About the job

Job summary

The Head of Learning Delivery operates at a strategic level, playing a crucial role in ensuring that DWP people get the right learning they need, at the right time, to deliver customer service that can at times be complex and delivered to the most vulnerable people in the country. 

For this role you will need passion, resilience and enjoy the challenge of building both individual and organisational capacity and confidence; being proud that you are making a significant difference to citizens of the UK through such a key area of DWP People Strategy. 

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the society that we serve. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and that they belong.     

Working for DWP - Department for Work and Pensions - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)  will give you more information about what we do.  

Job description

The successful candidate will be part of a wider senior leadership community both within the Learning Design and Delivery team and form part of the Capability Learning and Talent leadership team.  This community is heavily involved in horizon scanning on future capability requirements, methodologies and opportunities to co-create with stakeholders and learning professionals from all sectors, new capability solutions fit for the future. 

Working with and gaining confidence of people will be a key part of your daily role.  Whether this be driving an inclusive, engaging environment for your people to work in, where diversity is celebrated or with a multitude of local and national stakeholders with varying priorities, including conversations about capability requirements and solutions. 

A short overview by the Deputy Director is provided within the candidate pack to give you a flavour of Learning Design and Delivery.  

What will you be doing? 

The successful candidate will lead a team of over 600 learning professionals, based across the UK whose primary role is to plan and deliver large volumes of high-quality learning services to over 80,000 colleagues in DWP. 

The delivery team you directly lead is made up of a mix of grades and job roles. You will be responsible for driving a people agenda in your teams that is inclusive and embraces diversity. This includes building the capability of every member of your team to deliver blended learning solutions, including virtual and Face to Face delivery.  This people agenda will also include the ongoing journey of professionalisation of your team.   

Managing a complex layer of stakeholders across DWP, with a variety of priorities will be an essential part of your role as a senior leader. This will enable your teams to deliver local continuous learning interventions, utilising modern and innovative methods. 

Travel will be required, including occasional overnight stays.   

Person specification

The key criteria for this role are: 

• As a leader of people, you will provide visible and strong leadership, building and setting a clear direction for a high-performing team to deliver challenging outcomes through collaboration with others.  This includes management of a geographically dispersed team, ensuring that members are clear about expected standards of performance, are motivated and professionally developed to provide excellent services.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with an ability to build trust-based relationships with a wide range of demanding and diverse senior stakeholders.  You will be comfortable constructively and effectively challenging stakeholders and working collaboratively with senior leadership teams, to provide Learning expertise and support.  You will possess good planning skills, able to balance activities, which enhance and promote a continuous learning culture. 
• Highly organised, demonstrating a personal resilience.  Adaptable to change and able to work flexibly, often under pressure, ensuring aims and objectives are realised and key stakeholders kept informed. 
• You will be able to collaboratively prioritise, multitask, and deliver on competing priorities whilst keeping yourself and others focused.  You ensure risks are identified and actions taken to avoid delay. 
• You will have involvement in strategic Capability, Learning and Development principles, solutions, and implementation - preferably in large scale environment, combined with excellent attention to detail and communication skills. 

Desirable Criteria 

• CIPD Advanced Award in Learning and Talent Management (AALTD LEVEL 7) 
• CIPD Level 7 Diploma in Strategic Learning and Development, or equivalent. 

• For jobs located in Wales, the ability to speak Welsh 

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%

Location

Applicants should apply for suitable posts where they can travel to and from their home office location daily within a reasonable time.   

Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Relocation costs will not be reimbursed. 

Hybrid Working

This job role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home.  This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

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

Selection will be by a written sift, followed by a virtual video interview.  

Sift and interview dates to be confirmed. Our indicative timelines show that sifting will start from 25th March 2024 and last 1 week.  We plan for interviews to start from week commencing 22nd April 2024 for 1 week. Please note this is an indicative timeline and may be subject to change.

Written Sift 

As part of the application process, you will be asked to answer 3 questions, using no more than 1000 words in total, detailing the relevant skills and experience you can bring to the role, based on the key criteria stated above.  Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form. 

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the Lead Question (Q1).  Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview. 

Question 1  

Explain how you ensured consistency of performance and capability when leading a large nationwide geographically based team of mixed experience and managerial levels. (Lead Question) 

Question 2 

Give an example of when you have had to work across peers and stakeholders to manage work demands that exceeded the capacity of you and your teams. 

Question 3 

What is your best example of building capability in an organisation. 

Personal Statement 

When answering the 3 questions, please read and understand the Key Criteria thoroughly as this is what your written evidence will be assessed against. 

Please ensure you evidence the key personal requirements and what you have done that relates to these requirements. You don’t have to explain the whole process, just what you have done and the skills and experience you have used. Share with us why you are most suited to this role, what you can do, the skills you have that are transferable to the key requirements, and the life experiences or passion you have that are linked to this role. 

CV

The CV is an on-line tool accessed through the Civil Service Jobsite and there is no requirement to upload your personal CV. Our CV element is short and allows an initial check of eligibility. This will be for information purposes only and will not be scored. Therefore, please put the main content of your evidence and skills in your Personal Statement answers.

If you withdraw your application at any stage, it will not be progressed any further. 

Preparing for the interview 

Please note that interviews will be via video link using Microsoft Teams and you will need to use your personal device to access the video link. You will receive a link to join the interview through the email account you provide us with on your application. 

The Interview 

This should take approximately 45-60 minutes. You will be asked to present photographic identification to the Panel Chair as a preliminary step before the interview commences.  

A blended interview aims to be more of a conversation at interview offering a more inclusive approach. You will be asked a mixture of Behaviour and Strength questions – starting with a 5-minute presentation on the behaviour, Communicating and Influencing (no visual aids are required).  The presentation question will be provided in advance. 

Questions for the behaviours will be provided 7 days prior to your interview. 

The Strength and Behaviour based questioning explores what the candidate can and has done, but also their potential. 

An example of a Behavioural question would be “tell me about a time when you’ve had to deal with a difficult customer”. It may help to use one or more examples of a piece of work you have completed or a situation you have been in, and use the WHO or STAR model to explain: 

What was the task, How you approached the work/situation and what the Outcomes were, what did you achieve? Or What was the Situation? That were the Tasks? What Action did you take? What were the Results of your actions? 

Behaviours assessed for this role are: 

• Communicating and Influencing 
• Leadership 
• Managing a Quality Service 
• Working Together 

It is difficult to prepare for strength type questions, however you can think through your answers, focus on your achievements and aspects you enjoy and decide how these can be applied in the organisation and role. 

While strengths questions are shorter and we do not expect a full STAR response, the panel is interested in your first reaction to the question and information or reasoning to support this. 

After the interview  

Once all interviews have been completed, candidates will be notified of the outcome by email and through your Civil Service Jobs account.   

The successful candidate for the initial post offered will be contacted regarding their preferred location. If you are able to accept this provisional offer, pre-employment checks will commence and once they are cleared, the vacancy holder will contact you with details of a start date. 

Please note that for some of the locations currently listed in this vacancy, we may not be able to immediately offer a position based on the needs of the business at the time.  

You will be asked to complete a location preference with up to three choices.

Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.

Further Information

Find out more about Working for DWP

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

Any move to DWP from another employer will mean you can no longer access 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

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 or Disclosure Scotland on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. 

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk 

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

Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing.

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action.

Reasonable Adjustment

At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce.

We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:Contact Government Recruitment Service via DWPRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the “Reasonable Adjustments” 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.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a 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.