Head of Strategic Tasking and Planning

Government Recruitment Service; Folkestone; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A government agency is seeking a Director for Force Headquarters to oversee strategic direction and operational planning across the UK border services. The role involves leading multiple teams, supporting the Director General, and ensuring effective deployment of Border Force staff. The ideal candidate will balance operational demands with departmental priorities and provide guidance on policy implications. This position is critical for efficient coordination and operational delivery in response to national pressures.

Responsibilities

• Provide oversight of strategic direction for Border Force operations.
• Lead several teams on operational planning and performance reporting.
• Support the Director General in strategic tasking and coordination.
• Develop medium-term operational plans covering 140 ports across the UK.
• Work with key partners to ensure operational readiness.

Job description

The post holder will report to the Director of Force Headquarters. The role will be the central point of co-ordination for national cross cutting operational issues for all of BF. It will be responsible for oversight of the strategic direction for the tasking of operational activity undertaken at the border across the Migration and Borders system.

This role will support the recently designed operational structure in Border Force. The post holder will take over leadership of several teams who lead on operational planning and performance reporting, and strategic and tactical national tasking as well as frontline guidance and directives. This directorate will be crucial to effective co-ordination and informed operational delivery across Border Force. The post holder will provide direct support to the Director General in his role as chair of the Strategic Tasking and Tactical Coordination meeting and will need to balance competing demands across operational areas, aligned with Home Office priorities.

The post holder will own the medium-term (4 weeks plus) forward planning for BF operations covering 140 ports across the UK and at Juxtaposed Controls in Europe. Providing oversight to the BF Board and supporting command leads in ensuring that Border Forces operational staff are effectively deployed across all areas. The post holder will also be responsible for working with key partners across the Home Office and wider to ensure Operational readiness to support mutual aid in times of national pressures / critical incidents as they arise. They will need to consider the wider policy, political and reputational impact as a result of any operational modelling.

The Director will also need to work with the wider Department to ensure that Departmental and Ministerial priorities are reflected as part of the national deployment model. They will translate medium-term intent, and operational assumptions, into a model for tactical planning to ensure successful handover to operational delivery.