Technical Pensions Lead

General Information

Salary

The national salary range is £58,511 - £65,329, London salary range is £63,343 - £70,725. Your salary will be dependent on your base location

Working Pattern

Full Time

Vacancy Approach

External

Location

National

Region

National

Closing Date

21-Sep-2026

Post Type

Permanent

Civil Service Grade

Grade 7

Number of jobs available

1

Reserve List

12 Months

Job ID

21650

Descriptions & requirements

Job description

Job Title: Technical Pensions Lead

Grade: 7

Business Group: Chief Operating Officer Group

Contract Type: Permanent

Directorate: Financial Management & Control

Team: Judicial Pensions

Location: National

Ministry of Justice an Inclusive Employer

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer of choice and ensuring equity of opportunity for all. We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring in terms of their culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

Overview

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is one of the largest government departments, employing around 70,000 people and with an annual budget of approximately £9 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services, including at 500 courts and tribunals and 133 prisons in England and Wales. Our principal role is to uphold the rule of law, the cornerstone of the British way of life, and we deliver services which are some of the most fundamental in a democratic society. MoJ supports the Secretary of State for Justice, who is also the Lord Chancellor, and his ministerial team to deliver the Government’s priorities. Our vision is to deliver a world-class justice system that works for everyone in society.

The Pensions Operations Team sits within the Financial Management and Control Directorate of the Ministry of Justice. The Team vision is to deliver a high-quality service to the Judicial Pension Scheme enabled by good quality data, robust contract management of the third-party administrators to deliver value for money. It aims to provide operational delivery of policy and legislative changes to create a sustainable long-term delivery model.

About the Role

Lead for the Technical Team ensuring correspondence is responsible for providing expert advice on Judicial pensions legislation, regulatory compliance, governance arrangements and scheme assurance. The role ensures that the pension scheme operates in accordance with legislative requirements, regulatory expectations and best practice, while supporting effective decision-making by senior leaders, trustees, pension boards and governance committees. The role holder will also handle complex complaints, particularly where complaints involve maladministration, interpretation of scheme rules, service failures, discretionary decisions, regulatory breaches, or potential escalation to the Pensions Ombudsman (TPO) or Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure (IDRP).

The post holder will lead the preparation and maintenance of governance and assurance documentation, oversee compliance monitoring, manage regulatory change programmes, and provide technical expertise on complex pension matters.

Main Activities / Responsibilities

The job holder will be required to undertake the following duties and responsibilities:

Pensions Regulation and Compliance

• Provide expert advice on pensions legislation, regulations and guidance, ensuring the scheme remains compliant with legal and governance requirements.
• Monitor regulatory developments and assess their impact on pension scheme operations and administration arrangements.
• Develop and maintain policies, procedures and control frameworks to support effective compliance.

Governance and Assurance

• Lead the preparation of annual governance statements, reports and assurance documentation.
• Support governance committees, pension boards and senior leaders with high-quality papers, technical advice and clear decision-making support.
• Maintain governance frameworks, coordinate audits and monitor delivery of recommendations and management actions.

Risk Management

• Identify, assess and monitor pension scheme risks, maintaining governance and compliance risk registers.
• Escalate material risks and issues through appropriate governance channels.
• Develop mitigating actions and monitor progress against agreed plans.

Technical Pensions Expertise

• Provide expert advice on complex pension matters, including benefit structures, legislative changes and regulatory requirements.
• Interpret scheme rules and policy changes, acting as the subject matter expert for pensions governance and compliance.
• Review and challenge advice from third-party advisers and administrators.

Stakeholder Management

• Build effective relationships with trustees, pension boards, senior leaders, advisers, administrators, regulators and assurance providers.
• Present complex technical information clearly and influence decision-making through evidence-based recommendations.
• Leadership of the Technical Team, setting direction, supporting performance and developing capability. The role includes direct line management responsibilities.

Regulatory Change and Continuous Improvement

• Lead impact assessments for new legislation and regulatory developments.
• Manage implementation of regulatory change programmes and related delivery activity.
• Drive continuous improvement by strengthening governance, compliance, controls, reporting and member outcomes.

Essential Criteria

Knowledge and Experience

• Significant experience of pension scheme governance and regulatory compliance.
• Strong understanding of pensions legislation and regulatory requirements.
• Experience of preparing governance statements, annual reports or assurance documentation.
• Experience of managing governance and risk frameworks.
• Experience of advising senior stakeholders on complex technical issues.
• Experience of working with pension administrators, legal advisers, actuaries and auditors.
• Experience of managing complex pension complaints, disputes or appeals.

Skills

• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Strong written communication skills with the ability to prepare high-quality reports and board papers.
• Ability to interpret complex legislation and regulatory guidance.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and influencing skills.
• Excellent organisational and project management capabilities.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience within a public service pension scheme.
• Experience of advisory board, trustee board or committee support.
• Experience of implementing major regulatory change programmes.
• Knowledge of Public Service Pensions Act requirements and governance frameworks.
• If not applicable, delete line below

Please note that whilst we don’t assess or score ‘desirable’ criteria, we may consider evidence provided that demonstrates meeting the desirable elements of the role, only after essential criteria is assessed and where there is a need to differentiate between closely scored candidates.

Application process

You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.

Sift

Behaviours / Experience

Please provide examples of how you have met each of the behaviours and technical skills below:

• Making Effective Decisions (Lead Behaviour)
• Leadership
• Communicating & Influencing

Please see essential criteria when writing your behaviours.

Please refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details, including by grade:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles/success-profiles-civil-service-behaviours#why-we-assess-behaviours

Experience

• Please submit a statement of suitability in 250 words on how your skills and experience align with the essential criteria of the role.

• Please submit an anonymous copy of CV.

If we receive a large number of applications, we will carry out an initial sift on the lead criteria of CV.

Candidates invited to Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely via MS Teams. During the interview, we will be assessing you on Behaviours, Experience, Technical Skills and Strengths from the Success Profiles framework.

Behaviours

• Making Effective Decisions (Lead Behaviour)
• Leadership
• Communicating & Influencing

Technical

• You will be asked a question regarding your pension technical experience.

For any enquiries please contact Rebecca.peake@justice.gov.uk.

Additional Information

Working Arrangements & Further Information

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity.

Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

For nationally advertised role: all successful candidates will be appointed to the nearest viable office nearest to their home postcode and on its respective pay scale. This will be at either a HQ building (subject to desk allocation, a Justice Collaboration Centre (JCC) or a Justice Satellite Office (JSO) – See Map. All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity).

For current MoJ employees, your base location will need to be changed to the nearest viable office (to your home postcode), either at a HQ building, JCC or JSO within the National Office Network and moved its location’s respective pay scale (any legacy arrangements/locations will need to be amended).

Some of MoJ’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.

MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain their grade on lateral transfer.

All candidates who are currently in receipt of Mark Time / Pay Protection should ensure they are familiar with the new policy on permanent and temporary promotion which can be found on the employee intranet.

Flexible working hours

The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. MoJ welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.

Benefits

The MoJ offers a range of benefits:

Annual Leave

Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years’ service.

There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.

Pension

The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.

Training

The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Networks

The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

Support

• A range of ‘Family Friendly’ policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
• Access to flexible benefits such as voluntary benefits, retail vouchers and discounts on a range of goods and services.
• For moves to or from another employer or moves across the Civil Service this can have implications on your eligibility to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for alternative government childcare support schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. More information can be found on www.GOV.UK or Childcare Choices. You can determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
• Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
• Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.

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. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order

• To Transformative Business Services (0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk);
• To Ministry of Justice Resourcing team (resourcing-management-office@justice.gov.uk);
• To the Civil Service Commission (details available here)

As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.

For more information on applying for a role as a candidate with a disability or long-term condition, please watch our animated videos.

You will be able to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process within the application form. If you need additional help completing the application form, please contact the TBS Recruitment Enquiries Team.

Diversity & 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.

A Great Place to Work for Veterans

The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces.
For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans

Redeployment Interview Scheme

Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ is committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are 'at risk of redundancy'.

MoJ is able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidates will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

Civil Service Nationality Rules

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) (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families
• 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 (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules

Reserve list

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

Contact Information

MoJ:

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference: 21650

HMPPS

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference: 21650

Job Description Attachment

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Application form stage assessments

Behaviours

Behaviours Application Form Question Word Limit

250

Making Effective Decisions

Leadership

Communicating and Influencing

Experience

We will assess your experience for this role via the following methods

CV or Work History, Statement of Suitability

Statement of Suitability

Guidance for the Statement of Suitability

Please submit a statement of suitability in 250 words on how your skills and experience align with the essential criteria of the role.

Evidence of Experience

CV or Work History, Statement of Suitability

Interview stage assessments

Interview Dates

Expected October

Behaviours

Making Effective Decisions

Leadership

Communicating and Influencing

Strengths

Strengths will be assessed but these are not shared in advance. To learn more about Strengths and how they are assessed please click here.

Technical

You will be asked a question regarding your pension technical experience.

Level of security checks required

Baseline Personnal Security Standard (BPSS)

Use of Artificial Intelligence (Al)

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.