About the job

Job summary

The direction of travel on nuclear policy has been a dramatic increase in the requirement for, and complexity of, UK thinking on deterrence issues. This role will focus on delivering core deterrence policy, NATO and International engagement on nuclear issues, education and outreach across His Majesty’s Government into civil society and academia.

You will be responsible for overall development and delivery of the policy advice and decision support, ensuring that the UK’s deterrent remain credible and effective for the long term. This is a critical time and an excellent window of opportunity, between now and 2026, for someone to lead the team and ensure that we set the programme correctly for the next three decades. You will work at a high level of classification and support the most senior decision-making bodies in Government. You will also make policy provide distil advice and set the direction for these bodies in conjunction with the Cabinet Office.

You will manage up to nine civil servants within a multidisciplinary team, combining policy development, programme management and capability development functions. It will be your responsibility to ensure we deliver results against all three areas under demanding deadlines.

Job description

The Future Deterrence Policy role is a new position intended to deliver the work necessary to assure the UK’s nuclear deterrence for the long term. The main objectives are:

• Lead a team to develop advice for the National Security Council (NSC) on how the UK’s nuclear deterrent should evolve in response to the more challenging strategic environment.
• Oversee the delivery of the Future Deterrence Programme, consisting of 11 separate work strands designed to assure the delivery of the strategic deterrent for the long term. 
• Develop and assess a range of policy and capability options, including in collaboration with international partners, in order to support senior decision making and subsequently to develop to Strategic Outline Case.
• Review the underpinning assumptions of the UK’s approach to strategic deterrence, ensuring that they are fit for the future.

The key deliverables are:

• A clear and agreed direction on our future requirement for nuclear deterrence capabilities, to inform Spending Review, NSC and Integrated Review decision making
• A successful programme to deliver the early capability scoping, evidence base, policy thinking and intelligence support to secure the UK deterrent for the long term.
• Completion of the pre-concept work on a range of classified capability options as directed by the Nuclear Small Group and subsequently to progress those approved to Strategic Outline Case.

Person specification

The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate their experience and skills against the following essential criteria:

• Extensive experience of working on national security issues, with a strong understanding of the theory of nuclear deterrence.
• Demonstratable experience of working on programme delivery in a national and/or international security context.
• Excellent leadership skills with an ability to create and present a compelling vision and set clear direction, that motivates and empowers others to work towards a common goal. You will also need to demonstrate how you are able to build and lead diverse high-performing teams in a matrixed environment.
• Proven experience of senior stakeholder management in a political, pressured environment and evidence of building a network of relationships, both Nationally and Internationally. You will need to showcase your excellent influencing skills with the credibility to command the trust and confidence of senior officials.
• Comfortable making decisions and setting direction without having the full picture; applying knowledge and experience to reduce ambiguity. You will also need to demonstrate your ability to defend your decision making and challenge senior stakeholders, especially at Board Level.

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Things you need to know

Selection process details

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online application process accessed via the advertisement listed for this role. This should be completed no later than 23:55 on Sunday 4th February 2024 and will involve providing the two documents outlined below via the Civil Service Jobs portal:

• A CV (no more than 2 pages) setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
• A Personal Statement (no more than 2 pages) explaining how your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role. 

Both documents are weighted equally in their scoring, so it's important to consider this when uploading your application. Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification. 

For further information about the role and full application process, please refer to the candidate pack attached below. If you wish to receive any material in a different format for accessibility, then please contact People-CivHR-SCSCandidateSupport@mod.gov.uk.

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is developed vetting (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

Open to UK nationals only.

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.