies, and standards to support data management. Experience of working effectively with technical teams and other stakeholders to implement a data governance framework and providing recommendations to ensure compliance. 

• Data Management: Ability to follow organisational data governance, including policies on data access, sharing, dissemination and protection. Participate in or deliver data management across services or products and use appropriate data management tools, procedures, and methods with some support. 

• Data standards: Ability to use data policies, processes, and standards effectively, monitoring compliance with policies and standards in a team and act if needed to analyse the impact if a standard is breached. 

• Data Policy Development: Experience of working with subject matter experts to draft and develop standards, policies, and guidance to protect data. 

• Strong stakeholder management skills: Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to build and maintain strong working relationships with partners and stakeholders at senior levels, including the ability to work across boundaries to influence and gain confidence of senior project delivery leaders and sponsors to mutually agree solutions that manage competing priorities. 

• Excellent leadership skills: Experience of building and leading a team, including building capability data governance management functions. Ability to provide clear direction to staff, including staff outside your immediate reporting change, to ensure staff deliver complex outcomes on time and to specification. 

• Communication: Excellent oral and written communication skills, adaptable for different audiences. Capable of engaging confidently with senior officials to explain complex issues simply and clearly communicating processes to collaborators. Able to present complex issues concisely to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery, Data Strategy Delivery Groups, the Data Governance Committee and other senior leadership teams. 

• Delivering at Pace and in Ambiguity: Experience in making effective decisions quickly, delivering quality outcomes within tight deadlines, adapting to changing circumstances, managing competing priorities, and ensuring the delivery of high-quality products and advice. Experience of working with colleagues both internally and externally, to secure support and commitments to action from colleagues outside formal management hierarchy.  

Desirable 

• Experience of using and governing data within the justice sector. 

• Understanding of administrative data systems within the Justice system and the role it plays in decision making.  

Working pattern 

Due to the nature of the role, the minimum working hours is 30 hours per week.    

Travel requirements 

There is a requirement to travel frequently to London or any other HMCTS site in line with business needs.  

How to apply  

Application Stage  

Please submit; 

• An anonymised CV 

• Statement of suitability demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria (up to 750 words) 

• A behaviour example illustrating the Civil Service Behaviour - “Leadership” (up to 250 words). 

Please ensure you cover both ‘what’ you do but also ‘how’ you do it. (i.e., the effective skills, knowledge & experience needed to undertake the role) 

We will aim to sift the CV, statement of suitability and Leadership behaviour but, in the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift may be conducted on the Leadership behaviour only. Candidates who pass the initial sift of the Leadership behavior will either: 

• ⁠progress to a full sift where the Leadership behaviour and statement of suitability will then assessed. 

• ⁠or progress to a full sift where all application assessment criteria is then assessed in full. 

• progress straight to further interview. 

Interview Stage 

If successful at sift, you will be invited to attend a remote interview, via Microsoft teams. During your interview, you will be assessed against the following Civil Service Success Profiles which will include:  

• Leadership 

• Seeing the Bigger Picture 

• Communicating and Influencing 

• Making Effective Decisions 

About our benefits 

We reward our people for their hard work and commitment. We have a number of family friendly and flexible working polices that will help you achieve a healthy work-life balance. In addition, we offer a range of employee benefits which include generous annual leave, a highly competitive contributory pension scheme, childcare benefits, season ticket and bicycle loans. 

Proud to Serve. Proud to keep justice going.