Senior Policy Advisor - Children's Social Care

Office of the Children's Commissioner; City Of London; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

A dedicated children's advocacy organization in London seeks a Senior Policy Advisor to lead initiatives focused on improving children’s social care. In this role, you'll monitor policy landscapes, manage projects, and build stakeholder relationships while ensuring children's voices are prioritized. Ideal candidates will have substantial experience in a policy environment, strong communication skills, and a commitment to children's rights.

Benefits

Civil Service Pension with employer contribution

Employee Assistance Program

Comprehensive reward scheme

25 days of holiday plus bank holidays

Flexible working options

Family-friendly policies

Learning and development opportunities

Qualifications

• Experience working in a policy environment and understanding policy-making processes.
• Comfortable managing competing priorities and delivering high-quality work.
• Skilled in building relationships with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Children's Commissioner's work on children’s social care.
• Monitor policy landscape to formulate evidence-based arguments.
• Develop and maintain a network of stakeholders.

Skills

Policy analysis

Project management

Stakeholder engagement

Research methodologies

Oral and written communication

Team collaboration

Education

Degree in a relevant field

Job description

Do you want to make a tangible difference to the lives of children across England? Can you use your skills to be a catalyst for creating meaningful change? Are you committed to protecting the rights of children, especially those in contact with children’s social care? Are you ready to join a committed team, dedicated to giving children and young people a voice on the issues affecting them?

Now is the perfect time to join the Children's Commissioner's Office (CCo). Following the publication of ‘The Big Ambition’, the Children's Commissioner wants to take children’s thoughts, opinions and ideas to decision makers, to ensure that the Government reflects children’s voices in the decisions that will affect them in years to come.

Role

As Senior Policy Advisor you will lead the Children's Commissioner's work on children’s social care. You will ensure that the office’s work improves the lives of children and care‑experienced young people who are involved with or affected by children’s social care. This will include initiating and delivering evidence‑based projects, taking the lead on briefing the Children’s Commissioner on matters relating to children’s social care and supporting the work and strategy of the wider office. You will identify opportunities for the Commissioner to effect change on behalf of children and represent the Commissioner at external meetings, including with highly vulnerable children, and build positive working relationships with a range of stakeholders. You will achieve recognition for your work, and the work of the office, across Whitehall, turning policy propositions into real legislative and regulatory change.

Responsibilities

• Monitor the policy landscape relating to children’s social care, conducting policy analysis and formulating reasoned, evidence‑based arguments for change.
• Lead policy‑based projects, acting as the project manager for multiple pieces of work, coordinating project roles, tasks and use of resources, and developing proposals for efficient delivery of projects.
• Work with colleagues to commission research, including using the Commissioner’s statutory powers to develop robust evidence.
• Develop and maintain a network of stakeholders who can support improving children’s social care and children’s lives more broadly. Including developing partnerships and relationships to support the delivery of projects.
• Deliver high quality external‑facing outputs, communicating the evidence and views of the office fluently and credibly.
• Support and manage colleagues to deliver high impact work where appropriate.

Your statement of suitability should be anonymised (name‑blind) and should set out how you meet the essential skills and any relevant experience to the key duties of the role (no more than 500 words). Applications will be sifted against the key requirements set out in the essential and desirable criteria listed in the job description.

The closing date for the receipt of completed applications is 23:55 on 23 November 2025. Interviews for short‑listed candidates are expected to take place during the week beginning 8 December 2025. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.

Nationality requirements

• UK nationals
• Nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• Nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• Nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre‑settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• Nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre‑settled status under the EUSS
• Individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Qualifications

• Be an experienced policy professional and motivated self‑starter with the ability to get to grips with complex work at speed.
• Be comfortable managing competing priorities and able to take responsibility for delivering high quality work to completion.
• Be a skilled and engaging leader, equally adept at supporting colleagues’ development and wellbeing and at building strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Be able to thrive in a small, friendly, hard working and very supportive team.
• Be committed to upholding the rights of children.
• Enjoy working with children and young people, and ensuring their voices are heard.

Key Criteria

Essential

• Experience working in a policy environment and an understanding of the policy making process, including using evidence to influence policy change.
• Experience working with parliamentarians, including on influencing legislative change.
• Experience working with communication colleagues to influence change.
• An understanding of research methodologies and experience of using research and evidence to develop policy propositions.
• Highly developed oral and written communication skills, including producing public facing outputs at speed.
• The ability to manage and deliver multiple projects in a fast‑moving organisation.
• High levels of personal effectiveness in working as part of a team and contributing to a successful organisation.

Desirable

• Experience of working in children’s social care.

Benefits

• A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 27.97%.
• An Employee Assistance Programme.
• A comprehensive reward scheme.
• Generous holiday allowance starting at 25 days plus bank holidays and one privilege day.
• Flexible working options including full‑time or part‑time and hybrid working (amend as per role).
• A range of family‑friendly policies.
• Excellent learning and development opportunities.
• A culture encouraging inclusivity and diversity.