Details
Reference number
429194
Salary
£81,000
Salary is circa £95,000.
Existing Civil Servants will be appointed in line with the Civil Service pay rules in place on the date of their appointment, this will usually be SCS1 salary minimum or within 10% of their existing salary for those applying on promotion. Individuals appointed on level transfer will retain their existing base salary.
A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
GBP
Job grade
SCS Pay Band 1
Contract type
Permanent
Business area
DWP - Finance
Type of role
Analytical
Finance
Senior leadership
Working pattern
Flexible working, Full-time, Job share
Number of jobs available
1
Contents
* Location
* About the job
* Benefits
* Things you need to know
* Apply and further information
Location
Blackpool, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Sheffield.
Please note that for candidates requesting to work in Newcastle, this role will be based at Benton Park View from September 2025, and then at 1 Pilgrim Place in Newcastle city centre by the end of 2027.
About the job
Job summary
"If you are an experienced leader who is passionate about being part of the Analytical Community and the Senior Analyst Leadership Team then I want to hear from you"
DWP is looking to fill Lead Analyst role in Financial and Resource Modelling Analysis within DWP's Finance directorate.
Strategic Finance and Business Strategy Directorate set and maintain the Department's business strategy; secure, allocate and optimise our financial resources; and assure the Department's performance, so that the Department delivers its goals/objectives efficiently and effectively.
Financial and Resource Modelling Analysis (FARMA's) purpose is to provide world class analysis to drive better spending and resourcing decisions.
FARMA formed as a Division in March 2025 following the merger of Financial Modelling and Analysis Division with the Demand and ABM parts of Resource Modelling and Analysis Division. The division comprises of 50 to 60 staff, mostly analysts but also some generalist and Finance professionals, across all of the analytical hub sites.
Here more about DWP
Virtual Engagement Session Date: 29th October 2025 Time: 13:15 – 14:15
This virtual session is an opportunity for you to find out more about the role. You'll get the opportunity to hear directly from Alex Skinner, Catherine Hutchinson and Sue Henley, who will provide an overview of the role and hold a Q&A session Join live event here
Job description
The primary focus of the role is to provide leadership for the division to ensure it achieves its objectives and maintains an effective and motivated workforce.
The Lead Analyst role will report to Alex Skinner, the Director of Strategic Finance and Business Strategy Directorate. The role will have a dotted line to the Chief Analyst who has ultimate accountability for analytical quality within the department. The Lead Analyst keeps the Chief Analyst abreast of major issues that have high risk and impact and ones that cut across the Analytical Community.
The main responsibilities are:
* Oversee the Analytical support for Autumn and Spring Fiscal events: manage the relationship with Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) and HM Treasury (HMT) with regards to the Annually Managed Expenditure (AME) forecasts, Indirect effects and costing notes. Implement the recommendations from the AME lessons learnt and build capability to give DWP the best chance to score policies.
* Oversee the AME input into Estimates and the input on AME and Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL) Financial forecasting to improve the accuracy of DWP's in-year forecasts, contributing to sound financial management. Review our process and influence data developments to enable better future forecasts.
* Drive up the quality of analysis supporting DWP Business Cases: tackle systemic quality issues in our value for money evidence; embed the analytical contribution to the Review Scrutiny Panels
* Build and maintain strong, trust-based relationships with high-profile and demanding stakeholders including Ministers, the Secretary of State, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), and HM Treasury (HMT) to provide effective advice and support across their portfolio.
* As a member of the Senior Civil Service and Senior Analytical Leadership Team, the Lead Analyst has wider leadership responsibilities across the DWP, visibly leading on activities that support improved diversity and inclusion, talent and capability growth.
* Lead the teams to provide robust and trusted forecasts of DWP demand, including leading a review of the end-to-end demand modelling and workload forecast system. As the single version of the truth, the demand forecasts will be used extensively across DWP to inform effective decisions on Service Delivery planning and improvement.
* Lead the teams that support the DWP Planning process and the value for money challenge with the suite of Activity Based models (ABM). Drive improvements in the data inputs, model assumptions and expand opportunities for analysis of ABM data and unit costs to add insight to decision making on Departmental productivity
* Develop Financial and Resource Modelling Analysis following the recent merger of teams, so people the Division provides an effective service for DWP and is a great place to work.
It's an exciting time to be part of DWP Please see the candidate pack attached to the advert for more about this role and the Directorate priorities.
Person specification
The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate their knowledge, experience and skills against the following essential criteria:
* Excellent senior leadership skills, including the ability to set a vision for the analysis, motivate and engage your team across a varied analytical work programme through multi-site and multi-disciplinary teams.
* Strong analytical skills to lead, oversee and quality assure a varied, multi-disciplinary work programme. The post holder must be able to turn ideas, concepts into analytical work that will make things happen to add value with tangible and lasting outcomes.
* Proven ability to build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders and effectively advise across portfolios. Skilled negotiator, able to influence senior officials while balancing competing priorities within complex structures.
* Confident to represent your team on the Strategic Finance and Business Strategy Senior Leadership team, as well as the Senior Analytical Leadership Team (SALT) to ensure they are engaged and actively contribute to the success of the wider Directorate and the analytical community by visibly leading on activities that support improved diversity and inclusion, talent and capability growth.
* The candidate must be a senior analytical professional with substantial experience at the appropriate level.
* They should hold a technical specialism in one of the recognised analytical professions, such as the Government Economic Service, Government Operational Research Service, Government Social Research Service, or Government Statistical Service.
Memberships
You must be a senior analytical professional with substantial experience at the appropriate level. You should hold a technical specialism in one of the recognised analytical professions, such as the Government Economic Service, Government Operational Research Service, Government Social Research Service, or Government Statistical Service.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
* Leadership
* Seeing the Big Picture
* Working Together
* Making Effective Decisions
* Delivering at Pace
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £81,000, Department for Work and Pensions contributes £23,465 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
DWP have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:
* Working patterns to support work/life balance such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
* Generous annual leave – at least 25 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (pro–rata for part time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave.
* Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme.
* Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly).
* Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 year's continuous service.
* Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes.
* An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Women's Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles, and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.
If you think you have the experience and energy to take on these stretching and demanding role, we would be very keen to hear from you.
To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online application process outlined below no later than 23:55pm on 6th October 2025.
* A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years;
* A personal statement (maximum 1250 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities, and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential criteria in the person specification.
Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.
For more information about the roles and the applications process, please see the candidate pack attached.
Reasonable Adjustments
At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, especially 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 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 additional support or adjustments you might need during the recruitment process.
For further information regarding reasonable adjustments, please see following link: Reasonable Adjustments, Civil Service Careers
Artificial Intelligence
For further information regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within applications, please see following link:
Artificial intelligence and recruitment, Civil Service Careers
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.
As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.
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 .
See our vetting charter .
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)
* 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
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code 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 .
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.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy .
Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.
Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
* Name : DWP Senior Recruitment
* Email :
Recruitment team
* Email :
Further information
Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact DWP by email: Senior..GOV.UK.
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission. Click here to visit the Civil Service Commission.