Grade 7 News – Chief Press Officer
| Posting date: | 28 May 2025 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £59,690 per year, pro rata |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 27 June 2025 |
| Location: | London, UK |
| Remote working: | On-site only |
| Company: | Ministry of Defence |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 405740 |
Summary
This is a demanding and pressured role, requiring excellent communications skills and experience (both written and verbal), strong news judgement, political nous and the ability to engage effectively with the MOD Ministerial team, including the Secretary of State, and senior figures across the military and the civil service, including No.10.
Key responsibilities include:
• Play a full and proactive role in the Directorate’s leadership team
• Line manage a team of Press Officers, including a Senior Press Officer, to ensure a well-motivated, effectively functioning News team, which provides a high quality service for the Department.
• Ensure the news team can surge effectively to support major events or deal with crises including operational events.
• Work to lead, inspire and develop staff within the News team.
• Provide coaching/training and development by mentoring the news team
• Work closely with the Ministers, the Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy and other senior personnel on strategic and organisational issues, areas of reputation risk and specific news matters.
• Be involved in the strategic planning process from an early stage working with communications teams across the Directorate, policy teams, Private Offices and Special Advisors to produce robust delivery plans to inform communications activity.
• Engage proactively in high level and senior cross-Government news planning efforts including No.10 meetings and the work of partner departmental Media Teams.
• Proactively work with the wider management team to ensure coherence of message between external communications and sustained longer term pieces of work or campaigns.
• Work effectively with the campaigns, events and digital teams so day-to-day reactive and media management work is joined up with wider communications strategies and campaigns.
The post holder will also take part in a back-up rota to provide guidance to the out of hours duty press officers
Key responsibilities include:
• Play a full and proactive role in the Directorate’s leadership team
• Line manage a team of Press Officers, including a Senior Press Officer, to ensure a well-motivated, effectively functioning News team, which provides a high quality service for the Department.
• Ensure the news team can surge effectively to support major events or deal with crises including operational events.
• Work to lead, inspire and develop staff within the News team.
• Provide coaching/training and development by mentoring the news team
• Work closely with the Ministers, the Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy and other senior personnel on strategic and organisational issues, areas of reputation risk and specific news matters.
• Be involved in the strategic planning process from an early stage working with communications teams across the Directorate, policy teams, Private Offices and Special Advisors to produce robust delivery plans to inform communications activity.
• Engage proactively in high level and senior cross-Government news planning efforts including No.10 meetings and the work of partner departmental Media Teams.
• Proactively work with the wider management team to ensure coherence of message between external communications and sustained longer term pieces of work or campaigns.
• Work effectively with the campaigns, events and digital teams so day-to-day reactive and media management work is joined up with wider communications strategies and campaigns.
The post holder will also take part in a back-up rota to provide guidance to the out of hours duty press officers