At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead and shape service design to modernise critical national services.
- Company: Join HM Land Registry, a key player in safeguarding property ownership.
- Benefits: Enjoy a competitive salary, generous pension, flexible working, and personal development opportunities.
- Other info: Work in a supportive, inclusive culture with excellent career growth potential.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on services that affect millions across England and Wales.
- Qualifications: Extensive experience in service design and strong leadership skills required.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 77368 £ per year.
Grow and shape HM Land Registry's service design function! HM Land Registry are looking for an experienced design leader to join as Head of Service Design, helping shape and transform critical national services that safeguard land and property ownership across England and Wales. Permanent role, salary £78,200 - £98,100 (based on assessment at interview), 29% employer pension contribution plus full Civil Service benefits. Flexible, hybrid working from 14 UK locations.
About the Head of Service Design role
This is a senior leadership role within the User Centred Design team, offering the opportunity to set the strategic direction for service design across HM Land Registry. You will work closely with the Deputy Directors and senior colleagues to define the future vision for end-to-end services. The role will combine strategic leadership with hands-on service design, helping modernise paper-based and legacy services, improve customer outcomes and unlock the value of HMLR's data.
You will lead and develop the service design capability, supporting designers to apply the right tools, methods and standards across complex programmes. Working across organisational boundaries, you will help teams understand the wider service context, challenge existing ways of working and ensure future services are accessible, inclusive, secure and built around genuine user needs.
Responsibilities for the Head of Service Design
- Set the strategic direction for service design and champion its value across the organisation.
- Lead, develop and mentor service designers, supporting the growth of the wider design capability.
- Work across high-profile transformation programmes to design and improve end-to-end services.
- Influence senior stakeholders, programme boards and executive leaders on service strategy and priorities.
- Lead workshops, service mapping and the development of artefacts such as journey maps, service blueprints and prototypes.
- Ensure services are user centred, accessible, inclusive, secure and aligned with organisational goals.
- Help teams understand the wider service context and make informed decisions across complex programmes.
Essential criteria for the Head of Service Design
- Extensive experience as a senior service designer or design leader working on complex services or systems.
- Strong hands-on knowledge of service design practices, methodologies, frameworks and tools.
- Experience leading, developing and empowering service designers.
- Excellent stakeholder management, influencing and communication skills at senior level.
- Ability to understand the wider service landscape and translate long-term challenges into a clear future vision.
- Experience operating in an agile, multidisciplinary digital environment.
Desirable criteria for the Head of Service Design
- Experience shaping or growing a service design capability.
- Experience working across large-scale transformation programmes in a complex organisation.
- Awareness of service standards and how technology, data and AI can improve services.
Benefits
- Alongside your salary of £78,200 plus any allowance up to £98,100 HM Land Registry contributes £22,654 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme.
- Annual leave of 28.5 days' paid holiday during each holiday year plus 8 days public holidays.
- A clear progression pathway inc. personalised training and development plans including expensed accreditations with training days set aside.
- Over 29% employer pension contribution.
- Flexi-time scheme (You decide what working hours work best for you).
- Opportunity to work condensed hours.
- Social and sports club.
- Access to our employee assistance programme for counselling and support on a wide range of issues.
- Interest-free loan for season tickets.
- Cycle to work scheme (salary sacrifice).
HMLR have a strong and positive culture, a commitment to inclusivity, an emphasis on continuous learning and development and flexible ways of working.
Office locations
The role is open across 14 of HMLR's locations: Birkenhead, Croydon, Coventry, Durham, Weymouth, Gloucester, Kingston upon Hull, Leicester, Nottingham, Peterborough, Plymouth, Warton, Swansea and Telford.
Additional Requirements
- HMLR expect everyone to spend 60% of their working time in one of the offices.
- Occasional travel will be required to HMLR offices, supplier sites and other government departments, which may include overnight stays.
- This role operates under the flexible working hours agreement, supporting a positive work-life balance.
- The post is subject to BPPS level clearance.
- This role does not meet the category to offer sponsorship, and HMLR will not sponsor a skilled worker visa.
Why join?
HM Land Registry's services form part of the UK's critical national infrastructure, safeguarding land and property ownership valued at £8 trillion and supporting more than £1 trillion in secured lending. This is an opportunity to influence the future of nationally important services, shape a growing service design function and lead work that will modernise land registration for millions of customers and users.
Apply now or contact Inspire People in complete confidence.
Head of Service Design in Croydon employer: Inspire People
At DVSA, we pride ourselves on being an excellent employer, offering a dynamic work environment where your expertise as a Senior Data Architect will directly influence data management and governance across our agency. With competitive salaries, generous leave policies, and robust career development opportunities, we foster a culture of collaboration and innovation, ensuring that our employees feel valued and empowered to make a meaningful impact on road safety in Great Britain.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Service Design in Croydon
✨Show Off Your Portfolio
In the world of UX/UI design, your portfolio speaks volumes! Make sure it's packed with your best work and showcases your process, not just the final product. We want to see how you tackle design challenges, so consider adding case studies that reflect your thought process and user-centric approach.
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Jump into local or online design meetups and workshops! Places like UXPA or local design events can be goldmines for networking and learning. Plus, mingling with fellow designers can introduce you to potential job openings that might not be listed elsewhere.
✨Tailor Your Applications
When you find a role that excites you, like the one at Inspire People for a Head of Service Design, make your application count! Highlight specific projects and skills that directly relate to the job description. Hiring managers are looking for candidates who fit into their specific team, so show them you’re the one!
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We think you need these skills to ace Head of Service Design in Croydon
Some tips for your application 🫡
Showcase Your Design Process:When you're applying for a UX/UI Design role like Head of Service Design at Inspire People, make sure to include examples that clearly highlight your design process. We want to see not just the final product but also the journey that led you there—wireframes, user personas, and iterations demonstrate your thought process and user-centric approach!
Tailor Your Portfolio:A tailor-made portfolio is crucial for a full-time design role! Curate your best projects that align with the kind of work Inspire People does. We suggest including 3-5 case studies that showcase a variety of skills such as wireframing, prototyping, and user testing to really make your application pop.
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter:Your cover letter should not just be a summary of your CV. Use it to express why you’re excited about UX/UI Design and what draws you specifically to Inspire People. Mention any relevant experience, tools you’re proficient in (like Sketch or Figma), and how you can contribute to their projects.
Highlight Collaboration Skills:In the world of UX/UI Design, teamwork is crucial. Make sure to highlight any past experiences where you worked in cross-functional teams. Illustrate how you communicated design decisions and listened to feedback, as this will resonate well with the culture at Inspire People.
How to prepare for a job interview at Inspire People
✨Show Off Your Portfolio
When you're gunning for a full-time UX/UI design role, your portfolio is your best friend! Make sure you've got a solid selection of your work, showcasing not just the final designs, but the process behind them—think wireframes, user flows, and any user research you've conducted. During the interview with Inspire People, be prepared to discuss your design decisions and how they solve specific user problems.
✨Prepare for Design Challenges
Expect to face some practical design tasks during your interview. Inspire People might ask you to tackle a quick design challenge or critique an existing interface. Brush up on your problem-solving skills and try to articulate your thought process as you work through these scenarios. Showing how you approach a design problem is just as important as the final output!
✨Know the Tools of the Trade
Familiarise yourself with the tools commonly used in the industry—figma, Adobe XD, or Sketch should be second nature to you. Be ready to discuss your preferred tools during the interview and how they've shaped your design process at previous positions. This knowledge could give you an edge at Inspire People!
✨Show Passion for User Experience
In a full-time UX/UI design role, having a genuine passion for improving user interactions can set you apart. Be prepared to share instances when you went above and beyond to ensure a great user experience in your previous projects. This will demonstrate that you’re not just a designer, but a user advocate, which is exactly what Inspire People is looking for.
