Service Owner - Prisons Digital Location: National*
Closing Date: 11th January 2026 Interviews: expected 27th- 29th January 2026
Grade: 6 (MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain this grade on lateral transfer)
Salary: *for more salary info, for new or current civil servants, please see the T&Cs at the end of the advert London: £75,674- £85,257 (which may include an allowance up to £9151) National: £71,381- £80,419
Working pattern: Full time/ Part time/ Flexible working Contract Type: Permanent
Vacancy number: 13139
*We offer a hybrid working model, allowing for a balance between remote work and time spent in your local office. Office locations can be found ON THIS MAP The Role We’re recruiting for a Service Owner here at Justice Digital, to be part of our warm and collaborative Prisons Digital team.
This role aligns against the Service Owner role from the Government Digital and Data Framework
These are exciting times at Justice Digital. We have a clear vision - to develop a digitally-enabled justice system that works more simply for users - and we’re looking for talented people to help us achieve it. We’re making things better by building adaptable, effective services and systems that are simple to use for staff and citizens. While the work can be challenging, it is important, impactful and hugely rewarding.
In Prisons Digital, we build and maintain digital products and tools that help to: protect the public provide decent and safe spaces in which to live and work reduce reoffending by rehabilitating the people in our care through education and employment
You will work collaboratively with multidisciplinary digital teams and with stakeholders across policy and operations, delivering digital services for prisons that meet user needs and business requirements. You will use the knowledge you gain of how users work and the policy they must comply with to develop and maintain services that speed up complex processes and help prisons to run more efficiently.
To help picture your life at MoJ Justice Digital please take a look at our blog and our Digital and Technology strategy 2025
Key Responsibilities: The role of the Service Owner is to: Deliver services that meet the government Digital by Default Service Standard and are best in class for government meeting users’ raised expectations of technology. Be outcome-focused and balance the needs of competing stakeholders, ensuring that services are valuable and effective for the organisation Create and communicate a compelling service vision and roadmap ensuring the right balance of meeting business/user objectives and managing technical risk Represent a service area to departmental board-level officials and senior stakeholders, using information from diverse user, commercial and service sources Embed digital culture with your stakeholders, the department and the wider civil service Be responsible for legacy technology which is part of the service area, and tackling the risks associated with this Lead and develop a high performing team that use service design and user-centred, data-driven, cloud-based delivery practices - most of which is focussed on replacing our legacy systems If this feels like an exciting challenge, something you are enthusiastic about and you want to join our team, please read on and apply! Benefits 37 hours per week and flexible working options including working from home, working part-time, job sharing, or working compressed hours. A £1k per person learning budget is in place to support all our people, with access to best in class conferences and seminars, accreditation with professional bodies, fully funded vocational programmes and e-learning platforms. Staff have 10% time to dedicate to develop & grow. Generous civil service pension based on defined benefit scheme, with employer contributions of 28.97% from April 1st 2024 (Contribution Rates). 25 days leave (plus bank holidays) and 1 privilege day usually taken around the King’s birthday. 5 additional days of leave once you have reached 5 years of service. Compassionate maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave policies, with up to 26 weeks leave at full pay, 13 weeks with partial pay, and 13 weeks further leave. And maternity support/paternity leave at full pay for 2 weeks, too! Wellbeing support including access to the Calm app. Nurturing professional and interpersonal networks including those for Carers & Childcare, Gender Equality, PROUD and SPIRIT. Bike loans up to £2500 and secure bike parking (subject to availability and location). Season ticket loans, childcare vouchers and eye-care vouchers. 5 days volunteering paid leave. Some offices may have a subsidised onsite Gym.
Person Specification Essential User focus - Gives direction on which tools / methods to use. Is experienced in meeting the needs of users across a variety of channels. Able to bring insight and expertise in how user needs have changed over time to ensure these are met by the business. Strategic ownership - Able to develop a long-term vision and objectives. Discerning and disciplined in focusing on what is important and most relevant. Able to develop the capability of others. Agile working - Coaches and leads teams in Agile and Lean practices, determining the right approach for the team to take and evaluating this through the life of a project. Is able to think of new and innovative ways of working to achieve the right outcomes. Financial ownership - Able to develop a business case, own and iterate it throughout the lifecycle. Understands the granularity of financial costs per sprint and value delivered. Lifecycle perspective - Able to apply experience of multiple parts of the life cycle, recognising when it is right to move forward and when it is right to stop. Able to recognise the appropriate deliverables and the right people to meet these. Able to work with other agile delivery operations throughout the product lifecycle to plan and engage with the appropriate stakeholders at a particular stage in the project. Operational management - Keeps abreast of industry best practice and cascades ways of working. Knows how to make operations efficient. Is the escalation point for major operational issues and champions operational management across the community. Works closely with leaders of operational delivery teams in GDD Problem ownership - Is able to anticipate problems and knows how to defend against them at the right time. Understands how the problem fits into the larger picture. Is able to articulate the problem and helps others to articulate the problem. Builds problem-solving capabilities in others. Proven leadership of multidisciplinary digital teams to successfully deliver digital service across the whole lifecycle - discovery, design, delivery, growth, continuous improvement and retirement into the larger picture. Is able to articulate the problem and helps others to articulate the problem. Builds problem-solving capabilities in others. Willingness to be assessed against the requirements for BPSS clearance
We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring and do not discriminate based on 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.
Our values are Purpose, Humanity Openness and Together. Find out more here about how we celebrate diversity and an inclusive culture in our workplace.
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 D&I Strategy.
How to Apply
Candidates must submit a CV and Statement of Suitability (500 words max) which describes how you meet the requirements set out below, from the essential criteria:
In the statement of suitability, candidates should outline their experience and suitability, in no more than 250 words per section, against the following 2 criteria (500 words max) Strategic ownership - Able to develop a long-term vision and objectives. Discerning and disciplined in focusing on what is important and most relevant. Able to develop the capability of others. Financial ownership - Able to develop a business case, own and iterate it throughout the lifecycle. Understands the granularity of financial costs per sprint and value delivered. **Should we receive a high volume of applications, a pre-sift based on strategic and financial ownership will be conducted before the sift.
Application Guidance Please access the following link for guidance on how to apply and how to complete a Personal Statement Application Guidance
In Justice Digital, we recruit using a combination of the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability and Success Profiles Frameworks. We will assess your Experience, Technical Skills and the following Behaviours during the assessment process:
Leadership Changing and Improving Seeing the Big Picture Delivery at Pace Making Effective Decisions
A diverse panel will review your application against the Person Specification above. Successful candidates who meet the required standard will then be invited to a 1-hour panel interview, which may include a task/presentation, held via MS Teams. The presentation will assess behaviours 'Making Effecting Decisions' & 'Delivery at Pace'
Should you be unsuccessful in the role that you have applied for but demonstrate the capability for a role at a lower level, we reserve the right to discuss this opportunity with you and offer you the position without needing a further application.
A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months, from which further appointments may be made. Use of Artificial Intelligence 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. Terms & Conditions Please review our Terms and Conditions which set out how we recruit and provide further information related to the role and salary arrangements.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact digitalanddatarecruitment@justice.gov.uk
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