Deputy Head of Digital Communications

Deputy Head of Digital Communications

• Salary: National: £57,670 - £64,500. If the successful candidate is a current Civil Servant joining on level transfer, HM Treasury will honour their current substantive salary if higher.
• Contract Type: Permanent
• Working Pattern: This post is available on a full time, part time or job share basis, and flexible working hours can be accommodated.
• Location: Darlington (Feethams House)

Are you passionate about digital communications? This is a pivotal leadership role within one of government’s highest-profile digital teams. Working closely with senior Cabinet Ministers, you will bring major announcements to life for the public—translating complex policy into clear, accurate and engaging content.

About the Team

The Ministerial and Communications Group sits at the heart of the Treasury. If you are interested in the inner workings of the Government, meeting Ministers, Senior Officials and liaising with the Press then this could be the place for you! We are a friendly and inclusive Group working on some of the most exciting issues of the day, bringing together work from across the rest of the department and engaging closely with partners across Whitehall and beyond. We provide support to Ministers, through Ministerial offices. We act as Treasury's external face, through the Press Office and Communications team. We are responsible for managing the department, through our support for the Permanent Secretary, the Second Permanent Secretaries, the Treasury Board, and the Executive Management Board (EMB), and our ownership of Treasury governance structures. The Group is led by the Permanent Secretary

About the Job

The Deputy Head of Digital Communications will provide operational leadership for HM Treasury's multi-disciplinary digital team, managing five Senior Executive Officers and their teams. This is a pivotal leadership role in one of government's highest-profile digital teams. You will oversee day-to-day operations, providing first-line quality control with excellent attention to detail and political instincts. You will be a natural collaborator, working closely with colleagues across media, strategy, events and policy teams. You will foster a collaborative culture within the team and beyond, building bridges and breaking down silos. You will deputise for the Head of Digital Communications when required and lead performance management and talent development. With broad expertise across digital disciplines – not just one specialism – you will be passionate about digital communications and ideally have practical content creation skills to support the team hands-on when needed.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop five Senior Executive Officers and their teams across digital partnerships, content production, social media and GOV.UK publishing.
• Manage resource allocation, workflow coordination and capacity planning across competing priorities.
• Work collaboratively with media, strategy, events and policy teams to integrate digital into wider communications planning.
• Provide first-line quality control and clearance, ensuring high standards and compliance with Civil Service Code
• Apply political instincts and attention to detail to spot risks and opportunities in content before publication.
• Lead performance management, setting objectives and providing regular feedback.
• Create a culture of excellence, innovation and collaboration, identifying development opportunities and supporting career progression.
• Build strong relationships with Private Offices, special advisers, policy officials and press teams.
• Deputise for the Head of Digital Communications with senior stakeholders when required.
• Manage relationships with external suppliers, agencies and partners.
• Support delivery of major campaigns and fiscal events, taking operational ownership of planning and coordination.
• Stay ahead of digital trends and bring fresh ideas to the team.

Person specification and essential criteria

• Significant experience leading digital communications in a high-profile, fast-moving environment, with responsibility for coordinating delivery across multiple channels and priorities.
• You are confident leading and developing teams through others, setting clear expectations, managing performance and building capability across a range of digital disciplines.
• Strong judgement and attention to detail and can provide effective quality control and clearance in politically sensitive or reputationally important situations.
• Build strong, collaborative relationships with senior stakeholders and partner teams, and can influence decisions while balancing strategic goals, delivery pressures and governance requirements.
• Bring broad digital communications expertise and are comfortable being hands-on when needed, ideally with practical content creation skills as well as the ability to spot opportunities for innovation and improvement.

Desirable criteria

• Practical content creation skills, for example drafting or editing copy, overseeing asset production, or shaping content directly when needed.
• Experience managing high-profile or sensitive communications where accuracy, judgement and reputational risk are critical.

About You

We are looking for your experience in leading the operational delivery of a high-profile comms package across digital channels, including coordination, governance/clearance, and measurable impact. We want you to demonstrate how you have led a team or function through others and how you have influenced senior stakeholders to agree an approach in a sensitive or contested situation, using evidence and clear trade-offs. We would also be looking for you to show time-critical decisions you have made under uncertainty and risk (accuracy, propriety, reputational impact), the options you weighed, and the outcome.

Some of the Benefits our people love!

• 25 days annual leave (rising to 30 after 5 years), plus 8 public holidays and the King’s birthday (unless you have a legacy arrangement as an existing Civil Servant). Additionally, we operate flexitime systems, allowing employees to take up to an additional 2 days off each month.
• Flexible working patterns (part-time, job-share, condensed hours)
• Generous parental and adoption leave packages.
• Access to a generous Defined Benefit pension scheme with employer contributions of 28%
• Access to a cycle-to-work salary sacrifice scheme and season ticket advances.
• A range of active staff networks, based around interests (e.g. analysts, music society, sports and social club) and diversity.

For more information about the role and how to apply, please follow the apply link.