Programme Manager

Public Sector Resourcing•London Britain Township, PA

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

On behalf of Defra, this is a hybrid Programme Manager contract running up to the end of April 2027. The role requires working up to three days a week in a Defra hub in London, Bristol, Newcastle or York, and may involve occasional travel to another office. The role can only be worked within the UK. The Programme Manager provides strategic leadership across the programme, aligning the 2045 strategy, organisational priorities and delivery activity. The role maintains delivery continuity during the transition between the outgoing and permanent Programme Managers, protecting milestones, decisions and organisational knowledge. It owns and maintains the integrated programme plan, coordinating property projects, workstreams, dependencies, milestones, lease events, decision points and critical-path activities. The role also leads programme governance, including Programme Board arrangements, decision-making, reporting, escalation and accountability. The post supports the SRO and Programme Board with evidence-based recommendations, manages programme risks and finances, oversees benefits realisation, coordinates programme resources and capability, and manages dependencies and senior stakeholder engagement. The role is inside IR35 and falls within the scope of Off Payroll Working in the Public Sector legislation.

Requirements

Extensive experience at programme manager level, ideally within central government.
Experience in property-managed-related programmes.
Programme-level budget management experience and skills.
Strong business case management and delivery experience from start to approval.
Experience engaging stakeholders across the business, including multiple leadership teams.
Experience in programme governance control and risk assurance.
Programme-level RAID management experience.
Formal project management qualification, such as Prince 2 or APM.

Responsibilities

Provide strategic leadership across the programme and maintain alignment between the 2045 strategy, organisational priorities and delivery activity.
Maintain delivery continuity during the transition between outgoing and permanent Programme Managers, protecting key milestones, decisions and organisational knowledge.
Own and maintain the integrated programme plan, coordinating property projects, workstreams, dependencies, milestones, lease events, decision points and critical-path activities.
Lead programme governance, ensuring effective Programme Board arrangements, timely decision-making, proportionate reporting, escalation and clear accountability.
Support the SRO and Programme Board with clear, evidence-based recommendations and identify emerging problems requiring senior intervention early.
Manage programme-level risks, issues, assumptions and dependencies, ensuring clear ownership, mitigation and timely escalation.
Maintain oversight of the programme business case and financial position, including budgets, forecasts, expenditure, funding requirements, affordability, benefits and value for money.
Oversee benefits realisation, ensuring benefits are measurable, attributable, owned and tracked through delivery and into business-as-usual.
Coordinate programme resources and capability, identifying constraints or gaps in capacity, skills and specialist input that could affect delivery.
Manage cross-programme dependencies, including interfaces with workforce planning, organisational change, business operations and other relevant programmes.
Lead senior stakeholder engagement and maintain effective relationships with the SRO and senior leaders.