Head of Human Centred AI


Company:	Government Recruitment Service
Salary:	£72,281 to £77,330 a year
Hours:	Full-time
Location:	Birmingham
Job type:	Permanent
Posting date:	9 Oct 2026
Closing date:	2 Nov 2026

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Summary

Can you help shape how one of the UK's largest organisations adopts AI responsibly, effectively and at scale?

Do you have the vision to combine behavioural science, user insight and evaluation to influence the future of work across the Department for Transport?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

The Head of Human Centred AI formulates and leads a high-impact programme to provide evidence and insight into how AI can be effectively and responsibly developed and deployed across DfT. They lead a team to design and implement social, behavioural and user research projects aligned to departmental priorities, collaborating with colleagues within DfT, across government and with external partners.

They play a pivotal role in the delivery of AI in DfT, applying their skills and insights to shape the portfolio of work and identify opportunities. They apply rigorous and innovative social and behavioural science methodologies to aid the development and deployment of AI.

This is not a traditional social research role, requiring proactive engagement with the application of findings, and the leadership to drive agenda forwards collaboratively in a complex stakeholder environment.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here

25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays a privilege day for the King’s birthday

Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at Department for Transport Central - Department for Transport Careers

Our aim is for DfT to be a leading department in the use of AI. We want to expand our reach across the Department, its agencies and delivery bodies, and make better use of the full spectrum of data science techniques and advances in AI to realise the ambition set out by the Prime Minister in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, and by our Secretary of State in the Transport AI Action Plan.

AI is transforming how organisations work. DfT is investing heavily in AI capability and wants to become a leading government department in the safe, effective and responsible use of AI. This role will ensure that decisions about AI are grounded in evidence about people, behaviour and organisational change, helping maximise benefits while managing risks.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

Designing and leading a behavioural science, social and user research programme to support the safe and effective adoption of AI across the department.
Leading the Evaluation programme, on the effectiveness, impact and value of AI tools using mixed-method approaches to assess impacts on quality, time-saving and user satisfaction.
Applying research findings and insight to shape the design and delivery of AI projects, including identifying opportunities, supporting the design and evaluation of training and communication activities, and advocating for the user perspective.
Working closely with the AI & data science team, HR and other colleagues to inform organisational readiness for AI, aligning social and behavioural evidence with training, change management and workforce strategy.
Developing and maintaining a knowledge base of AI-related social and behavioural research and evaluation evidence to inform ongoing decision-making.
Acting as an ambassador for social and behavioural science and evaluation in AI across the department, government and external networks.
Developing research collaborations within DfT, other government departments and academia.
Building and sustaining positive relationships with senior stakeholders, demonstrating the value of user-centred and evidence-led decision-making.
Drive standards of research quality, inclusivity and ethical practice, offering mentorship and hands-on support to ensure high performance within your team.
Lead the Social and Behavioural Science and Evaluation for AI function in collaboration with peers across GSR and other professions to grow and embed capability and foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

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