AMS PSR

Lead for Candidate Safety & Confidence

Basis: 12 Month Fixed Term Contract, Full time 36 hours per week

Salary: £55,403 to £58,173 per annum

A £312 tax-free working from home allowance is also payable annually.

Location: Cardiff, Belfast or Edinburgh (Hybrid – min. 2 days in office) or Remote (UK)

Benefits: Outstanding benefits including Civil Service Pension Scheme, flexible working, 28+ days holiday, and more.

About the Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is the UK’s independent body overseeing elections and regulating political finance. Everything we do is about ensuring trust, participation, and integrity in the democratic process.

As we enter a bold new chapter under our five-year Corporate Plan, we are increasing our workforce and transforming how we plan and deliver core services. This post plays a central role in that journey.

About the role

This role provides expert judgement, strategic leadership and authoritative advice on complex and politically sensitive issues affecting democratic participation.

As the UK experiences increasing levels of abuse and intimidation towards candidates, this role will shape the Commission’s strategic approach — grounding decisions in evidence, behavioural insights, and advanced analysis to strengthen public trust and democratic confidence.

You will influence thinking across the Commission and beyond, advising senior leaders, supporting regulatory decision‑making, and representing the organisation as a recognised professional authority in this area.

Day to day, you will:

Lead and develop the Commission’s strategic work on candidate safety and confidence, providing expert interpretation of emerging risks, legislation, public attitudes and stakeholder insight.

Design, pilot and evaluate behaviour‑change interventions, applying advanced analytical judgement where evidence is contested, limited or politically sensitive.

Provide authoritative advice to senior leaders, including contributing to Parliamentary Question responses and high‑profile stakeholder correspondence on candidate safety.

Work collaboratively with Research, Policy, Communications and Democratic Education teams to ensure that insights and evidence inform strategic decision‑making across the organisation.

Interpret and disseminate regulatory and behavioural insights, supporting best practice, quality assurance and consistent decision‑making across the Commission.

Represent the Commission externally as a senior professional authority, engaging with political parties, regulators, academics, NGOs and parliamentary bodies.

Contribute expert insight to cross‑Commission initiatives, helping address complex, systemic issues affecting democratic participation.

About the team

You will join the Electoral Administration and Regulation directorate, working closely with colleagues across Research, Policy, Communications, and democratic education teams. Our culture is collaborative, evidence-driven, and committed to safeguarding democracy

Who we’re looking for

A strategic thinker and recognised expert, capable of exercising sound judgement in high‑risk and politically sensitive contexts. Someone with the confidence to influence senior stakeholders and the analytical strength to shape evidence‑informed policy.

You will bring:

Proven ability to resolve complex policy problems using advanced analytical and conceptual thinking.

Experience influencing senior leaders and external stakeholders on sensitive or contested issues.

Excellent skills in designing and evaluating interventions, including interpreting contested or incomplete evidence.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to convey complex issues persuasively.

Ability to deliver complex work at pace, balancing competing risks and priorities.

Why work for us?

You’ll play a pivotal role in shaping policy and safeguarding democracy, gaining exposure to high-profile projects and senior stakeholders.

We offer a strong total reward package, including:

Flexible working and hybrid model (40% office minimum)

28 rising to 30 days annual leave + bank holidays

Civil Service pension scheme (28.97% employer contribution)

Study support for professional qualifications

Ongoing learning and development opportunities

Ride2Work, eye care vouchers and more

How to apply

We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. To help reduce unconscious bias and ensure all applicants are assessed solely on their skills, knowledge and experience, we use an anonymous recruitment process.

When applying, please provide an anonymised CV which omits your protected characteristics and any personally identifiable information:

Do not include:

Your name, address, phone number, email or other contact details

Your date of birth or age

Gender, ethnicity, nationality or other personal identifiers

A photo of yourself

Remove educational dates as these are a clear indication of your age

There is no requirement to include your primary education details.

Do include:

Your employment history including employers and dates of employment

Explanation for gaps in your history

Your duties, responsibilities and achievements

If your CV contains personal details (such as your name or contact information), we will be unable to consider your application. Please double-check your documents before submitting, including the file name you use to save and upload your CV.

Supporting disabled applicants

The Electoral Commission is proud to be a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. As part of this commitment, we aim to prioritise interviews for disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria listed in the job description.

There may, however, be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria. For example, during periods of exceptionally high application volumes or seasonal recruitment activity, the Commission may need to limit the overall number of interviews offered to both disabled and non-disabled applicants.

If you have a disability and would like to be considered under this commitment, please indicate this when you apply. We also welcome requests for reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process or within the workplace.

Key dates

Application deadline: Sunday 8th Feburary (23:59)

Interviews (1st stage): Week commencing 16th February

Interviews (2nd stage): Week commencing TBC