Head of Portfolio Management

Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency; Birmingham; Hybrid; GBP 58,000; Full time

Job summary

A government agency in charge of vehicle standards is seeking a Head of Portfolio Management to provide strategic leadership and direction. This role involves overseeing the successful delivery of portfolios, ensuring alignment with organisational strategy, and driving continuous improvement. The position offers a competitive salary of £57,515 with an employer pension contribution of 28.97%. Benefits include extensive annual leave, career development opportunities, and flexible working options.

Benefits

Employer pension contribution of 28.97%

25 days annual leave increasing with service

8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day

Access to staff discount portal

Career development opportunities funded by department

Diverse and inclusive workforce

24-hour Employee Assistance Programme

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Experience in Portfolio or Programme management within a complex organisation.
• Experience of successful planning, scheduling, monitoring and reporting on activities related to a Portfolio.
• Knowledge of different development delivery methodologies such as Waterfall and Agile.
• Familiarity with benefits management and assurance processes.

Responsibilities

• Developing and maintaining the Portfolio vision and strategy aligned with DVSA’s business plan.
• Coordinating the Portfolio plan, identifying constraints and dependencies.
• Ensuring the portfolio evolves in response to strategic and policy changes.
• Continuous improvement of the Value Framework and other methodologies.
• Overseeing the delivery of the Portfolio(s) and maintaining key milestones.

Skills

Portfolio management

Planning

Scheduling

Agile methodologies

Risk management

Education

P30 practitioner (or willingness to obtain)

Job description

phone number removed) Head of Portfolio Management

Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency

Apply before 11 : 55 pm on Sunday 4th January 2026

📍 Location : Birmingham, Bristol, Chadderton, Hayes, Leeds, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nottingham, Swansea (Hybrid)

💷 Salary : £57,515 - A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

🕒 Contract Type : Permanent – Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time

The Head of Portfolio Management provides strategic leadership and direction for the oversight, coordination and successful delivery of a collection of Portfolios, Programmes and Projects that underpin departmental or business-area priorities. The role is responsible for establishing a clear, integrated view of all change activity, ensuring that investments are aligned to organisational strategy and deliver measurable benefits.

They oversee the prioritisation of initiatives, making evidence-based decisions on resource allocation to ensure the right projects are funded and delivered at the right time. Working closely with senior leaders, programme teams and corporate functions, they provide assurance on progress, risks and dependencies, enabling informed decision-making across the organisation.

The postholder also drives continuous improvement in portfolio management capability, embedding strong governance, promoting best practice, and ensuring that delivery approaches remain consistent with government standards and priorities.

Top Responsibilities

• Developing and maintaining the Portfolio vision and strategy aligned with DVSA’s business plan.
• Coordinating the Portfolio plan, identifying constraints and dependencies.
• Ensuring the portfolio and its service provision evolves in response to strategic, policy, and environmental changes.
• Continuous Improvement of the Value Framework and any other methodologies used to size and prioritise work.
• Overseeing the delivery of the Portfolio(s), developing and maintaining the key milestones, backlogs and dependencies, ensuring that.

Benefits

• 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).
• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King’s birthday.
• Access to the staff discount portal.
• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.
• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

About you

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience :

• Experience in Portfolio or Programme management within a complex organisation.
• Experience of successful planning, scheduling, monitoring and reporting on activities related to a Portfolio.
• Knowledge of different development delivery methodologies e.g. Waterfall, Agile.
• Familiarity with benefits management, risk and issue escalation and assurance processes.

Essential qualifications

• If you do not already have P30 practitioner, then you must be willing to work towards this once in role.

How to Apply

👉 Read the full job description and apply using the link provided

This vacancy closes at 23 : 55 on Sunday 4th January 2026