Head Of Data Insights

Details

Reference number

368975

Salary

£62,605 - £75,965

National: £62,605 - £70,319; London: £67,640 - £75,965

A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

GBP

Job grade

Grade 6

Contract type

Permanent

Type of role

Analytical

Strategy

Working pattern

Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time

Number of jobs available

1

Contents

• Location

• About the job

• Benefits

• Things you need to know

• Apply and further information

Location

National

About the job

Job summary

Do you excel at influencing others and providing leadership across business, data, and people management? Are you skilled at visualising complex data, promoting innovation, and achieving excellence while guiding your team towards a common strategy?

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is a pivotal executive agency of the UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) and is dedicated to safeguarding the UK's animal and plant health. With a team of over 3,000 professionals operating across 85 sites including laboratories, offices, and field depots, we are committed to advancing research and regulatory practices that protect both the environment and economy. Our role is critical in maintaining the UKs biosecurity standards alongside facilitating trade worth Billions to the UK economy.

Job description

Reporting to Kate McHugh, Head of Data and Information Unit within the Strategy, Innovation & Planning Directorate, you will help lead the implementation of APHA's Sustainable Futures Strategy. This is a critical role focusing on transforming the agency into a data-driven organisation that can identify emerging threats, manage risk, and optimise resources to respond to animal and plant disease. The Sustainable Futures strategy represents a significant transformation for APHA, and your leadership will be essential in achieving its objectives. Further details are in the candidate pack.

The role offers the opportunity to collaborate with senior leaders in a newly established Data and Information Unit, revolutionising APHA's approach to performance and insight, giving us the tools we need to work smarter by bringing a fresh perspective and establishing the foundations for our future data use. You will work alongside specialists and IT professionals to modernise data collection and visualisation, helping to develop agency-wide analysis, performance scorecards and insightful reports.

With your expertise, you will guide APHA in effectively using data, enhancing analytical capabilities, and ensuring best practices are followed and youll play a key role in improving data management and exploitation across the agency.

Key Responsibilities include (but are not limited to):

• Strategic Leadership: Set the vision for data insights, performance, and visualisations. Work closely with senior leaders to advance APHA's data maturity, making sound recommendations based on complex data. Lead on data domain analysis and insight with responsibility for three key areas: analysis including spatial analysis, product management including demand modelling and corporate scorecards, data domain including multiple systems and specialist areas to support biosecurity and trade.

• Data Visualisation: Oversee the creation of effective data visualisations, dashboards, and reports that convey complex insights in a clear and understandable way. Lead APHA's transition to advanced data insights, creating a roadmap for performance analytics and modernising data processes. Oversee the creation of clear, effective visualisations that support key decisions.

• Product Development: Manage the development of agency-wide products, such as corporate scorecards and resource demand modelling, ensuring timely delivery and high quality. Set and manage product priorities, aligning them with business objectives.

• Change Leadership: Champion cultural change within APHA, using data to enhance decision-making and improve performance. Act as an ambassador for data insights, helping to shape the agencys approach to analytics and embed the data profession within APHA.

• Team Leadership: Build and manage a high-performing data insights team. Ensure continuous development of skills, while managing resources and performance effectively.

• Stakeholder Management: Serve as the main contact for data insight requests, prioritising tasks and clearly communicating complex insights to senior stakeholders. Promote data-driven decision-making across the agency.

Person specification

You will have the following essential skills and experience:

• Proven experience in developing data strategies, analytics, and business transformation.

• Strong leadership in building high-performing teams and fostering a culture of data-driven decision-making.

• Expertise in data visualisation tools (e.g. SQL, Business Objects, Power BI, Tableau, Python) and advanced data modelling techniques.

• An understanding of machine learning and artificial intelligence concepts.

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to influence senior leaders and stakeholders.

• Experience managing complex data projects, driving performance improvements, and ensuring compliance with governance policies.

• Knowledge of data ethics, information governance and management, including data protection and security and of applying related legal and regulatory frameworks.

Qualifications

• You will be educated to degree level preferably in science, technology, mathematics or data/information subject, and/or have a proven track record in developing data insight and visualisations at a strategic level.

Behaviours

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

• Leadership

• Communicating and Influencing

• Changing and Improving

• Making Effective Decisions

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Leadership

Technical skills

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

• Expertise in using Data Visualisation tools

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £62,605, Animal and Plant Health Agency contributes £18,136 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• 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 28.97%

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, Experience and Technical skills.

Application Process

As part of the application process you will be asked to provide a CV and complete a 750 word Personal Statement detailing your suitability for the role based on the essential skills and experience detailed within the advertisement.

You will also be asked to provide a 250-word statement demonstrating how you meet the following Behaviour: Leadership.

Further details around what this will entail can be found on the application form.

Sift

Should a large number of successful applications be received, there will be an initial sift assessing the Personal Statement and CV. Those who pass the initial sift will either be progressed to a full sift or straight to interview.

Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.

Interview

If successful at application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed on Behaviours, Experience, Technical and Strengths. The Behaviours are as follows:

• Leadership

• Communicating & Influencing

• Making Effective Decisions

• Changing & Improving

In the interview, Experience and the behaviour 'Communicating & Influencing' will be assessed through an in-tray exercise. Details of the exercise will be provided prior to your interview.

You will also be asked Technical and Strength questions.

Your interview will either be conducted face to face or by video. You will be notified of the location if you are selected for interview.

Location

As part of the pre-employment process for this post, successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. The agreed contractual workplace is then the substantive and permanent place of work for the successful candidate(s)

Where the location is National the successful appointee should discuss and agree an appropriate contractual location in line with both Defras location policy and site capacity, prior to proceeding with pre-employment processes.

Successful applicants currently employed by the hiring Defra organisation for this post may choose to remain in their current contractual location or may choose to change contractual location to one of those listed above. This should be discussed and agreed prior to proceeding with pre-employment processes.

The agreed amount of time spent at a workplace for this post will reflect the requirement for Civil Servants to spend at least 60% of their working time in an organisation workplace with the option to work the remaining time flexibly from home. Working time spent at a workplace may include time spent at other organisational locations including field-based operational locations, together with supplier, customer or partner locations. This is a non-contractual agreement which is consistent with common Civil Service expectations.

The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location, and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time.

Defra includes the core department, APHA, RPA, Cefas and VMD.

Out of hours work will be required in the event of an incident. This can include travel to support outbreak response.

Travel will be required to attend a variety of APHA locations including some overnight stays. Travel costs to non-contractual workplaces will be subject to departmental travel and subsistence policies. Travel costs to contractual workplaces are the responsibility of the employee.

Reserve List

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

Near Miss

Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions within Defra Group which may be at a lower grade but have a potential skills match.

Salary

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

Visa Sponsorship Statement

Please take note that Defra does not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License sponsor and is unable to sponsor any individuals requiring Skilled Worker Sponsorship.

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 Government Recruitment Service via defrarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk 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 youre deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Accessibility

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

Criminal Record Check

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 /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

Internal Fraud Database Check

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 applicants details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

National Security Vetting

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting

Higher Security

Please be aware the levels of national security clearance are changing which may impact on the level needed for this role by the time of appointment. All efforts will be made to keep candidates informed of any changes and what that will mean in terms of vetting criteria. For more information please see our vetting charter.

For this role you will hold or be required to obtain SC clearance. Therefore, applicants must be currently resident in the UK & have at least five years continuous UK residency as this is a requirement for this role.

Childcare Vouchers

Any move to APHA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. 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 criminal record check.

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