Data Governance Lead

Pets at Home; Cheadle; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

Pets at Home is seeking a Data Governance Lead to own and shape the enterprise data governance framework across Retail, Veterinary and Digital teams. You will translate complex governance concepts into practical business outcomes while reporting to Head of IT Internal Controls.

This hybrid role (1-2 days in Handforth) offers ownership, collaboration with stakeholders, and the chance to enable responsible AI adoption and data-driven decision-making across the organisation.

Qualifications

• Proven experience designing enterprise data governance frameworks.
• Strong knowledge of data governance principles and data quality management.
• Experience leading cross-functional governance initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and implementation of an enterprise-wide data governance framework.
• Establish clear data ownership and decision-making structures.
• Facilitate governance forums and report on governance maturity, risks and progress.
• Shape and deliver the long-term data governance roadmap.
• Partner with Data Domain Owners to embed accountability across data domains.

Skills

Data governance

Stakeholder management

Regulatory knowledge

AI governance

Tools

Data catalog tools

Data lineage tools

Job description

Data Governance Lead

IT | Support Office / Hybrid (1-2 days a week in Handforth)

Permanent, full-time, 39 hours per week

As we continue to invest in our data capabilities, we're looking for a Data Governance Lead to help us build a trusted, well-governed data environment that supports better decisions, drives innovation and enables the responsible use of emerging technologies, including AI.

About the role

This is a fantastic opportunity to take ownership of and shape data governance across Pets at Home. You'll be a collaborative and influential governance professional who can translate complex concepts into practical business outcomes.

Reporting to the Head of IT Internal Controls, you'll lead the development and implementation of an enterprise-wide data governance framework, ensuring data is clearly owned, effectively managed and trusted across the organisation.

Working closely with stakeholders across Retail, Veterinary, Digital and Support Office teams, you'll help establish the governance foundations that allow data to become a strategic asset, enabling business growth, improving decision-making and supporting innovation.

What you'll be doing

Leading data governance across the business

• Develop, implement and continuously improve our data governance framework, policies and standards.
• Establish clear data ownership, accountability and decision-making structures.
• Facilitate governance forums and provide reporting on governance maturity, risks and progress.
• Shape and deliver the long-term data governance roadmap.

Driving data quality and stewardship

• Partner with Data Domain Owners and Data Stewards to embed accountability across key data domains.
• Define data quality standards, metrics and improvement plans.
• Build and support a strong network of Data Stewards across the business.
• Improve the consistency, accuracy and reliability of critical data assets.

Strengthening risk, compliance and assurance

• Support regulatory compliance and audit readiness through effective governance controls.
• Collaborate closely with Internal Controls, Information Security, Legal and Privacy teams.
• Identify, monitor and manage governance risks and policy exceptions.
• Help ensure compliance with UK GDPR and relevant regulatory requirements.

Building data governance capability

• Create engaging guidance, training materials and communications.
• Champion data literacy and stewardship throughout the organisation.
• Foster collaboration between business and technology teams.
• Act as a trusted advisor to stakeholders at all levels.

Enabling better data and AI outcomes

• Support the development of data catalogues, metadata management and data lineage capabilities.
• Partner with architecture and platform teams to improve transparency and control across data environments.
• Help establish the foundations for scalable analytics, automation and responsible AI adoption.

You'll bring

-Proven experience designing and implementing enterprise-wide data governance frameworks in line with DAMA, DCAM or equivalent frameworks.

-Strong knowledge of data governance principles, data quality management and stewardship practices.

-Experience leading cross-functional governance initiatives and driving organisational change.

-Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the confidence to challenge constructively.

-A solid understanding of data protection and regulatory requirements, including UK GDPR

-A proactive, resilient and solutions-focused approach.

It would be great if you also had

• Professional certifications such as CDMP, DCAM, CIPP/E or similar.
• Experience within retail, consumer services or other customer-focused sectors.
• Knowledge of data architecture, cloud technologies and modern data platforms.
• Experience using data catalogue, lineage or data quality tools.

Why join Pets at Home?

This is a unique opportunity to influence how data is governed across one of the UK's most loved pet care businesses.

You'll work with senior leaders across the organisation, help drive strategic decision-making and create trusted data foundations that support future growth, innovation and AI-enabled transformation.

If you're passionate about helping organisations unlock the value of their data while creating practical, effective governance, we'd love to hear from you.

Pets just see people. They aren’t biased and they don’t discriminate. We take our inspiration from pets, and we value and respect differences in all its forms. Our aim is to reflect the diversity of the communities we operate in, and every colleague can help us achieve this. We encourage our people to be themselves so even if your skills and experience don’t perfectly align, if you think you can make a unique contribution through your values and behaviours, we want to hear from you.