Pay Lead
| Posting date: | 10 February 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £57,946 to £68,205 per year |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 24 February 2026 |
| Location: | Blackpool |
| Company: | Government Recruitment Service |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 447310/2 |
Summary
DWP is looking to fill a Grade 7 Pay Lead role within the Strategic Reward Team based in the People and Capability directorate. This is a highly visible role with extensive engagement at senior levels, placing you at the centre of a high‑profile and strategically important agenda.
You will be expected to confidently lead conversations, challenge thinking and present proposals that shape the department’s direction, and therefore this role would be suitable for candidates with deep experience in pay and reward and an excellent understanding of pay policy stakeholder engagement.
This role is an exciting opportunity for someone who has technical reward knowledge coupled with strategic vision and enjoys the challenge of delivering within a complex, fast paced and large organisation.
Roles and Responsibilities:
- Play a pivotal role in shaping high‑quality reward proposals, ensuring they are robust, insightful and fully aligned with DWP policies and the wider HMT Treasury and Cabinet Office reward frameworks.
- Be responsible for underpinning proposals with technical scenario understanding, explanation and modelling. You will track funding and spending of proposals, and lead Spending Review bids in collaboration with wider Reward Leads.
- Confidently engage with our senior leadership community to shape and generate engagement with the strategy. This role offers a high degree of senior stakeholder visibility and influence.
- Bring clarity to complex issues, confidently outlining risks and championing value for money for the taxpayer.
- Work hand‑in‑hand across the Reward function driving collaboration and momentum.
- Lead a small team who provide technical reward advice; including benchmarking, impacting reward strategy proposals, scenario development and modelling.
- Support engagement with Trades Unions
- Bring flexibility and energy to a fast‑paced team, stepping in to support other priority workstreams as needed and helping the team deliver at pace.
- Be an active, positive force within the Strategic Reward management team, sharing your knowledge, lifting capability across the group, and helping to steer focus toward the highest‑impact priorities. You’ll contribute to — and help shape — a supportive, inclusive and high‑performing team culture.
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