Policy Adviser - Strategy Unit

Job description

About the job

Job summary

If you're interested in making a difference to people's lives, the Treasury can offer you an exciting opportunity to influence decision making that affects the whole of the UK. Working at the heart of government, we collaborate across government to promote responsible public spending and drive strong and sustainable economic growth.

Our work ranges from protecting customers through the regulation of the financial sector, helping to reduce carbon emissions and creating a greener economy, to promoting British trade around the world and supporting people across the country on jobs, growth and more.

We are part of the Darlington Economic Campus, a cross-government hub bringing people together to tackle key national issues while working closer to the communities we serve.

Job description

This is a fascinating, stretching and high-profile role in HMT's Strategy Unit. We are recruiting for an ambitious, proactive, committed and intellectually curious postholder, who wants to develop their career, learn new skills and test themselves in a fast-paced and influential team.

The successful candidate will work closely with our Permanent Secretaries and Directors General on the issues which matter most to the continued effectiveness of the Treasury, and to be at the centre of decision-making on the Treasury's future. We will give you the support and development opportunities to thrive.

You'll need to have excellent judgement and be comfortable both presenting your ideas to senior colleagues and working closely with them to shape and deliver their priorities. Ideally, you will be passionate about public service and the opportunity to improve the way the Treasury works, delivering better outcomes for the country and its citizens.

The nature of our work means this role can and will change over time, in line with Ministers' and senior officials' priorities. We flex projects and portfolios around individuals' strengths, experiences and interests where possible, and review our approach as a team on a quarterly basis.

However, to provide some flavour, expected accountabilities in this role are likely to include:

1. Coordinating the department's approach to prioritising its work, setting out what the Treasury wants to achieve and how we plan to achieve it, including through collaborating closely with senior officials (EMB) and Ministers.
2. Supporting decisions to match HMT's resources with its priorities, including through our 'Business Planning' process. This will include working closely with the department's Finance Director and Strategy Director.
3. Supporting the development of the department's organisational strategy, helping lead our thinking about how the Treasury can become more effective and efficient. This will include producing briefings and advice that help senior officials and Ministers make decisions on the topic. This cuts across every aspect of the Treasury's work and provides an opportunity to work with senior officials and Ministers to influence the direction of the department.
4. Taking ownership for scoping, planning, driving and evaluating discrete projects, often commissioned by senior stakeholders. This will involve rapidly developing knowledge of new issues to support robust and evidence-based solutions and advice.
5. Providing a secretariat function for senior meetings, including our monthly Directors' Forum.
6. Establishing and maintaining relationships with internal and external stakeholders, representing the work of the Strategy Unit and HM Treasury.

This role is the perfect springboard for a successful career at HM Treasury, bringing you into regular contact with senior officials and giving you an excellent grounding in how the department works. Previous members of the team have gone on to policy roles in our priority projects unit, tax teams and growth teams.

We are keen to see a wide range of applications, including from people with backgrounds both inside and outside of government. So, if this job sounds exciting, please do apply and give us the chance to consider you for this role!

Candidate Drop-In Session

The hiring manager will be running a candidate drop-in session to give you greater insight about the role and HM Treasury and ask any questions you might have. If you would like to join us, use the link below to join the call at the right time.

Friday 28th August 2026, 11:00am-12:00

https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/371986318736277?p=cH9i9DzMp6s1vDZjeI

If you would like to speak to the hiring manager informally prior to the closing date, please contact Sara Gracey, [email protected]

Visa sponsorship is not available for this role.

Person specification

Application Stage

Application Form

Applications should consist of a CV including your employment history, and a 1000-word personal statement setting out how you meet the shortlisting criteria below. Your CV and employment history won't be scored. It's used to give context to your application and support discussions at interview.

The panel will review applications and invite those that best demonstrate evidence of the shortlisting criteria for interview. Please keep this in mind when writing your application.

Please note that only applications submitted through Civil Service Jobs will be accepted.

1000 Word Personal Statement. Please spend the first c.750 words focusing on:

• Ability to think and act strategically. You find opportunities to deliver effective change, suggesting innovative ideas to further the team's work and thinking creatively to solve difficult problems. You demonstrate an appreciation for the broader context in which we work. You are capable of reading organisational dynamics and using multiple sources of evidence to make decisions.
• Capability delivering in a fast-paced environment. You consistently deliver high-quality work to tight deadlines. You should proactively take ownership of your work, planning and prioritising across your portfolio. You are capable of progressing multiple pieces of work at the same time.
• Comfort building and maintaining relationships. You gain the trust of senior stakeholders and partner teams, while actively supporting your colleagues. You communicate clearly and persuasively with senior stakeholders, including through public speaking.

Please spend the final c.250 words focusing on:

• How you think HM Treasury could change to become a more effective department. Please draw on your knowledge of HM Treasury's remit and goals. You do not need to have experience working in HM Treasury to answer this question - excellent answers could be based on publicly available information and commentary and/or lean on experience of engaging with the Treasury from the private sector, third sector, wider public sector or another government department.

Interview Stage

If you are successful at the application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed against the following criteria:

• Experience
• Strengths

Interview Task / Presentation

Prior to your interview, we will contact you about a task / presentation that the panel would like you to deliver as part of the assessment. Further details will be communicated to you nearer the time.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £44,600, HM Treasury contributes £12,920 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).

• Generous Annual Leave - 25 days (rising to 30 after 5 years), plus public holidays and the King's birthday.
• Outstanding Pension Scheme - Defined Benefit pension with employer contributions of 28.97%
• Parental Leave Packages - Including 6 months' occupational pay for maternity/adoption, shared parental leave options.
• Flexible & Hybrid Working - Options include part-time, job-share, compressed hours, flexitime, and hybrid working (where business needs allow).
• Advance Schemes & Discounts - Rental deposit, cycle-to-work, SmartTech, season ticket loans, and access to HM Treasury's benefits portal for a wide range of discount codes.

You can review HM Treasury's full offer here.

Things you need to know

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

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Strengths and Experience.

Please review the candidate guidance for an overview of the Success Profiles and STAR approach, along with top tips for applications and interviews.

Recruitment Timeline

• Closing date: Sunday 13th September 2026 before 23:55
• Shortlisting: Friday 18th September 2026
• Interviews: w/c 5th October 2026

This timeline is indicative and may be subject to change. We will inform you if there is a substantial change to the recruitment timeline.

If your contact details change at any time during the selection process, please ensure you update your Civil Service Jobs Profile.

Reserve Lists

You will be placed on a reserve list if your application is successful, but we cannot offer you a role immediately. Where more than one location has been advertised, candidates will be posted in merit order by location. You will be asked to provide your location preference on your application form. Please note that a place on the reserve list does not guarantee an offer.

If you are offered a role in your first preferred location and you decline the offer or are unable to take up the post within a reasonable timeframe, you will be removed from the reserve list, other than in exceptional circumstances.

Those on the reserve list may also be approached for similar roles at a lower grade. If you are offered a role at a lower grade and choose to decline, you can remain on the reserve list.

Internal Fraud Database Check

Candidates cannot apply to roles in the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

Successful candidates will be subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database. This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This also applies to those who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the database will be refused employment.

National Security Vetting

Everyone working with government assets must complete Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) checks. Additionally, successful candidates will be subject to National Security Vetting. The level of security vetting required for this role is Security Check (SC).

To allow for meaningful checks to be carried out, applicants will need to have lived in the UK for at least 3 out of the past 5 years. You will be asked to provide residency information within your application form, and eligibility for national security vetting will be checked once the advert closing date has passed. In certain circumstances, for example if you have been working abroad on a government posting, a lack of residency would not be a bar to security clearance however the Department will need to consider eligibility on a case-by-case basis once the advert closing date has passed.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security 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 EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Sara Gracey
• Email : [email protected]

Recruitment team

• Email : [email protected]

Further information

Complaints Process: Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of appointment based on fair and open competition and appointment on merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners' Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact HMT by email at: [email protected]. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.