Prisons Data Quality Analyst

Prisons Data Quality Analyst

Location: National*

Closing Date: 16^th November 2026

Interviews: Week commencing 30^th November 2026

Grade: SEO

Salary:
National: £42,914 – £46,182
London: £49,325 – £53,081

Working pattern: full-time, part-time, flexible working

Contract Type: Permanent

Number of roles: 2

Vacancy number: 23797

*We offer a hybrid working model, allowing for a balance between remote work and time spent in your local office. Office locations can be found ON THIS MAP

Please note that unless you are an existing member of staff at Justice Digital, Data and Science, the only London location being recruited to is 10 South Colonnade, E14 4PU. We are no longer recruiting to 102 Petty France, SW1H 9AJ

The Role

We’re recruiting for two Prisons Data Quality Analysts at the Ministry of Justice, to join our warm and collaborative Prisons Data Transformation team. This SEO role will support the Data Transformation Lead by using analytical thinking, evidence and insight to improve the quality, accessibility and useability of data across prisons. You will help turn user needs and operational challenges into clear data requirements, support analysis-led improvement activity, and work with digital, analytical, policy and operational colleagues to deliver practical changes that strengthen evidence-based decision making.

This role most closely aligns to Data Governance Manager from the Government Digital and Data Framework, with a strong emphasis on analytical skills, problem solving, stakeholder engagement and delivery.

You’ll receive a range of excellent benefits when you join our department, including:

• A generous employer pension contribution of 28.97% through the Civil Service Pension Scheme.
• 25 days of annual leave, (increasing to 30 days once you have reached 5 years of service), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday.
• Flexible working arrangements including hybrid working, working part time or compressed hours. Designed to support a positive work–life balance.
• Employees are allocated 10% of their working time for personal and professional development.
• A £1k per person learning budget is in place to support all our people, with access to best-in-class conferences and seminars, accreditation with professional bodies, fully funded vocational programmes and e-learning platforms.
• Compassionate maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave policies, with up to 26 weeks leave at full pay, 13 weeks with partial pay, and 13 weeks further leave. And maternity support/paternity leave at full pay for 2 weeks, too!

You can find more details of the Benefits we offer here. To help picture your life at MoJ Justice Digital, Data and Science please take a look at our blog.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support data requirements and analysis: Work with business, digital, analytical, policy and HMPPS operational colleagues to identify data needs, explore current data issues, and translate findings into clear requirements, actions and recommendations.
• Use evidence to support decision making: Gather, interpret and present information from a range of sources to help the team understand problems, assess options and prioritise improvements to data quality, accessibility and useability.
• Stakeholder engagement: Build effective relationships with internal stakeholders, including analytical, digital, operational and policy teams, explaining data issues clearly and helping colleagues understand the value of good data practice.
• Collaboration with technical teams: Work alongside colleagues in data science, data engineering, analysis and digital delivery to support the development of data products, prototypes and improvement activity.
• Delivery and coordination: Support the planning and delivery of data improvement projects by tracking actions, coordinating input from others, managing competing priorities and helping ensure work is delivered to agreed timescales.
• Improve HMPPS data: Contribute to initiatives that improve the quality, consistency and use of prison data, supporting wider engagement with operational users and helping identify opportunities to reduce manual processes and improve confidence in data.
• Support OMU transformation: Help ensure OMU transformation activity is informed by evidence, user needs and operational insight, supporting the development of data practices and solutions that deliver meaningful outcomes for stakeholders.

If this feels like an exciting challenge, something you are enthusiastic about, and want to join our team please read on and apply!

Person Specification

Essential:

• Technical and analytical skills: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including proficiency with SQL and experience querying, manipulating and investigating data held on relational databases. Ability to analyse information from different sources, identify patterns, issues and risks, and use evidence to support clear conclusions, options and recommendations.
• Data improvement and data quality: Good understanding of how data is collected, managed and used, and the importance of high-quality, accessible and usable data. Experience investigating data availability, quality and suitability for different purposes, identifying gaps and opportunities to improve data processes, standards, reporting or data products.
• Delivery and organisation: Ability to manage competing priorities, coordinate work with others, track progress and support delivery of transformation activity in a complex or changing environment.
• Collaborative working: Experience working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams, bringing together analytical, technical and operational perspectives to support practical improvements in a prison, justice or similarly complex delivery context.

Willingness to be assessed against the requirements for SC clearance.

We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring and do not discriminate based on culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor.

Our values are Purpose, Humanity Openness and Together. Find out more here about how we celebrate diversity and an inclusive culture in our workplace.

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 D&I Strategy.

Salary Information**

Base salary for this role is from £42,914 – £46,182 (National) £49,325 – £53,081 (London)

• New entrants to the Civil Service joining the MoJ are expected to start at the minimum of the pay band.
• Existing Civil Servants moving on a level transfer will retain their current base salary or move to the minimum of the pay band for the role, whichever is higher.
• Existing Civil Servants who are promoted will either move to the bottom of the new grade’s pay band or receive a 10% uplift, whichever provides the greater increase.

How to Apply

In Justice Digital, Data and Science, we recruit using a combination of the Government Digital and Data Profession CapabilityandSuccess Profiles Frameworks. We shall assess a combination of your Experience, Technical skills and Behaviours during the assessment process.

Stage 1 - Application and sift:

• an anonymised CV, maximum 2 pages at font size 12, including career history, responsibilities, and achievements
• A Personal Statement (no more than 650 words) which should outline your experience and skills, giving clear examples of work undertaken. It should specifically address the following essential criteria listed below, using a separate paragraph for each.

  - Technical and Analytical skills and problem solving: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including proficiency with SQL and experience querying, manipulating and investigating data held on relational databases. Ability to analyse information from different sources, identify patterns, issues and risks, and use evidence to support clear conclusions, options and recommendations.

  - Data improvement and data quality: Good understanding of how data is collected, managed and used, and the importance of high-quality, accessible and usable data with Experience investigating data availability, quality and suitability for different purposes, identifying gaps and opportunities to improve data processes, standards, reporting or data products.

  - Collaborative working: Experience working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams, bringing together analytical, technical and operational perspectives to support practical improvements in a prison, justice or similarly complex delivery context.

A diverse sift panel will review the information in your CV and Personal Statement to assess the sift criteria specified above. We operate an anonymous shortlisting process. Please ensure your CV and Personal Statement do not include your name or any other identifying details.

Should we receive a high volume of applications, a pre-sift based on the below criteria will be conducted before the sift.

• Technical and Analytical skills: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including proficiency with SQL and experience querying, manipulating and investigating data held on relational databases. Ability to analyse information from different sources, identify patterns, issues and risks, and use evidence to support clear conclusions, options and recommendations

Please access the following link for guidance on how to apply - Application Guidance

Stage 2 - Interviews:

Successful candidates who meet the required standard will then be invited to a panel interview held via Microsoft Teams. At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements - Experience, Technical and the following Behaviours:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Changing and Improving
• Managing a Quality Service

The interview process will consist of a technical exercise that assesses you against the Technical and Analytical skills criteria followed by questions about your relevant experience, and the Civil Service Behaviours outlined in the job description. Further details will be provided if successful at sift.

Appointments are made strictly in merit order. In the event that two or more candidates receive identical interview scores, the technical and analytical skills criteria will be applied as the primary lead criterion to determine the final merit order.

Should you be unsuccessful in the role that you have applied for but demonstrate the capability for a role at a lower level, we reserve the right to discuss this opportunity with you and offer you the position without needing a further application.

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months, from which further appointments may be made.

Use of Artificial Intelligence

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.

Terms & Conditions

Please review our Terms and Conditions which set out how we recruit and provide further information related to the role and salary arrangements.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact digitalanddatarecruitment@justice.gov.uk