Head of Rail Evaluation

Are you experienced with designing, commissioning and delivering evaluation projects? Can you identify solutions to deliver evidence or advice to policy in a fast-paced environment? Do you have experience of evaluation methods? Would you like to shape the future of the Department for Transport? If so, we would love to hear from you!

We have an exciting role available in the Rail Research and Evaluation (RRE) team within Rail Analysis. As Head of Rail Evaluation for Infrastructure and Enhancements, you would co-lead a complex, high-profile programme of work, taking a strategic approach to evaluation in rail. This role would suit a strong analyst with excellent communication skills who can engage and collaborate with policy colleagues, analysts and senior stakeholders across Whitehall, the public sector and industry bodies.

You will need strong prioritisation skills to identify what activities can add the most value and impact, and an ability to upskill others (analysts and non-analysts) and build capability to support the delivery of key pieces of work. You will be comfortable with both quantitative and qualitative research and evaluation methods, and able to think creatively with your team about how to support policy colleagues to quickly draw on or gather new evidence to identify learnings.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary.
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

In this role you will lead on the evaluation programme for major investments in rail infrastructure, covering multi-billion pound schemes such as setting up evaluation plans for the TransPennine Route Upgrade (TRU). This evaluation role will deliver crucial evidence for the Department, to ensure we have a robust assessment of the impacts of rail infrastructure and enhancements programmes, to make the case as to why funding is needed to maintain the existing network as well as deliver new schemes.

The impacts of rail infrastructure and enhancements are wide-ranging, covering transport outcomes for passengers, as well as wider socio-economic impacts for local people and places. The post holder will support the delivery of key Government and Departmental missions, such as growing the economy, improving transport for users and creating a green transport network, through high quality evaluation. This role could be in scope to move to Network Rail. The specific implications of this will be discussed with the successful candidate.

Key duties of the role include:

• Providing analytical leadership for the portfolio of evaluation activity in the rail directorates. This includes providing analytical scrutiny and challenge for evaluation activity to ensure findings are robust, defensible and policy-relevant.
• Ensuring the delivery of impactful evaluation through targeting evaluation activity to policy needs and ensuring it can deliver evidence or advice to policy in a fast-paced environment.
• Shape projects with internal and external stakeholders to maximise impact.
• Providing technical advice and suitable quality assurance to the specification, commissioning and delivery of evaluation to maximise the robustness of the research and the value of the resulting evidence.
• Taking a strong approach to prioritisation, making recommendations for where evaluation can have the most impact and where alternative approaches (such as lighter-touch support and analysis) could be taken.
• Building trusted relationships and communicating effectively with stakeholders including economists, statisticians, transport modellers, policy, and communication colleagues across DfT, as well as wider stakeholders in other government departments, industry bodies, delivery bodies, local authorities or academia.
• Providing supportive line management for one member of staff, with an emphasis on delivering results through others.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process.