Assistant Director of Maritime Governance and Overseas Strategic Policy
| Posting date: | 27 February 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £69,501 per year |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 15 March 2026 |
| Location: | Southampton |
| Company: | Government Recruitment Service |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 449238/1 |
Summary
Do you have international experience in delivering key messages and raising awareness of international maritime issues?
Are you a qualified auditor?
If so, we’d love to hear from you!
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is seeking an Assistant Director of Maritime Governance and Overseas Strategic Policy. The Maritime Governance and Regulatory Compliance Directorate is responsible for the external assurance for 12 Crown Dependencies (CDs) and British Overseas Territories' (OTs) maritime administrations and shipping registers, six UK authorised Recognised Organisations (ROs) and 15 UK authorised Certifying Authorities (CAs). The Directorate builds and maintains strategic and diplomatic relationships to resolve complex international problems affecting the operation of the UK flag State (UK, OTs and CDs) and delivers strategic policy and funding to support CD and OT maritime administrations in meeting United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and International Maritime Organization (IMO) obligations. They provide policy direction, assurance, and accountability on all aspects of prosecutions or breaches of UK Merchant Shipping legislation through the Regulatory Compliance and Investigations Team. The Directorate delivers the MCA's regulatory compliance and enforcement policy aligning to the MCA’s strategic vision and operational requirements.
Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:
- Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
- 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday
- Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.
Read more in the Benefits section below!
Find out more about what it's like working at: Maritime and Coastguard Agency - Department for Transport Careers
As the Assistant Director of Maritime Governance and Overseas Strategic Policy, you will deputise for the Director of MGRC as required, chairing directorate management boards and attending the MCA executive team meetings and other external boards if required. You will lead the strategic direction for the UK’s continual support of the UK OTs and the wider Red Ensign Group (REG) of British maritime administrations. You will lead a programme of activities across the UK OTs, and Crown Dependencies (CDs) where appropriate, to drive forward effective cultural change towards maritime safety and pollution prevention. The activities will support the development of sustainable capacity and capability for continual compliance with international obligations, minimising the risk of maritime incidents and supporting growth of Blue Economies and climate change and decarbonisation initiatives. You will manage requests for assistance from other IMO Member States who are seeking the UK’s support to improve their international maritime obligations.
Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:
Manage business governance across the directorate, including business support teams and finance.Oversight of strategic direction, development and implementation of strategic policy to support OTs/CDs in full compliance of international maritime obligations.Oversight of business planning and programme management of the Directorate.Develop budget proposals (circa £2-4m), working closely with FCDO and MCA financial teams.Monitor and manage programme risks, using high level project management to identify and deliver a wide range of solutions to mitigate non-compliance.Develop successful relationships and work closely with stakeholders from His Majesty’s Government (HMG) and other Governments to shape and deliver a wide range of strategies.Represent the UK internationally, raising awareness of the international maritime obligations to senior officials in the other Governments, delivering key messages.Manage the strategic policy interface and assurance of (REG) maritime administrations on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport and Foreign Secretary. Develop and enhance links and undertake and oversee Category 1 and 2 monitoring visits.Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.
For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.
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