Team Leader
| Posting date: | 19 November 2025 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £34,765 to £41,375 per year |
| Additional salary information: | National: £34,765-£37,080 London: £38,795-£41,375 For details of our pay on appointment policy, please see below under the heading ‘Salary’. |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 26 November 2025 |
| Location: | London |
| Company: | Government Recruitment Service |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 437621/2 |
Summary
Ministerial, Growth and Resilience
Ministerial, Growth and Resilience Directorate. provides support on the Government Growth Mission as well as working on regulation and regulatory reform. It also includes Defra’s Briefing, parliamentary and ministerial support functions as Defra’s Ministerial and Permanent Secretary Private Offices.
The Ministerial Contact Unit (MCU) is a fast-paced operational unit within Defra’s Ministerial, Growth and Resilience Directorate with responsibility for correspondence, Parliamentary Questions, and Freedom of Information requests. The MCU receives thousands of pieces of correspondence annually and this challenging post as a team leader in the MCU provides an excellent opportunity to get an overview of Defra's business and what Defra’s customers care about. The MCU is a flexible and supportive place to work, with a team that wants to keep improving.
Encouraging diverse applicants
We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups.
Location
This role can be based at Bristol or London. You will be expected work in the office at least 60% of the time.
The Ministerial Contact Unit (MCU) is a busy operational unit with three branches: correspondence, information rights and parliamentary and cabinet business.
The Team Leader roles sit within the correspondence arm of the MCU, which deals with thousands of letters and emails from MPs, stakeholders and members of the public.
Each of these interactions is an important opportunity to explain Defra’s objectives and activities to people who care about Defra’s agenda. We also have the chance to provide customers with a positive experience of dealing with Defra, which is important to the department’s reputation and people’s confidence in our policies and services.
Our correspondence team is fast paced and works closely with ministerial and policy teams, covering issues across Defra. We are a flexible and supportive team that offers excellent opportunities for career progression and personal development, as well as developing a detailed knowledge of the Department’s work.
As a Team Leader, you will be given direct responsibility for strategy and delivery of part of the correspondence process. You will manage a team of between two and six EO/AO staff to enable this delivery. This role is particularly well suited to someone who is looking for an opportunity to drive performance in a delivery setting with tight deadlines, develop a deep understanding of Defra’s customers and the issues they care about, and utilise their management and leadership skills.
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