JOB SUMMARY

The Electoral Commission is the UK’s independent body overseeing elections and regulating political finance. We promote confidence in democracy by ensuring transparency and integrity in the electoral process.
We are recruiting a Head of External Communications to lead our team of 11 specialists across media, public affairs, and customer services. This senior leadership role is central to how the Commission engages with Parliament, government, the media, and the public. The post-holder will shape proactive and reactive external messaging, oversee services to voters, and ensure stakeholders understand and value our role and recommendations.
We are seeking an experienced leader with strong communications expertise, proven political awareness, and the ability to influence at senior levels. You will bring creativity, media knowledge, and excellent relationship-building skills, alongside the ability to inspire and develop a high-performing team.
We offer flexible hybrid working, Civil Service pension arrangements, and a culture committed to diversity and inclusion.

JOB DESCRIPTION

We are recruiting for the Head of External Communications, a senior leadership position in our Communications, Policy and Research directorate. The External Communications Team is made up of 11 communications specialists working across press, public affairs and customer services. The team plays a vital role in maintaining political and public confidence in the Commission, and coordinating consistent and engaging external messaging.

The Head of External Communications leads the strategic and operational delivery of the Commission’s:

• Engagement with parliamentarians and government
• Proactive and reactive media engagement programme
• Customer services function, providing accurate and timely information to voters.

The team is responsible for ensuring stakeholders understand the Commission’s work and value. It is engaged in communicating the Commission’s recommendations for improvement to the electoral system and in advocating for everyone who participates in elections, including voters, parties, campaigners, candidates and electoral administrators. The Head of External Communications will lead and inspire the team in this work. The post-holder will also be part of a directorate and Commission-wide senior leadership team, with influence over the strategic direction of the Commission’s work.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

We are looking for an experienced senior leader with a background in communications, media engagement and public affairs.
You will be a committed individual who appreciates political sensitivities and has substantial experience of working with and influencing senior colleagues and external stakeholders.
You will be adept at building strong relationships and navigating complex stakeholder networks, and will work to ensure a wide range of stakeholders understand and value the work of the Electoral Commission. You will bring creativity and well-honed communications skills to our influencing and engagement work. You will have excellent knowledge of the UK media landscape and good contacts within the media.
You will be able to plan, organise and manage people, time and resources, and manage projects to budget and on time.

SELECTION PROCESS DETAILS

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

An anonymised CV, which must not include:

• Your name, address, contact details, date of birth, gender, ethnicity, or any other personal identifiers
• Names of educational institutions or dates of education
• Employment history older than 10 years (unless directly relevant and explicitly required in the person specification)

An anonymised supporting statement, clearly outlining how you meet the essential criteria listed in the job description.
If a specific qualification is required (e.g. a chartered status), you may include its title (e.g. “CIPFA-qualified accountant”) but not the awarding body or dates.
If the role only asks for general education (e.g. “educated to degree level or equivalent”), simply state this—no further detail is needed.
Failure to comply with these anonymisation instructions may result in your application being withdrawn.

SUPPORTING DISABLED APPLICANTS

The Electoral Commission is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. As part of our commitment, we offer a guaranteed interview scheme for disabled applicants. If you have a disability and meet the minimum essential criteria listed in the job description, you will be offered an interview.
To be considered under this scheme, please indicate this when you apply. We also welcome requests for reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process or in the workplace.

NATIONALITY REQUIREMENTS

Open to UK nationals only.

Communications / Marketing
Policy
Press Relations