21853 - Head of National Intelligence Unit


Company:	Ministry of Justice
Salary:	£91,540 to £105,912 a year
Hours:	Full-time
Location:	National, NP10 8FZ
Working pattern:	Hybrid - 2 days remote
Job type:	Permanent
Posting date:	3 Sept 2026
Closing date:	17 Sept 2026

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Summary

HMPPS Band 11

We are seeking exceptional senior leaders to join our organisation at a pivotal time of transformation. These influential roles will play a key part in delivering strategic alignment projects, providing visible leadership through change, and shaping the future direction of the organisation. Working across complex stakeholder environments, successful candidates will build and maintain strong partnerships, drive operational improvement, and ensure the delivery of high-quality outcomes that support our long-term ambitions. This is a unique opportunity to make a lasting impact, leading people, performance, and change at the highest level.

The National Intelligence Unit (NIU) is part of the National Security Group (NSG) within the Directorate of Security and comprises approximately 280 staff. The Unit is responsible for ensuring that intelligence relating to terrorism, serious and organised crime, corruption, public protection and wider security threats is effectively collected, analysed, shared and acted upon across HMPPS. NIU is continuing to expand its capability to deliver regional and national intelligence operations directly in support of prisons and probation, helping to identify, assess and manage threats that impact the safety, security and effectiveness of HMPPS services.

NIU works collaboratively with other areas of the Directorate of Security to develop and deliver operational and policy responses to terrorism, organised crime and corruption. Operating as HMPPS's centre of excellence for intelligence, the Unit provides strategic leadership, professional standards, capability development and operational support for intelligence practitioners across the organisation.

As a recognised partner within the wider UK intelligence community, NIU works closely with policing, the National Crime Agency, Regional Organised Crime Units, Counter Terrorism Policing and other law enforcement agencies to strengthen intelligence sharing, support operational activity and deliver a coordinated response to emerging and evolving threats.

As Head of the National Intelligence Unit, the post holder will provide strategic leadership to a complex, nationally dispersed intelligence function, ensuring that intelligence capabilities, resources and operational activity are aligned to HMPPS priorities and emerging threats. The role is responsible for leading the development of intelligence capability across HMPPS, maintaining the intelligence operating model and ensuring intelligence products and services support effective decision-making, risk management and public protection outcomes.

This is a nationally based role with the standard HMPPS expectation around hybrid working and a minimum 60% office attendance. There will be frequent travel to London, occasional national travel and possible international travel.

Although the Head of Intelligence, Head of Corruption, Crime and Policing Unit, and Head of Change are NSG roles, they are being advertised as three separate campaigns, they all sit within the National Security Group.

If you would like to be considered for more than one of these roles, please apply for each vacancy that interests you. We will conduct a joint sift across the campaigns, and candidates applying for multiple roles will only need to attend one interview.

We will share further details and guidance on the process in due course.

Developed Vetting standards are required with a further STRAP accreditation.

The presentation question will be sent to candidates once they have been invited to interview.

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