Director of Security and Resilience
Salary: £94,931- £117,800 per annum (dependent on skills and experience)
Hours: Full Time or Part Time (Minimum 0.8 FTE)
Contract Type: Open Ended, secondees and transfers welcome.
Location: Polaris House, Swindon, Wiltshire. Hybrid working available with regular office attendance and travel across UKRI offices.
Grade: UKRI X
Closing Date: Sunday February 8th 2026
Interview Date: W/c 9th March 2026 in person in our London office. Please note these dates may be subject to change.
Ready to shape the security and resilience of the UK’s research and innovation system?
About the Role
You will report to the Chief of Operational Delivery and provide senior, organisation-wide leadership on security and resilience for UKRI. You will shape how the organisation protects its people, research, infrastructure, and reputation.
Working at the centre of an organisation that supports research and innovation across the UK and internationally, you will set the strategic direction for embedding security and resilience across all councils and major programmes. You will bring clear, authoritative insight in a complex and evolving risk environment, enabling informed decision-making across UKRI.
You will anticipate emerging challenges and strengthen organisational preparedness, helping UKRI prevent, withstand and respond effectively to incidents. Through this, you will safeguard the continuity and credibility of the UK’s research and innovation mission.
Key Responsibilities
The Director, Security and Resilience is accountable for:
* defining and owning UKRI’s security and resilience strategy, policies and standards
* acting as principal advisor to the CEO, Board and senior leadership, delivering timely, threat-informed guidance
* building strong relationships across government, the UK intelligence community and the research sector to position UKRI as a trusted partner and thought leader
* directing delivery of UKRI’s security and resilience programme, including the Security and Resilience Operating Centre (SROC)
* overseeing budgets (circa £1.4 million annually plus £4 million change programme) and advising on wider organisational security spend
* leading and developing the UKRI Security and Resilience profession, managing a central team of 13 staff and a wider community of practice
* ensuring effective incident management, continuous professional development and alignment with cross-government security guidance
To view the full job description please click ‘apply’ to visit our careers site.
Person Specification
You will have significant and demonstrable experience of:
* developing and delivering an impactful strategy that meets UK government requirements and is practical and achievable within the organisation
* operational delivery across all security domains
* leading in a complex and federated organisation
* managing complex risks and issues in the context of security and resilience
* directing and responding to complex security and resilience incidents
* directing security and resilience within a large public sector organisation (ideally previous experience of being a senior security adviser (SSA) or equivalent)
* engaging and influencing senior colleagues across a federated organisation and wider UK government
* engaging with national technical authorities (NTA), Government Security Secretariat (GSecS) and UK intelligence community (UKIC) to achieve positive support and effective communication
Qualifications:
* Hold a Masters’ Degree or equivalent experience in a security and resilience related discipline
* Hold relevant professional recognition such as being a Chartered Security
* Professional (CSyP) or equivalent experience.
Security
Due to the nature of this role, candidates must be eligible for UK security clearance and willing to undergo the vetting process prior to starting the role. The required level is Developed Vetting (DV). If you do not currently hold DV clearance, please ensure you meet the eligibility criteria as set out in the UK Government guidance before applying: DV - Guidance Pack for Applicants - GOV.UK
Benefits
We recognise and value our employees as individuals and aim to provide a favourable pay and rewards package. We are committed to supporting employees’ development and promote a culture of continuous learning! A list of benefits below;
* An outstanding defined benefit pension scheme
* 30 days’ annual leave in addition to 10.5 public and privilege days (full time equivalent)
* Employee discounts and offers on retail and leisure activities
* Employee assistance programme, providing confidential help and advice
* Flexible working options
Visit our dedicated benefits webpage for more info: Benefits of working at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)