Position type: Permanent
Job reference: 425399
Location: Birmingham (B5 4UA) or London (E14 4HD) based with hybrid working
Salary: £57,783 - £75,000
Closing date: Monday 22nd September 2025 at 23:55
Job title: Data Governance Lead
Application method: apply via Civil Service Jobs - Data Governance Lead - Civil Service Jobs - GOV.UK
Join Ofwat as a Data Governance Lead in our Operational Performance and Data Strategy Team
About Us
We are Ofwat, the Water Services Regulation Authority, a non-ministerial government department responsible for regulating the water sector in England and Wales. Following the Independent Water Commission’s final report, the UK government has set out a bold new direction - one that brings together expertise from across the sector to deliver better outcomes for customers and the environment.
We are working in collaboration with the government and other regulators to help establish a new body for England, combining our strengths with those of the Drinking Water Inspectorate, the Environment Agency, and Natural England. We’re also continuing to engage with the Welsh Government to support future decisions for Wales.
While these changes take shape, our mission remains the same: to hold water companies to account, drive performance, and ensure the sector delivers real value for customers, communities, and the environment. If you’re passionate about making a difference, this is a unique moment to join us and help shape the future of water, and together we can continue to make a positive impact.
The Role
The Data Governance Lead role has an important and valuable contribution to enable us to deliver on our goals and regulatory commitments.
This is a great opportunity to work on a new data initiative with modern technology, helping to change the way data is used in the public sector and to maximise the value of data and insights to Ofwat. You'll be at the forefront, leading establishing and overseeing a robust data governance framework, ensuring our data's integrity and quality and that we make the best use of our data assets to drive improvements in data maturity. This role plays a crucial role in how we will transform company performance as outlined In Ofwat strategy.
This role is a unique opportunity to enable data-driven transformation by collaborating closely with our IT and Information Governance teams, shaping the future of data within Ofwat and across the water sector.
About You
Below are some of the key essential experience, skills & knowledge required for this post:
- Five years of experience in leading data governance, data protection, or data management activities, ideally within the public sector or a complex organisational environment.
- Experience in developing and embedding the use of Purview throughout an organisation to support governance processes and glossaries.
- Experience in aligning data initiatives with organisational strategy, with a strong understanding of how data governance supports overall organisational objectives.
- Significant experience in leading on, defining and implementing data governance principles, including data quality management, metadata management, master data management, and data lifecycle management.
- Proven experience in leading on and developing data standards and establishing robust data governance frameworks, including boards, networks, and forums.
- An effective communicator including strong skills in negotiating and a proven ability to engage, influence, and manage relationships with diverse stakeholders, including senior leadership, directorates, business units, and technical data teams.
- Proven experience in implementing data governance adoption within change initiatives, enabling process change, and implementing enhanced work practices to improve efficiency and compliance.
- Extensive experience in assessing data quality issues, developing and implementing data standards, and driving data governance best practices.
- Proven experience in training and educating staff on data governance policies and data literacy, fostering a culture where data is valued and managed as a strategic asset to drive behavioural change across the organisation.
Why Join Us
- People Centric: Our people are at the heart of Ofwat and everything we do - we ensure all voices are heard and treat each other with respect; you'll be given the autonomy and the support to do your role in the best way.
- Innovative Work Environment: We embrace agile and new ways of working and have a culture build on trust, flexibility, and collaboration.
- Development Opportunities: Gain valuable experience and develop your skills in a supportive and dynamic setting.
- Work-Life Balance: Enjoy the flexibility of working from home combined with the benefits of in person collaboration in our Birmingham offices.
- Excellent employer pension contributions of nearly 29%. You can find further details about pension schemes under Terms and Conditions in the Candidate Pack.
- 25 days’ annual leave, increasing to 30 with each year of service, plus bank holidays and an extra 2.5 days of privilege leave.
- Access to exclusive discounts on a variety of goods and services, including retail outlets, theatre tickets, holidays, insurance, and a gym membership.
- Fees paid for membership of relevant professional bodies.
- Up to 3 volunteering days per year.
- Recognition vouchers scheme rewarding your hard work.
- Generous shared parental leave and pay supporting your family life.
To read more about the role and selection process, please follow the link to apply.
