Head of People

About our Client

The Serious Fraud Office is a specialist investigating & prosecuting authority that tackles the top-level of serious or complex fraud, bribery, & corruption in England & Wales, & Northern Ireland. It is independent in making decisions about its cases. It is a civil service organisation that operates within the framework of government accounting & the Green Book. It is subject to government spending review.

Job Description

The Head of People is a senior leadership role within the People and Culture function, responsible for leading a broad, high-impact and customer-focused People service. Working closely with the Chief People Officer and Head of Culture, the postholder will lead a team of highly capable functional leads to deliver operational excellence, strategic insight and measurable value across talent acquisition, people operations, employee relations, case management, people data and insights, HR information systems and continuous improvement.

The role will ensure that managers and leaders receive timely, practical and evidence-based support to resource, manage and develop their services effectively. It will balance the delivery of high-quality transactional HR services with strategic workforce planning, customer-focused service standards and a strong emphasis on data, insight and performance. A key priority will be supporting the development and optimisation of the HR information system (Oracle), so that people data, workflows, reporting and manager self-service enable better decisions and more efficient service delivery.

This role will deputise on all people management matters in the absence of the Chief People Officer.

As Head of People you will be responsible for:

• Leadership and Management: Lead, empower and develop a team of highly capable functional leads across talent acquisition, people operations, data and insights, employee relations, case management and HR systems.
• People Service Delivery: Ensure the effective delivery of high-quality transactional, advisory and strategic People services across the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, onboarding, employee relations, case management, workforce administration, policy application and people data management.
• Strategy and Planning: Work with the Chief People Officer, Head of Culture and People Business Partners to translate the People Strategy into practical delivery plans for each business area.
• Talent Acquisition and Resourcing: Oversee a proactive talent acquisition and resourcing service that supports managers to plan, attract and secure the capability required to deliver their services effectively.
• Data, Insights and Performance: Lead the use of people data, metrics and insight to improve service delivery, workforce planning and organisational decision-making.
• Relationship and Stakeholder Management: Build trusted relationships with senior internal stakeholders, ensuring People services are responsive, joined up and aligned to organisational priorities.
• Financial Management: Manage relevant operational budgets and resources effectively, ensuring value for money and alignment between investment, service priorities and agreed performance indicators and service standards.
• Service Improvement: Lead continuous improvement across People team working practices, processes and service levels.
• HR Information System / Oracle: Lead the People function’s contribution to the development and optimisation of the HR information system, including Oracle, ensuring that workflows, data quality, reporting, manager self-service and user experience support efficient service delivery and reliable workforce information.
• Policy, Governance and Professional Standards: Develop, govern and apply HR policies, procedures and guidance to promote fairness, consistency, compliance and good people management practice across the SFO.
• Subject Expertise and External Engagement: Represent the People function across Civil Service networks, government bodies and external partners.

The Successful Applicant

As part of the application process, you will be required to provide:

A personal statement of no more than 1000 words attached to your CV in one document that explains how your skills & experience meet each of the essential & desirable experience criteria as listed in the job pack.

Please note, desirable experience will only be taken into account if there is a large volume of applications & there is a need for further shortlisting for interview.

A supporting CV outlining your job history & qualifications, (including how you meet the essential technical criteria for the role)

It will not be possible to provide feedback to applicants who are unsuccessful at the application stage.

Interview stage

Behaviours & experience as outlined in the job pack will be tested at interview.

Closing date is 11:55am on the 12th October 2026

Interviews are expected to take place in person at the SFO Offices on 21st October 2026.

All dates are indicative & subject to change. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

What’s on Offer

The salary for this Head of People role is £73,365 – £81,630 (Civil Service Pay Award pending from 1st August 2026)

Staff applying on promotion within the Civil Service will usually be appointed to the salary minimum or receive a 10% increase on their existing salary. Individuals appointed on level transfer will retain their existing salary. A Civil Service Pension with an average employer contribution of 27% (details open in a new window)

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed - SC Security Check : 5 years residency in the United Kingdom preceding this application. See our Vetting Charter

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.