Deputy Director for Media and Content

Responsibilities

• Press Office and Media Relations, leading the department's 24/7 media operation, overseeing strategic media engagement, proactive communications and issues management. You will maintain strong relationships with journalists and broadcasters nationally and regionally and – on occasions – internationally.
• You will lead the department's content and channel strategy, ensuring our work is based on evidence and puts our audiences first. This includes making the most of every opportunity to develop our own channels, to work with partners to use their channels and to make sure our stories are seen and shared because they're relevant and compelling.
• You will also lead creative content production across video, photography, graphic design and emerging formats, ensuring our content is suitable for partner and targeted public audiences and channels.
• You will work with our strategic and marketing leads to develop integrated communications campaigns that combine all appropriate channels to demonstrate the impact of our ongoing education reforms through authentic stories, trusted voices and real-life experience.
• You’ll provide advice and delivery plans to ministers, colleagues and advisers which demonstrate exceptional grip, understanding and navigation of complex issues, sustaining trust in the work of the department and mobilising our partners and audiences to improve future prospects of children and young people.
• You will also transform and innovate the way the communications profession works, contributing as a senior leader to the work of Government Communications and the Future Civil Service programme and to the work of the Department for Education.

Requirements

• Excellent leadership, with a proven track record transforming multidisciplinary communications functions in a complex and high-profile environment.
• Media expertise, with significant experience leading media engagement and managing high-profile and challenging issues as well as communications risks.
• A deep understanding of digital and content-driven storytelling, which not only reaches and engages target audiences, but also helps to deliver organisational objectives.
• The ability to convene and influence senior leaders and partners, demonstrating outstanding judgement and the ability to provide effective advice and constructive challenge to those in positions of authority.
• Sound leadership and people management skills, with a strong track record of building high-performing and inclusive teams in which communications professionals can broaden their skills across many disciplines.
• The ability to identify narrative trends and to think ahead, giving our teams the best chance to create joined-up communications at precisely the right moment.

Benefits

• You will have 25 days leave, increasing by 1 day every year to a maximum of 30 days after five years’ service. In addition, all staff receive the King’s Birthday privilege holiday and 8 days’ bank and public holidays.
• We offer flexible working arrangements, such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
• Most DfE employees will be working a hybrid pattern, spending at least 60% of their time in an office or work setting.
• As an organisation, which exists to support education and lifelong learning, we offer our staff excellent professional development opportunities.