JOB SUMMARY

We are looking for a creative, passionate and experienced social media leader to join our team of creators, producers and social media managers working at the heart of government.
The Head of Channels and Engagement is a new role within the team and will play a key part in delivering the UK Government digital communications strategy. The strategy is focused on helping to build trust with public audiences through authentic and relevant voices that broaden our reach and connect with our priority audiences on owned and earned channels.
Working closely with the Head of Social Media and Head of Content, the successful candidate will utilise their expertise to lead teams in conceiving, commissioning and creating content around the government’s Opportunity Mission. They will help the team identify opportunities, generate ideas, and inspire collaborations that resonate with our priority audiences. In addition, they will lead on the team’s work to engage and collaborate with digital creators and influencers, coordinating efforts with internal marketing and press teams as well as the central government New Media Unit.
Their ability to analyse data and evaluate performance will ensure stakeholders understand the team’s achievements and ongoing impact, as well as helping to identify insights that guide current projects and set future direction.
Authentic and authoritative they will quickly gain the trust of their team, senior stakeholders from ministerial, and civil service teams across government, along with the central Government Communication Service (GCS). They’ll line manage a small group of talented social media managers, giving advice and best practice in the moment, and applying expert knowledge of the creator and influencer ecosystem across social media platforms.
They will clearly understand how their work applies to the department, and wider government objectives, across high profile projects spanning the entire Department for Education portfolio. The role will be based in our Westminster office and studio with occasional travel to locations across the country.
This is an incredibly exciting time for the Department for Education as it plays a central role in delivering the work of the UK Government. Our team is vital in helping to connect the work of the Department for Education with the public and professional sectors it serves through multimedia story telling formats, published across departmental and external social media channels.

JOB DESCRIPTION

As the Head of Channels and Engagement (Social Media), you will:

• Lead a team of social media experts in the planning, commissioning, production and publishing of ambitious and engaging social media low/no cost content projects.
• Lead the department’s influencer/creator outreach, collaboration and distribution efforts to broaden the impact and reach of our messaging and meet priority audiences in the channels they spend their time.
• Be responsible for the DfE corporate social media channels alongside our collaborative efforts with external talent and partners, ensuring work is delivered and published to tight schedules and deadlines.
• Build the team’s reputation both in government and externally as a centre of excellence, driving a culture of creativity and innovation, with a focus on AI tools and platforms that can help realise efficiencies.
• Alongside the Head of Social Media and Head of Content, help to develop and implement a refreshed DfE digital communications strategy, which is aligned to the central government social media approach.
• Build knowledge, confidence and capability in social media, with focus on collaboration with creators and influencers, evaluation, and basic content creation across the wider communications division, to enable the social media team to focus on more complex projects, or those that require a deeper level of expertise.
• Utilise social listening to gauge sentiment and reaction, providing expert advice on the strategic response.
• Ensure that the team identifies and builds effective relationships with social media creators and influencers, and maintains strong partnerships with key digital leaders across government and partner organisations.
• Foster relationships at the highest levels (ministers, senior officials, special advisers, private offices, other government departments) and with peers across the communications division to inspire confidence in our team’s approach, offer advice and ensure propriety with ministers’ personal accounts.
• Oversight of the ownership and procurement of new software and hardware that helps the team to continue to produce work of the highest quality and greatest impact.
• You may be required to deputise for the Head of Social Media at Senior Leadership Team meetings and take part in an out-of-hours duty rota.

TECHNICAL SKILLS

We’ll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Ideas (Digital)
• Implementation (Digital)
• Insight (Digital)
• Impact (Digital)

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

Communications / Marketing