Deputy Principal Private Secretary to the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice

This vacancy is only available to existing Civil Servant employees and employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs). Please review the "Eligibility" section before you apply.

General Information

Salary

£75,674 - £85,257

Working Pattern

Full Time

Vacancy Approach

Cross Government

Location

London

Region

London

Closing Date

25-Sep-2026

Post Type

Permanent

Civil Service Grade

Grade 6

Number of jobs available

1

Reserve List

12 Months

Job ID

22155

Descriptions & requirements

Job description

Job Title: Deputy Principal Private Secretary to the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice

Grade: G6

Group: CPPL

Directorate: Private Office and Parliament Directorate

Team: Lord Chancellor’s Office

Location: 102 Petty France London

Working Pattern: Full time, Office based

Level of NSV required (applies to CTC/SC/DV only roles) SC (can be applied for by the successful candidate if not already held)

Contact: James Wrigley (james.wrigley@justice.gov.uk)

Closing Date: 24 September 2026

The Role

As Deputy Principal Private Secretary to the Lord Chancellor, you will help deliver the Department’s priorities, working in a fast-paced and exciting environment where strong team working is vital. You will gain invaluable experience at the heart of the Department’s decision-making process, working directly with the Lord Chancellor, Special Advisers, Senior officials across the department and Whitehall, and external stakeholders.

This role, working to the Principal Private Secretary to the Lord Chancellor, will have responsibility for oversight of the Lord Chancellor’s Private Office, working closely with the existing Deputy Principal Private Secretary who has oversight of the Junior Minister offices.

You will need to have the personal credibility and experience to build trust and confidence with the Lord Chancellor and the wider Ministerial team, ensuring work that is sent to Ministers is of high quality and that advice, briefings and correspondence on a range of complex and challenging policy and operational issues are clear. You will need to be an excellent leader and manager, ensuring the Lord Chancellor’s Private Office team have a high standard of pastoral care in demanding roles and that you promote join up across the team and ensure issues are escalated appropriately. Alongside oversight of the Private Office you will lead on the vitally important finance portfolio for the Lord Chancellor, working closely with key teams across the department in the lead up to next year’s Spending Review.

In time you should become the key expert in Private Office on relevant issues. This role demands excellent interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence in order to collaborate in a high-pressured environment with policy, finance, operations and other Private Office colleagues, making sure that the Lord Chancellor and SpAds are looped in on emerging issues in the right way, at the right time.

This is a demanding and high-profile role in Private Office, working on critical priorities for the Lord Chancellor and has regular interaction with Number 10. This role therefore requires the ability to work at pace, navigate complicated political dynamics and engage confidently with key officials and special advisers at the centre of Government. You will be a key go between for the Lord Chancellor and the Department and must be comfortable working with colleagues at all grades.

Please note that this role requires working extended hours for which a Private Secretary allowance is payable.

Skills and Experience

Essential:

• Excellent leadership skills developed through leading teams through difficult, complex and fast paced environments. You should have brilliant interpersonal skills, able to harness your relationships to deliver through others.
• You will be a collaborative, empathetic and inspiring team leader, knowing how to effectively work within a team, escalate issues where appropriate and work together with others to deliver work to a high standard, often delivering at pace.
• You should be a strategic thinker, able to understand complex policy and operational challenges, see the bigger picture and navigate the political environment to engage effectively with spads and ministers.
• You will be an effective communicator, able to distil difficult and complex messages into simple and clear recommendations, communicating in a straightforward and engaging manner, sharing information with colleagues as appropriate and taking into account different opinions and views.
• Experience of building effective professional relationships with others to identify risks and resolve issues efficiently. You will know how to involve a diverse range of colleagues, stakeholders and delivery partners in developing suggestions for improvements and provide an effective channel of communication for the Minister with other private offices, the Department, the rest of Whitehall, Parliament and the public.
• Someone that uses their relationships, judgement and understanding of the wider context to support the Lord Chancellor in their work and to add value to the process and substance of decision making, ensuring financial and ethical probity. You should be engaging, trustworthy and unafraid to challenge peers and senior colleagues.

Desirable

• Knowledge of the challenges and priorities across relevant policy and ops issues would be advantageous to this role but not essential.

Behaviours assessed

• The following Civil Service behaviours will be assessed at interview:
  • Leadership
  • Communicating and Influencing
  • Delivering at Pace
  • Seeing the Big Picture
  • Working Together

How to apply

Please provide a short CV and a personal statement of 750 words setting out how your skills and experience meet the essential criteria for the role

If successful at the sift stage, you will be invited to interview and you may be invited to a fireside chat with the Lord Chancellor.

As a Disability Confident employer, the MoJ offers an interview to any disabled applicant who indicates they would like to be considered for an interview as a disabled applicant and meets the minimum criteria required for the role.

You can indicate that you would like to be considered for an interview as a disabled candidate by completing the related section of the application form, should you be assessed as meeting the minimum criteria,

Applications will be anonymised before assessment.

If you have any queries about the role, or you wish to discuss the role prior to applying, please contact James Wrigley (james.wrigley@justice.gov.uk).

MoJ is committed to having inclusive and accessible recruitment. This includes by offering and implementing reasonable adjustments to enable disabled applicants to be considered for a job on an equal basis with non-disabled applicants. If you require reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process, you should contact: CPPLRecruitment@justice.gov.uk

General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) 2018: The information provided by you in this application and the supporting documentation will be used to consider your suitability for the post. Following the exercise, the papers will be kept for one year or the period of the appointment, whichever is less and then reviewed and deleted if appropriate.

Additional Information

Working Arrangements & Further Information

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity.

Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

For nationally advertised roles: All successful candidates will be appointed to the nearest viable office nearest to their home postcode and on its respective pay scale. This will be at either a HQ building (subject to desk allocation, a Justice Collaboration Centre (JCC) or a Justice Satellite Office (JSO) – See Map. All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity).

For current MoJ employees, your base location will need to be changed to the nearest viable office (to your home postcode), either at a HQ building, JCC or JSO within the National Office Network and moved its location’s respective pay scale (any legacy arrangements/locations will need to be amended).

Some of MoJ’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.

MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain their grade on lateral transfer.

All candidates who are currently in receipt of Mark Time / Pay Protection should ensure they are familiar with the new policy on permanent and temporary promotion which can be found on the employee intranet.

Flexible working hours

The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. MoJ welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.

Benefits

The MoJ offers a range of benefits:

Annual Leave

Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years’ service.

There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.

Pension

The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.

Training

The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Networks

The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

Eligibility

Staff on fixed term appointments must have been recruited through fair and open competition.

Vacancies advertised “cross-government” are only open to all Civil Service employees and employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) who were appointed on merit following a fair and open competition; or were appointed to a permanent post through an exception in the Civil Service Commissioners' rules.

Support

• A range of ‘Family Friendly’ policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
• Access to flexible benefits such as voluntary benefits, retail vouchers and discounts on a range of goods and services.
• For moves to or from another employer or moves across the Civil Service this can have implications on your eligibility to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for alternative government childcare support schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. More information can be found on www.www.GOV.UK or Childcare Choices. You can determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
• Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
• Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order

• To Transformative Business Services (0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk);
• To Ministry of Justice Resourcing team (resourcing-management-office@justice.gov.uk);
• To the Civil Service Commission (details available here)

As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.

You will be able to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process within the application form. If you need additional help completing the application form, please contact the TBS Recruitment Enquiries Team.

For more information on applying for a role as a candidate with a disability or long-term condition, please watch our animated videos.

Diversity & Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

Redeployment Interview Scheme

Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ is committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are 'at risk of redundancy'.

MoJ is able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidates will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

Civil Service Nationality Rules

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• 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) (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families
• 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 European Union Settlement Scheme (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

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules

Reserve list

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

Contact Information

MoJ:

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference 22155

HMPPS

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference

Job Description Attachment

• LC DPPS Job Description_James Wrigley (1).docx (Job Description Attachment)

  Download | Preview | Open in a new tab

  Close preview

Select new file

Application form stage assessments

Experience

We will assess your experience for this role via the following methods

CV or Work History, Statement of Suitability

Statement of Suitability

Guidance for the Statement of Suitability

Please provide a statement of suitability of no more than 750 words with reference to the essential criteria in the job description.

Evidence of Experience

CV or Work History, Statement of Suitability

Interview stage assessments

Interview Dates

TBC

Behaviours

Communicating and Influencing

Delivering at Pace

Leadership

Seeing the Big Picture

Working Together

Strengths

Strengths will be assessed but these are not shared in advance. To learn more about Strengths and how they are assessed please click here.

Level of security checks required

Security Clearance (SC)

Use of Artificial Intelligence (Al)

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.