Child Maintenance Service – Financial Investigations Unit Team Leader

Government Recruitment Service; Plymouth; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A government department in the UK is seeking a motivated Team Leader for the Financial Investigations Unit. This key role involves leading a team of investigators in conducting financial and criminal investigations to ensure the correct support for children. The ideal candidate will be adaptable, resilient, and capable of delivering outstanding customer service while managing a diverse range of responsibilities. This position offers opportunities for professional growth and a flexible work-life balance.

Benefits

Flexible work-life balance

Opportunities for growth and development

Qualifications

• Experience in managing teams or leading projects.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of investigators conducting financial and criminal investigations.
• Foster a collaborative team culture.
• Review and authorise requests for information gathering.
• Manage case conferences and recommend next steps.

Skills

Leadership

Adaptability

Decision Making

Customer Service

Job description

As the UK government’s largest public service provider, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policies.

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) supports parents who are unable to reach a private financial agreement by ensuring – and when necessary, enforcing – their legal responsibility to contribute to their child’s living costs. Our mission is simple: to get money to children, because it makes a real difference in their lives.

While we’ve made significant progress in transforming our service, we remain ambitious about what more we can achieve for the families who rely on us. CMS is a dynamic and rewarding place to work. Step into any of our service centres and you’ll find passionate, dedicated professionals committed to supporting our customers.

As part of the Child Maintenance Service, the Financial Investigations Unit (FIU) is a nationally based team responsible for both criminal and financial investigations. This includes cases where clients use complex tax arrangements to reduce their liability for child maintenance payments.

The FIU plays a vital role at the heart of DWP’s frontline operations, helping to improve lives through financial accountability. For the first time, FIU brings together strategy, policy, and analysis to tackle fraud, error, and financial correctness within the child maintenance system.

We are proud to foster an inclusive and diverse workforce where everyone can thrive. If you're looking to make a difference, this could be the career for you.

This is a fantastic opportunity to start or grow a fulfilling career in the Civil Service. We offer a flexible work-life balance, along with opportunities for growth, challenge, and personal development.

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) is offering exciting opportunities for motivated individuals to join us as FIU Team Leaders. These are key leadership roles where you’ll have the chance to make a real difference in the lives of children and families across the UK.

As a Team Leader within FIU, you will have overall responsibility for leading, organising and performance managing around 8 people. These teams work within a Service Centre environment; their main task being undertaking complex criminal and civil investigations at pace. Our investigators are responsible for the end-to-end investigation process, including gathering and analysing information independently, interview customers and decision making.

You will be accountable for managing workloads, effectively managing resources, prioritising and addressing any risks to ensure performance targets and customer objectives are met. As a people manager you will support wellbeing across the teams, manage attendance and conduct regular coaching reviews confidently addressing risks to performance, and leading the investigators through the investigation process.

We’re looking for passionate leaders who are committed to delivering outstanding customer service. You’ll need to be adaptable and resilient, capable of making sound decisions, and confident in driving and implementing change in a high-profile, fast‑paced environment.

Your leadership will be instrumental in achieving our core mission: ensuring that children receive the financial support they deserve.

We are looking for individuals who are highly adaptable and flexible, as the role involves a variety of responsibilities that may evolve in line with changing business priorities. The duties outlined below are indicative of the tasks you may be expected to undertake.

As a Team Leader in the Financial Investigations Unit you will be responsible for:

• Leading a team of investigators conducting financial and criminal investigations, including determining the correct income to be used in child maintenance calculations.
• Fostering a collaborative team culture, enabling effective working both within the team and across the wider business to achieve desired outcomes.
• Reviewing, assessing and authorising requests for information gathering from relevant sources.
• Managing case conferences to evaluate intelligence and recommend next steps, which may include prosecution, financial corrective action, or case closure.
• Supporting your team members in the analysis and evaluation of evidence.
• Ensuring investigations are conducted in line with legal and policy requirements, pursuing all reasonable lines of enquiry, including surveillance and customer/witness visits.
• Liaising with external partners such as Local Authorities, Police, and HMRC, in accordance with existing partnership agreements.
• Promoting fraud awareness within DWP and among external stakeholders.
• Working with senior colleagues to enhance investigative capabilities at a national level.
• Managing relationships with key stakeholders across CMS and DWP to ensure appropriate FIU case referrals.
• Ensuring compliance with all relevant DWP policies and procedures, including mandatory learning and development.