About the job

Job summary

Our Deputy Director, Security Architecture is the Head of the Security Architecture profession, helping to protect the MoJ’s digital services. They work with the Security Architects and Technical Architects across the MoJ’s agencies to design robust Security solutions, manage and mitigate security risks, assess the overall threat landscape and test for vulnerabilities.

The Deputy Director, Security Architecture works within the Chief Technology Office and alongside the Chief Information Security Officer, within an overarching MoJ Cyber Security Strategy to manage and mitigate risks, reducing the MoJ information security risk flight path and improving our cyber security capability maturity.

The role is accountable for the design of security solutions and product selection of all digital security products, through appropriate technology governance.  They determine appropriate approaches and controls to improve and protect MoJ’s digital services. Their decisions, judgement and solutions mitigate security risks and reduce the impact of any security incidents.

The Deputy Director, Security Architecture provides mentoring within teams and provides peer support to other architects. There may be line management of resources.

They have a good understanding of a broad range of technologies and cyber security products. They are able to converse easily with and translate between non-technical stakeholders and technical practitioners.

This is a Nationally based role

Job description

For full details about the Role, Key Responsibilities and Person Specification, please download and review the Candidate Information pack

Person specification

• Acting as Head of Profession for Security Architects and providing leadership for Security Architecture.
• Working with the Chief Information Security Officer and Chief Technology Officer to refresh the overall MoJ Cyber Security Strategy.
• Establishing security principles and standards.
• Leading the design of security blueprints, patterns and solutions to protect MoJ services and limiting the impact of any compromise.
• Leading the design of solutions to improve detection of security compromises.
• Establishing appropriate processes and governance for critical services to meet the Government’s Secure by Design framework.
• Holding overall ownership and management of the Security risks, including ensuring that mitigation steps are in place for the most critical risks
• Providing management of the MoJ Offensive Security (Red) Team and providing security status reporting.
• Acting as advisor, escalation point and authority on security infrastructure.
• Working with other Architects to encourage knowledge sharing and collaboration
• Engaging across the MoJ and government to share best practice.
• Guiding and influencing technical choices and seeking out opportunities for digital transformation.
• Assuring services and system quality, ensuring the technical work fits into the broader strategy, standards and principles for the MoJ, and
• Supporting the recruitment process, including taking part in recruitment for both Security Architects, Technical Architects and other professions such as Software Developers.

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.

Please view our candidate information pack for full details about the role, key responsibilities person specification, and the criteria you will be assessed against throughout the recruitment process. If you are interested in this exciting opportunity, and feel that you meet the criteria, we would welcome your application.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £75,000, Ministry of Justice contributes £20,925 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.For full details about the Role, Key Responsibilities and Person Specification, please download and review the Candidate Information pack

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

Security

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.