Interim Director – Government Engagement and Policy

This is a three-month interim role covering the Director – Government Engagement and Policy during a planned sabbatical. The postholder will keep momentum on BSC’s priority government relationships and programmes, and help build out the team’s relationships with regional government, so that BSC’s 2027 objectives stay on track and work is handed back smoothly at the end of April.

The role sits in BSC’s Government Engagement and Policy team, which builds relationships across national and devolved government and positions BSC as a trusted partner on social impact investment, with the goal of unlocking more capital for social impact. The cover period falls during the first quarter of BSC’s 2027 business plan, when several key results are due.

Government relationships

• Maintain and develop BSC’s senior relationships with officials, special advisers and ministers, particularly across DCMS (including the Office for the Impact Economy), HM Treasury, and No 10.
• Develop BSC’s senior relationships with government at a regional level, including in Mayoral Strategic Authorities.
• Represent BSC at senior external meetings, forums and events, as required.
• Support colleagues across BSC to manage their own relationships with government, Parliament and other political stakeholders.

Priority government programmes

• Provide senior oversight of BSC’s engagement on the Better Futures Fund, including the next phase of the fund and the working relationship with DCMS.
• Lead BSC’s engagement on dormant assets policy and on new government Social Outcomes Partnership propositions, working with BSC colleagues across the Investment and Engagement Teams.
• Support BSC’s work with government on homelessness and rough sleeping, working closely with the Policy Director leading on this and the Investment Team.
• Ensure government engagement stays delivery-focused and aligned with BSC’s Opportunity Areas.

Sector convening and influence

• Represent BSC in the Impact Economy Collective, including its Policy Labs, and other sector alliances such as the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Social, Cooperative and Community Economy, where relevant.

Internal coordination

• Work closely with Opportunity Area, Investment, Communications and Investor Engagement colleagues, keeping them informed of government developments and coordinating BSC’s engagement.
• Brief the Managing Director and ExCo on key political and policy developments.

What success looks like by the end of April 2027

• Priority relationships across DCMS, HM Treasury, No 10 and MHCLG have been maintained, with no gaps in engagement.
• Q1 2027 key results for the team have been progressed and reported on.
• The team has been well supported and managed throughout the period.

A clear handover note sets out progress, open issues and next steps on return.

Qualifications & Experience

Essential:

• Extensive experience working with or within UK Government, locally or regionally, ideally including Mayoral Strategic or Combined Authorities, HM Treasury, the Cabinet Office or DCMS.
• A strong track record of building and sustaining senior political, policy and official relationships.
• Knowledge of social investment or impact-led finance and where it intersects with government.
• Experience operating at a leadership level within a complex organisation.
• Experience managing multiple stakeholders across internal teams and external partners.

Skills, Abilities and Attributes

Essential:

• Able to get up to speed quickly and make sound judgements in a fast-moving political context.
• Structured thinker, able to deal with complexity and uncertainty.
• Strategic and creative approach to problem solving with multiple stakeholders.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and able to build relationships at all levels.
• Confident and effective communicator, both written and verbal.
• Supportive manager and collegiate team player.

Ø We do hard things that matter: Our mission is ambitious and multi-faceted. We believe significant change at scale is possible and it's our job to help deliver it.

Ø We bridge worlds: Our cross-sector position and the unique breadth of capabilities within our team give us the ability to collaborate and co-create both within our organisation and with partners.

We grow with purpose: The context we operate in constantly evolves. To deliver our mission, we need to grow and adapt alongside it.

Don’t meet every requirement? Studies have shown that women and people from racialised communities are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Location: We are a UK-based business with an office in the Old Street area of London, accessible via a number of public transport links. Colleagues typically spend 40% - 60% of their working hours in the office, and the remainder from home. However, the exact requirements for this role can be discussed at interview. We hope that this working pattern encourages Better Society Capital employees to achieve a healthy balance between work and personal life, as we adapt to the needs of our diverse workforce.

Right to work: Candidates need to have existing right to work in the UK

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: Better Society Capital is committed to being a diverse organisation that is truly representative of the communities we serve. We therefore welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds, particularly those under-represented in the social impact investment sector (e.g. people from LGBTQIA+, racialised, disabled, or under-served communities).

We are an equal opportunities employer with an inclusive environment where all employees can contribute to their fullest potential. We want every colleague to be able to deliver their work with dignity, equality, comfort and independence. Our office is fully accessible with step-free access and an open-plan set up. We are open to accommodation requests regarding assistive technologies, accessibility tools, flexible working or any other reasonable adjustments that will make working or visiting here more accessible for you.