Head of Cyber Security and Information Governance

Head of Cyber Security and Information Governance

This is a rare opportunity to help build something new at one of London’s most ambitious boroughs. Southwark is establishing a brand new Digital and Resident Experience Service, and as Head of Cyber Security and Information Governance, you’ll be one of the people shaping it from the ground up, building a team, a culture and a way of working that keeps residents, communities and services safe for years to come.

You’ll join at a genuinely exciting time for the council, as we invest in our people and technology to better serve more than 300,000 residents across Southwark’s diverse communities. This is your chance to build and grow a specialist team, develop their skills and give them a real sense of purpose, while working alongside colleagues who care about the difference technology makes to people’s everyday lives. If you’re a security leader who wants to build something new, develop people and make a genuine impact on the communities we serve, we’d love to hear from you.

What You'll Be Doing

As Head of Cyber Security and Information Governance, you will:

• Build and lead a new specialist cyber security team within Southwark’s Digital and Resident Experience, growing capability, developing people and creating a culture the team is proud to be part of.
• Develop and own Southwark’s cyber security strategy, roadmap and improvement plans, aligned to corporate priorities and the council’s ambitions for the borough.
• Direct and assure the outsourced Security Operations Centre and govern vulnerability management practice, holding providers and suppliers to account for service performance.
• Own the council’s cyber incident response plans and lead the response to security incidents, keeping our services and our residents’ information safe.
• Lead security compliance and assurance activity, and information governance and data protection, working closely with colleagues across the council to embed a security-conscious culture.

What We're Looking For

We’re seeking an experienced and credible security leader who brings:

• A strong track record of leading and building a cyber security function within a large, complex organisation, ideally within local government or the public sector.
• Strong working knowledge of security operations, vulnerability management and security compliance frameworks such as PSN, Cyber Essentials, PCI DSS and UK GDPR.
• Experience of leading the response to cyber security incidents, including coordination with major incident management and external agencies.
• A genuine passion for developing people, building inclusive teams and creating a culture where colleagues can do their best work.
• A commitment to using technology and security to protect and improve outcomes for Southwark’s residents and communities.

For detailed qualifications and requirements, please review the job description and person specification located at the bottom of the advert.

• Working Hours: 36 hours per week (Monday to Friday)
• Location: 160 Tooley Street, London SE1 2QH
• Advert close date: 11:59pm on Monday 28th September 2026
• Technical Interview date/s: week commencing 12th October 2026
• Final Panel Interview date/s: week commencing 19th October 2026

The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. We strongly advise you to complete your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities. This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together initiative . We particularly welcome applications from members of the black, Asian and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.

As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you’ll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:

• Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
• Are currently in care, or have previously been in care
• If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition

Salary Range (Full time equivalent) £71,832 - £89,631

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