Project Manager in Wilmslow

12 month fixed term contract

Full time / Part time

Salary: £44,297 - £49,813, with potential for further progression to £56,082 with our pay progression scheme.

Location: Hybrid

Contracted to our Wilmslow, London, Edinburgh, Cardiff or Belfast office, however, through hybrid working we offer flexible home and office-based working opportunities. There will be times when you will be expected to attend the office to collaborate with colleagues or travel due to business need.

Why work for the ICO?

• Pay progression scheme.
• Hybrid and flexible working options.
• 25 days paid holiday per year, plus privilege and public holidays.
• Flexi leave (up to 24 additional days leave per year).
• Pension (employer contribution around 28.9%).
• Online discount scheme to save money at major supermarkets, retailers, gyms, restaurants, insurance providers and many more.
• Health Cash Plan.
• Fantastic development opportunities to learn and progress.

Job Summary

ICO Project Managers are responsible for leading the delivery of strategically important projects within the ICO. The experienced project manager will work primarily in support of the ICO’s Senior Leadership team to drive forward defined projects within a programme of work.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is the independent regulator of information rights. In a data-driven world, we provide advice, guidance, and support to organisations enabling compliance with their obligations, as well as protecting individuals and their personal data.

As an employer, we are passionate about making a positive difference to the lives and careers of our people, and we empower you to be curious, impactful, collaborative and respectful.

Job Description

You will be responsible for delivery of projects, managing project teams and acting as a channel of information between service areas, partner organisations and external stakeholders, working to ensure project plans are delivered in line with agreed schedule, scope and budget and resolving differences between project stakeholders, identifying any issues and risks and taking action to mitigate against these. As an ICO leader you will demonstrate the skills and behaviours that support corporate efforts to ensure project management at the ICO remains an efficient and effective enabling tool for delivering our strategies. All our leaders should espouse the core ICO values of ambition, collaboration, service focused and leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Working with the project sponsor to develop and maintain a comprehensive project plan, coordinating actions and collaborating with the right people at the right time to ensure matters are progressed effectively.
• Leading projects through to post-implementation review, managing teams to deliver successful projects within agreed scope, schedule and budget.
• Develop and manage project teams, empowering and inspiring others to ensure objectives are met in line with agreed schedule, scope and budget.
• Ensure appropriate arrangements are in place to monitor and control the project and manage the preparation and delivery of papers and reports for programme and project board(s) ensuring the board are kept up to date on project deliverables, progress as well as any issues or risks associated with delivery.
• Prepare detailed project plans and documentation and contribute to project content development, including drafting papers, developing communications and training plans as appropriate.
• Collate, document, and communicate lessons learnt to support a continuous learning culture and development of the ICO’s project approach.
• Identify and manage any risks involved in the project, including the development of contingency plans as appropriate.
• Organise, facilitate, and support programme and project events such as workshops and stakeholder briefings.

Essential criteria assessed at application stage

• A project management qualification or willingness to work towards one.
• Experience of managing projects; preferably within an agile working environment.
• Ability to work under pressure and deal with a demanding workload which may include conflicting demands on time.
• Excellent knowledge and demonstrable ability of Microsoft 365 applications.

Essential criteria assessed at interview stage

• Very strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to negotiate and to build and maintain good working relationships both internally and externally, up to and including senior management level.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Experience of communicating, negotiating and influencing strategic change.
• High level of attention to detail and accuracy with proven experience of risk and issue management.
• Good judgement, with the ability to make considered decisions.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion

The ICO is committed to promoting and enhancing equality, diversity, and inclusion. We are focused on developing a workforce that is representative of the communities we serve and together we are building an inclusive workplace where all of our colleagues have the opportunity to make a real difference. We are championing this through our Equality Diversity and Inclusion Board together with a number of staff networks. Read more about our commitment on our website.

If you have a disability or impairment and have difficulty using our online application system, please email the HR team at recruitment@ico.org.uk who can arrange for you to submit an application via an alternative method.

Closing Date

Please submit your CV by 23:59 on 25 May 2026. We reserve the right to close this vacancy before this date should we receive sufficient applications. Please apply as soon as possible to ensure your application is considered.

Clearance Required for this role: Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS)