Innovate UK has the following secondment opportunity available for employees of Innovate UK Business Connect: Applications must be submitted by 05-09-2025 Head of Governance & Subsidy The Head of Governance and Subsidy will lead the Governance and Subsidy team to embed sound governance, assurance and risk management practices across Innovate UK, and provide timely subsidy compliance input to support Innovate UK and UKRI compliance with subsidy regulations. *Please note this advert will close on the 4th September 2025 at 23.59pm. Watch our video “Why Join Innovate UK?” here. Title: Head of Governance & Subsidy Band: UKRI Band G (UKRI Ts & Cs) Salary: £68,525 gross per annum Reports to: Deputy Director, Governance and Assurance Location: Swindon (Hybrid Working) Contract: Permanent Innovate UK recognises the importance of work-life balance and we will be happy to discuss any requests for flexible working arrangements. Job Purpose: The Governance and Subsidy Teams have previously been separate teams within the Governance and Assurance area, with different but complementary areas of focus, with both heavily involved in ensuring funding is awarded in compliance with legislation and government standards. The amalgamation of these teams provides a one-team approach, working with the wider organisation to deliver strategic objectives compliantly. The Head of Governance and Subsidy will lead the Governance and Subsidy team to embed sound governance, assurance and risk management practices across Innovate UK, and provide timely subsidy compliance input to support Innovate UK and UKRI compliance with subsidy regulations. Working with the team and across Innovate UK to ensure appropriate frameworks are in place to enable effective delivery whilst remaining compliant with regulations and agreed policies. Working with the Deputy Director Governance and Assurance to promote the role of governance and assurance and subsidy compliance in supporting effective delivery of Innovate UK’s strategic goals. We particularly welcome female applicants as women are under-represented within Innovate UK in this type of role. Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities: Lead a team of c12 with two direct reports to ensure Innovate UK operates within legal, policy and good practice frameworks, and oversee Innovate UK’s control environment, including the embedding of all new legislation and government standards as appropriate. Maintain a team of subsidy experts to provide subsidy compliance advice across Innovate UK and UKRI, with tracking and reporting of subsidy as required to comply with legal requirements and meet stakeholder needs. To ensure Innovate UK has a robust set of policies and procedures to support effective delivery, and complies with UKRI policies, including risk management and ensuring a risk-based culture is embedded across the organisation. To oversee assurance activity across Innovate UK, ensuring an appropriate funding assurance regime is in place, and oversight of the internal audit programme for Innovate UK including monitoring of audit activities from planning through to completion of actions To ensure Innovate UK acts in compliance with government procurement rules and UKRI commercial policies To ensure Innovate UK has an effective delegation framework in place in line with UKRI delegations, and to ensure that appropriate governance structures are in place with an audit trail of decision-making To lead on Trusted Innovation for Innovate UK, liaising with the UKRI Trusted Research and Innovation team/community as well as external entities such as the National Protective Security Authority and the National Cyber Security Centre To lead on environmental sustainability for Innovate UK Ensure strong stakeholder relationships with UKRI governance and assurance teams and with the Innovate UK senior team to support the embedding of good practice that better enables delivery of Innovate UK’s strategic objectives whilst demonstrating compliance with government requirements. Maintain a continuous improvement culture across the team in support of effective service delivery and team development This is an outline description of the key responsibilities and accountabilities involved in the job. This is not an exhaustive list and the post-holder might be expected to undertake any other duties across the wider directorate, commensurate with the Band and level of responsibility of this post, for which the post holder has the necessary experience and/or training. This is not an exhaustive list and you might be encouraged to undertake any other duties across the wider directorate, commensurate with the Band and level of responsibility of this post, for which the post holder has the key experience and/or training. Shortlisting criteria (S) – Assessed at shortlisting (I) – Assessed at interview (S&I) – Assessed at both shortlisting and interview Person Specification: We are looking for someone with a positive ‘can do’ attitude as well as the following qualifications and experience. Experience & Qualifications: Essential – Educated to degree level or with equivalent experience (S) Risk/Audit/Governance Qualification (or equivalent practical experience) (S) Governance and Assurance, Risks and Controls experience (S&I) Leading, managing and developing a team through change whilst maintaining delivery (S&I) Hands-on experience of working within a fast-paced environment and meeting the needs of multiple stakeholders (I) Supporting/delivering work for senior stakeholders including Senior Managers, Directors or Board members (S&I) Identifying and implementing improvements in control and assurance frameworks (S&I) Understanding of the main legal, policy and good practice frameworks within which Innovate UK and UKRI work (S&I) Management of corporate policies and carrying out compliance checks (S&I) Clear understanding of Public Sector governance standards particularly as set out in HM Treasury “Managing Public Money” (I) Understanding of good practice in grants management (I) Desirable – Working knowledge of subsidy control regulations (S&I) Legal/Commercial knowledge (S&I) Company secretary experience (S&I) Competencies: All team members demonstrate compatibility with and capability against our Core Competencies such as: Thinking and Problem Solving – Stakeholder management – Communication skills – Influencing – Self-awareness/self-management – Strategic awareness – Working with others– Project management Some of the above competencies will be assessed at interview stage, in addition to the criteria’s listed in the person specification. Travel Requirements: Swindon-based: There may be the occasional requirement for national travel. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: Innovate UK is a diverse workforce of people. We believe that encouraging these differences and drawing the best from them will build a productive environment in which everyone feels valued, where talents are fully utilised and in which organisational goals are met. Underpinning this is a belief that it is a fundamental right for everyone to be treated equally, with fairness, respect and dignity. We will act directly and use our influence to ensure that this right is promoted and upheld; we encourage applications from all those who meet the criteria set-out in our role profiles. Equal Opportunities: We are an equal opportunities employer, committed to employing any person who meets the criteria for our roles. When undertaking recruitment we may require applicants to undertake certain tests or assessments, some of which will be online and others may be in-person. If you have a disability, heath condition or specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia then you may be entitled to support with undertaking this type of assessment exercise. Where you feel that reasonable adjustments are required to support you, we ask that you advise your recruitment point of contact in a timely fashion, providing further information. In confidence, Innovate UK will then review your application for adjustments and provide support as required. UK Research and Innovation: Innovate UK is partner organisation within UK Research and Innovation. If successful in securing the position, your employer will be UK Research and Innovation. More information can be found online http://www.ukri.org/. Employee Benefits: We offer a benefits package crafted to provide an excellent work/life balance. This includes 30 days’ annual leave, 10.5 public and privilege days, flexible working hours, an exceptional defined benefit pension scheme, and access to a variety of support networks and discount schemes. Benefits of working at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Flexible Working: We understand the importance of work-life balance, and are happy to discuss the possibility of flexible working with applicants. Pre-employment Screening: To enable us to hire the very best people we will conduct a comprehensive pre-employment check on successful applicants as part of the recruitment process. The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment. UKRI supports research in areas that include animal health, agriculture and food security, and bioscience for health which includes research on animals, genetic modification and stem cell research. Whilst you may not have direct involvement in this type of research, you should consider how this aligns with your personal values or beliefs. To enable us to hire the very best people we will conduct a full and comprehensive pre-employment check as a crucial part of the recruitment process on all individuals that are offered a position with UKRI. This will include a security check and an extreme organisations affiliation check. Applications must be submitted by; 05-09-2025