Senior Legislation, Strategy and Coordination Adviser

About the Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is the UK’s independent body overseeing elections and regulating political finance. Everything we do is about ensuring trust, participation, and integrity in the democratic process.

As we continue to deliver our five-year Corporate Plan, the Commission is building on a period of growth and change, expanding our workforce and modernising how we deliver our services to better support the needs of a changing democracy. As our organisation develops and adapts to meet future challenges, this post will play a vital part in supporting that progress and helping ensure we remain responsive to the democratic needs of voters, campaigners, parties and electoral administrators across the UK.

About the role

As a Senior Adviser within the Legislation, Strategy and Coordination team, you will help coordinate the Commission's response to legislative change and support the delivery of high-profile programmes that shape how elections are administered. Working across all four nations of the UK, you will collaborate with colleagues, senior leaders and government stakeholders to ensure legislative developments are understood, planned for and implemented effectively.

The role combines project delivery, policy implementation and stakeholder engagement. You will be responsible for translating complex legislative proposals into practical plans, helping the Commission prepare for and respond to changes that directly impact voters, campaigners, political parties and electoral administrators.

Key responsibilities include:

• Coordinating activity across multiple workstreams within the electoral reform programme
• Monitoring legislative developments and assessing their impact on the Commission and its stakeholders
• Developing and maintaining project plans, risk registers, impact assessments and implementation documentation
• Supporting senior leaders and programme sponsors in delivering reform programmes
• Working with colleagues across the Commission to develop guidance, communications and operational responses to legislative change
• Building effective relationships with government departments and external stakeholders

This is an ideal opportunity for someone who enjoys working in a fast-paced environment, influencing complex programmes and contributing to work that has a direct impact on democracy across the UK.

About the team

The Legislation, Strategy and Coordination team acts as the Commission's central hub for electoral reform activity. The team brings together colleagues from across the organisation to coordinate responses to legislative developments and ensure changes are implemented effectively and consistently.

The team works closely with colleagues from Electoral Administration, Regulation, Communications and other specialist functions, providing a unique opportunity to build relationships across the organisation and gain exposure to a broad range of policy, legislative and strategic work.

The team is relatively small, collaborative and highly visible, providing significant opportunities for individuals to contribute, develop and make a tangible impact. You'll work closely with senior leaders, policy specialists and government officials, helping shape the Commission's approach to delivering electoral reform.

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

How to apply

We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. To help reduce unconscious bias and ensure all applicants are assessed solely on their skills, knowledge and experience, we use an anonymous recruitment process.

When applying, please provide an anonymised CV which omits your protected characteristics and any personally identifiable information:

Do not include:

• Your name, address, phone number, email or other contact details
• Your date of birth or age
• Gender, ethnicity, nationality or other personal identifiers
• A photo of yourself
• Remove educational dates as these are a clear indication of your age
• There is no requirement to include your primary education details.

Do include:

• Your employment history including employers and dates of employment
• Explanation for gaps in your history
• Your duties, responsibilities and achievements

If your CV contains personal details (such as your name or contact information), we will be unable to consider your application. Please double-check your documents before submitting, including the file name you use to save and upload your CV.

Supporting disabled applicants

The Electoral Commission is proud to be a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. As part of this commitment, we aim to prioritise interviews for disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria listed in the job description.

There may, however, be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria. For example, during periods of exceptionally high application volumes or seasonal recruitment activity, the Commission may need to limit the overall number of interviews offered to both disabled and non-disabled applicants.

If you have a disability and would like to be considered under this commitment, please indicate this when you apply. We also welcome requests for reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process or within the workplace.

Key dates

• Application deadline: Monday 31st August (23:59)
• Interviews (1st stage): Week commencing 10th September
• Interviews (2nd stage): Week commencing TBC
• Anticipated start date: October 2026

Interviews are expected to take place virtually via MS Teams

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.