Senior Ministerial Delivery Adviser

Job description

About the job

Job summary

This is a new and distinctive role focused on the top priorities for delivery in Children's Social Care and working at the heart of the Department for Education. As a senior adviser on delivery, the successful candidate will work closely with the Minister for Children and Families, senior officials and teams across DfE and government to accelerate progress against the Minister's agreed priorities. This is a fixed term appointment, with the opportunity to drive tangible change across the Children's Social Care portfolio and help change the lives of children and families across the country.

About Delivery Unit

The Delivery Unit, nested within a central Delivery Directorate, is dedicated to making successful delivery of ministerial priorities happen. It works with teams across DfE and government to strengthen plans, use data and frontline insight to interrogate performance, and solve problems to improve outcomes. The Delivery Unit is well established in DfE and is known for combining challenge and support, sharp problem-solving approaches and building capability in the teams it works with. This Senior Adviser on delivery will have a direct connection to the Minister for Children and Families and also a line into Delivery Unit. As such they will be able to draw upon the skills, capabilities, data and relationships across the department to drive progress.

Job description

The Senior Delivery Adviser will act as a trusted close adviser to the Minister for Children and Families on delivery of Children's Social Care reform. They will provide independent challenge, scrutiny, and alternative perspectives to the Minister on policy and delivery questions. They will work closely with the minister, private office, Delivery Unit, senior officials and teams across the department to translate ministerial ambitions into clear plans, track progress rigorously, identify problems early, lead and coordinate work to unblock delivery challenges across the entirety of the ministerial portfolio.

Responsibilities will include, but not limited to:

• Agree a focused work programme of work built around the Minister's priorities and working across the CSC portfolio; and execute that work programme, including but not limited to the areas below.
• Provide clear, evidence-led advice to the minister on delivery progress, risks, trade-offs and opportunities, while ensuring formal departmental advice remains owned and cleared by the responsible teams.
• Work with SROs and policy teams early in policy development to shape proposals, test deliverability, communicate the Minister's views and shape practical implementation approaches.
• Work with Delivery Unit to establish and participate in strong delivery disciplines for the portfolio in partnership with SROs, including ministerial stocktakes and official-level pre-briefs, securing clear actions, ownership and follow-through.
• Draw on Delivery Unit's capability to diagnose barriers, develop recommendations and support recovery where delivery is off track.
• Build trusted relationships with SROs, senior officials, delivery partners, local government and sector leaders, using influence and challenge to drive collective action.
• Gather, analyse and interpret qualitative and quantitative evidence from internal and external sources, translating it into concise, compelling products for senior decision-makers.
• Participate in Delivery Unit planning, prioritisation, review and learning routines to both enable successful impact in the role and contribute insight and learning back to the wider Unit, Directorate and department.
• Model the Directorate's values: simplify, kind, direct, connected and committed to high standards.

Accountability and ways of working

The Minister will set the priorities for the role, which will be translated into an agreed work programme, in consultation with, and with the support of, the Delivery Unit. This will be reviewed on a termly cadence to ensure it continues to meet ministerial requirements.

The postholder will sit and work closely with Private Office day to day. Private Office will coordinate access to the Minister, keep the Adviser sighted on wider priorities and diary commitments, and be kept informed of material engagement, risks and proposed interventions.

The Head of Delivery via a G6 team leader will provide line management and professional oversight linked to Delivery Unit standards and ways of working. This will ensure the adviser has the opportunity to access expertise, coaching and support to maximise their impact and manage their work during periods of leave or absence via the wider Delivery Unit team architecture.

The focus of the work will be delivering the agreed work programme. There may be occasions where routine activity - for example attendance at a Delivery Unit divisional meeting - may clash with activity for the minister. All parties will make best efforts to avoid these conflicts, but on the rare occasion they occur, the ministerial facing activity will take precedence.

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• Knowledge and experience of children's social care, including a strong understanding of the policy, delivery and sector context.
• A strong track record of delivering complex projects in different settings and of turning strategic ambition into measurable results.
• Excellent judgement, political awareness and credibility when advising Senior Leaders.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication, including the ability to present complex material clearly and compellingly to Senior Leaders.
• Proven ability to build trusted relationships, work collaboratively and influence senior partners across and beyond government while maintaining objectivity.
• Exceptional ability to use qualitative and quantitative evidence to answer complex questions at pace, identify the core issue and recommend practical action.

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience of local government, frontline children's services, sector improvement or system reform.

Desirable criteria will only be assessed at interview, in the event of a tie break situation, to make an informed decision.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £64,518, Department for Education contributes £18,690 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).

Applicants currently holding a permanent post in the Civil Service should note that, if successful, their salary on appointment would be determined by the Department's transfer / promotion policies.

As a member of the DfE, you will be entitled to join the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme, which many experts agree is one of the most generous in the UK.

You will have 25 days leave, increasing by 1 day every year to a maximum of 30 days after five years' service. In addition, all staff receive the King's Birthday privilege holiday and 8 days' bank and public holidays.

We offer flexible working arrangements, such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.

Most DfE employees will be working a hybrid pattern, spending at least 60% of their time in an office or work setting. Changes to these working arrangements are available in exceptional circumstances but must be agreed with the line manager and in line with the requirements of the role.

Travel to your primary office location will not be paid for by DfE, but costs for travel to an office which is not your main location will be covered.

As an organisation, which exists to support education and lifelong learning, we offer our staff excellent professional development opportunities.

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 Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

To apply for this role, please select 'Apply Now' at the top or bottom of this advert. CV details need to be included in the template within the application form; attached or emailed CVs will not be considered.

Stage 1: Written Application

At sift stage, you will be assessed on your Experience in line with the essential criteria listed in the person specification section of the job advert.

To apply for this role, please provide:

1. A Short CV setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role.
2. Your Statement of Suitability - In no more than 750 words, provide examples of how your personal skills, qualities and experience meet the essential criteria.

To confirm, the maximum word count for the statement of suitability is 750 words. Please adhere to this limit as anything over 750 words will not be taken into account.

The CV and Statement of Suitability will be assessed against the essential criteria detailed in the advert.

The sift will be restricted to just assessing personal statements in the event of a large volume of applications.

If candidates require reasonable adjustments during the application process, please allow sufficient time (at least 5 working days prior to the closing date) to allow us to review and progress your application to the next stage of the process.

Please note that there is no candidate support available from Friday 5pm until Monday 9am.

Once you have submitted your application it cannot be amended; only submit your application when you have completely finished, answered all the relevant questions and reviewed the information entered.

Application sifting will take place w/c 19 October 2026 onwards. Please note these dates are subject to change.

If you are successful at application sift stage, your application will be progressed onto Stage 2 part of the Selection process.

Stage 2: Presentation/Interview

The interview will be a 3-part process:

Part 1: Attend an in-person informal conversation with Minister for Children and Families. The fireside conversation is an opportunity for prospective candidates to meet with the minister. The minister will ask questions about experience relevant to the post. This stage of the process will not be assessed.

Part 2: Candidates invited to interview will also need to prepare a short presentation. The presentation brief will be sent with the invitation to interview. Please be prepared to answer follow up questions. The presentation will be assessed against the Essential Criteria listed above.

Part 3: The interview will last approximately 60 minutes. You will be asked questions on the Behaviours. We will also ask you Strengths based questions.

Behaviours are the actions and activities that people do which result in effective performance in a job. We want to get an understanding of the actions and activities that you have done (or would do) that result in effective performance.

Strengths are a way for Hiring Managers to understand what motivates you and what you enjoy doing, which helps the panel to understand your areas of strength. Evidence shows that people do better work when a job aligns well with what they enjoy and find motivating. We don't advertise which strengths we are going to assess you on as we want to be able to assess your first, natural response to the questions.

Interviews will take place towards the beginning of November 2026. Please note these dates are subject to change.

Interviews will be held over video conferencing using MS Teams. If you are invited to interview, please ensure that you have access to this software and that you have your video turned on. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We receive many applications, and unfortunately we're not able to provide feedback for candidates who aren't shortlisted. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

All communications will be electronic therefore it is vitally important that you check your Civil Service Jobs account regularly, as well as your spam/junk email folder.

Important Information

In your application, please don't include personal information that identifies you.

This means we can recruit based on your knowledge and skills, and not background, gender or ethnicity - it's called name blind recruitment (opens in a new window).

Please ensure that you remove from your application, all references to your:

• name/title
• educational institutions
• age
• gender
• email address
• postal address
• phone number
• nationality/immigration status

We reserve the right to raise the minimum pass mark in the event of a high volume or strong field of candidates.

Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK from the location options provided and not from overseas.

The government is committed to supporting apprenticeships, enabling people to learn and progress in a role whilst earning. We want to monitor the number of people who have completed apprenticeships who are now applying to progress further in their career and are asking this question to all candidates, on all vacancies. You will be asked a question as part of the application process about any previous apprenticeships you have completed. Your response to this question will not affect your application and it is not a requirement of the role to have completed a previous apprenticeship.

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 on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstance some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Department of Education of your intention by emailing [email protected] stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Department for Education do not cover the cost of travel to your interview/assessment unless otherwise stated.

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Candidates will be posted in merit order based upon location preference. Where more than one location is advertised you will be asked to state your preferred location.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

Terms and conditions of candidates transferring from ALBs and NDPBs

Bodies that are not accredited by the Civil Service Commission and are not able to advertise at Across Government on Civil Service jobs will be treated as external new starters and will come into DfE on modernised terms and conditions with a salary at the band minimum.

Bodies that are accredited by the Civil Service Commission but do not have civil service status will be offered modernised terms and will not have continuous service recognised for leave or sickness benefits. Salaries should be offered at band minimum, but there is some flexibility where this would cause a detriment to the individual.

Bodies that are accredited by the Civil Service Commission and do have Civil Service status will be treated as OGD transfers. Staff appointed on lateral transfer will move on to pre-modernised DfE terms (unless they were on modernised terms in their previous organisation). Staff appointed on promotion will move on to modernised DfE terms. Staff will transfer over on their existing salary (on lateral transfer) and any pay above the DfE pay band maximum will be paid as a mark time allowance. Staff moving on promotion will have their salaries calculated using the principles set out in the attached OGD transfer supplementary information.

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:

Contact Department of Education via [email protected] as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

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.

Please refer to the attached 'Reasonable Adjustments Guide 05_2025 - accessible version' at the bottom of the advert, for further information.

Childcare Vouchers

Any move to Department for Education (DfE) will mean you will no longer be able to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/

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

Security

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

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.

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 : Central Strategy and Delivery Office
• Email : [email protected]

Recruitment team

• Email : [email protected]

Further information

The Department for Education's recruitment processes are underpinned by the Civil Service Commissioners Recruitment Principles, which outlines that selection for appointment is made on merit based on fair and open competition. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles. In the first instance, you should raise the matter directly with the department concerned via [email protected]. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages