Risk and Governance Manager in Taunton

The UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) is a trusted provider of hydrographic data, products and services that support safe, sustainable and efficient navigation around the world. Operating in both the defence and commercial sectors, UKHO plays a critical role in enabling global maritime activity. That mission brings complexity, scrutiny and risk — which is why strong risk management and effective governance are fundamental to our success.

The Risk and Governance Manager is a pivotal role in ensuring the organisation can take informed decisions, manage uncertainty confidently and deliver its strategic objectives. This role sits at the heart of how UKHO makes confident and well‑evidenced decisions. It involves shaping how risk is understood, talked about and embedded across the organisation, and ensuring governance is not just compliant but genuinely enables delivery.

Your impact comes from bringing clarity and coherence: making sure risks are visible, understood and acted on at the right level, and that governance supports good decisions rather than slowing them down. The main focus is impact: improving risk maturity and helping leaders see what’s coming over the horizon before it becomes an issue. If you want a role where your expertise in enterprise risk management genuinely shapes outcomes — this is a chance to make your mark.

We are seeking an enthusiastic and motivated individual for the position to support us in delivering our vision ‘To be the beacon for quality, innovative maritime navigation solutions; trusted by customers and partners worldwide.’

Hybrid Working

This job role can be worked on a hybrid basis, which is an informal, non-contractual and voluntary arrangement, working between the office in Taunton and remotely within the UK. Office attendance is expected 60% of the time. However, for the first two weeks of employment as a minimum, it will be expected that the successful candidate will be in the office on a full-time basis to support their induction.

Key Responsibilities:

• Act as UKHO’s lead authority on enterprise risk management and governance, ensuring risks are visible, well‑understood and actively informing senior decision‑making.
• Work closely with stakeholders and senior managers across the business (including the Executive Leadership Team - ELT) to provide clear, credible insight on strategic, corporate and divisional risks.
• Translate complex risk and assurance information into concise, decision‑ready reporting for ELT and Audit Risk & Assurance Committee (ARAC).
• Embed a consistent, mature approach to risk across the organisation so risk management supports delivery, transformation and long‑term strategy.
• Oversee and maintain our Risk Management Policies and Processes, which must align to Ministry of Defence (MOD), government and wider relevant policies.
• Build capability across the business by supporting and developing risk focal points, improving risk quality and promoting best practice.
• Shape and strengthen governance arrangements, identifying where they add value and where improvements are needed to enable effective oversight; ensuring that all best practice processes, standards and templates for governance are developed and implemented.
• Deliver practical assurance that risks are being managed proportionately via bi-annual reviews of the assurance heatmap.