Head of Department, Supervision Hub

About the FCA 

At the FCA, we’re creating a fair and more resilient financial system. We’re establishing more transparent relationships between financial services and customers, building trust in financial markets and protecting vulnerable consumers. 

We’re currently on an exciting journey as we drive forward significant organisational, people, process, and technology transformation to become a more forward-thinking, proactive regulator. We will use data more effectively to drive better regulatory decisions and build greater cohesion across our broad financial services remit.  

Significant improvements in digital enablement, business intelligence, market data and information management maturity are all being pursued to maintain our position as a world leader in financial services regulation. 

In March 2025, the FCA launched a new 5-year strategy to deepen trust, rebalance risk, support growth and improve lives. The FCA will focus on four priorities:

• Be a smarter regulator; predictable, purposeful and proportionate. The FCA will improve its processes and embrace technology to become more efficient and effective.

• Support sustained economic growth, by enabling investment, innovation and ensuring the continued competitiveness of the UK’s world-leading financial services.

• Help consumers navigate their financial lives by working with industry to boost trust, product innovation and ensuring the right information and support is available for people to take financial decisions.

• Fight financial crime, focusing on those who seek to use the fact they are regulated to do harm. It will go further to disrupt criminals and support firms to be an effective line of defence.

The Role  

We are seeking an experienced leader to head the FCA’s Supervision Hub within Authorisations. This is an exciting opportunity to lead a department which is an integral part of the FCA's system of supervision and engagement with consumers.

The Head of Department for the Supervision Hub leads and motivates a team of approximately 160 FTE split across Leeds and London. They are responsible for ensuring seamless interactions with internal and external stakeholders, maintaining service quality, excellence and resilience, and driving continuous improvement including using AI in the Hub’s work.

The Supervision Hub plays a central role in delivering the FCA’s strategy covering the entire waterfront of firms and consumers:

• Preventing consumer harm through direct communications to identify and avoid fraud, scams, and other detriment
• Supervising flexible portfolio firms by assessing and mitigating risk, and guiding firms to understand their regulatory responsibilities
• Delivering actionable intelligence gathered directly from consumers and firms to influence policy and priorities across the FCA

The Hub handles over 100,000 consumer cases annually, covering more than 30,000 firms, and is responsible for saving approximately £6.6 million per year in consumer money through fraud prevention. Reviewing and investigating over 30,000 risks and where necessary referring them to wider FCA Supervision.

The role requires close collaboration and work with internal stakeholders from all areas of the FCA including Data Technology and Innovation, Strategy Policy and Competition, and Enforcement and Market Oversight, as well as responsibility for budgeting, training, and development of colleagues in the Hub. This means the Head of Department is exposed to a significant breadth of regulatory and operational issues and will need to interact with senior figures across the FCA as well as regulatory partners like the FOS and FSCS.

What will the candidate get from the role? 

• Joining the Senior Leadership Team at the FCA during an exciting and challenging time of great change in financial services and its regulation 
• Leading a department of skilled and committed people through significant projects while delivering on business-as-usual objectives which touch on all areas of the FCA’s work in relation to consumers and firms.
• Exposure to strategic issues and key figures in the world of finance and technology, both nationally and internationally.

Key responsibilities: 

• Developing and delivering a long-term strategy for the Supervision Hub, aligning to broader divisional and organisational strategies 
• Leading on performance, capability and culture within the department, with a strong focus on operational excellence and using creative and innovative ways of working
• Delivering through others by relying on coaching, influencing and negotiating skills with a range of internal and external stakeholders 
• Building a strong and inclusive department that attracts and develop diverse talent 
• Anticipating and responding to challenges for the Hub and wider FCA, leading your team through challenging times and work

Skills/Experience Required  

We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Employer, and therefore, people or individuals with disabilities and long-term conditions who best meet the minimum criteria for a role will go through to the next stage of the recruitment process. In cases of high application volumes we may progress applicants whose experience most closely matches the role’s key requirements. (To learn more about the Disability Confident Scheme Click Here)

Minimum  

• Highly developed communication and stakeholder engagement skills, with experience leading large, multi-site multi-disciplinary teams within a high-volume environment, supporting firm and consumer contact on complex regulated matters.
• Proven experience of driving process optimisation and service efficiency, including the effective use of technology, automation, data and digital tools to improve service outcomes, resilience and value for money.
• Strong ability to build, influence and deepen relationships across a broad internal and external stakeholder landscape, including operational, policy, technology, risk and compliance

Essential  

• Experience role modelling strong, values-led leadership behaviours, setting clear expectations and embedding a culture of accountability, inclusion, performance and continuous improvement.
• Strong understanding of the issues faced by consumers and regulated firms within financial services markets, including how they interact with FCA, its systems, and wider regulatory processes.
• Ability to move confidently between strategic thinking, service design and tactical operational leadership, providing calm, decisive direction in response to complex, sensitive or high-risk escalated issues.
• Evidence of maintaining strong operational grip across a complex service environment, including demand management, resource planning, quality assurance, risk controls, service performance, escalation handling and incident response.
• Experience leading complex operational and technology-enabled change across a complex environment including implementation of new platforms, workflow tools, knowledge management, telephony, or digital self-service capability.

The FCA’s Values & Diversity  

Our ambition is to create a diverse and inclusive workplace that reflects the society we serve, helping us to be a better regulator. We serve the public and our decisions directly affect the wellbeing of people, businesses and the UK economy.  So, our values matter. They represent the culture we aspire to every day, guiding our judgements, building trust and helping us to be ‘At our best’.

The FCA is committed to achieving greater diversity across all levels of our organisation. Given this, we particularly welcome applications from women, disabled, and minority ethnic candidates, as under-represented groups.

As an inclusive employer, we are open to considering flexible working arrangements, including job shares. Please inform your recruiter if you wish to apply for this role on a flexible basis.

As part of the FCA’s on-going commitment to develop our national presence, most of our vacancies are now open to working in our Edinburgh, Leeds or London offices. This means that as part of the application process you will be able to select your preference of which office location you would like to work from.

Application Support

We want to remove any possible barriers and are committed to providing a wide range of reasonable adjustments so that you can keep the focus on your conversations and be at your best.

If you have an accessibility requirement, disability, or condition that means you might require changes to the recruitment process, please contact your recruiter to discuss this further. Our aim is to make you application as easy as possible, and your recruiter will be happy to work with you to make any necessary arrangements where possible.

Benefits

Our competitive benefits scheme gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifecycle. You can this this allowance to purchase additional benefits such as dental or cycle to work, or you have the option to top up your base salary by taking this as cash.

Core benefits that you will receive as standard are:

• 30 days holiday per year plus bank holidays
• Private healthcare with Bupa
• A non-contributory Pension of at least 8% of basic salary each month (there are several contribution levels that increase depending on your age- up to 12% a month once you reach age 35)
• Life assurance of eight times your basic salary
• Income protection

Conflicts of interest 

All applicants to the FCA are required to demonstrate that they do not have other interests likely to conflict with their responsibilities as an employee of the FCA. You should declare any potential conflict of interest as early as possible in the selection process, and also disclose information or personal connections that, if appointed, might be open to misperception.  

Any potential conflicts of interest will not prevent candidates going forward to interview but may, if appropriate, be explored during the interview to establish how the candidate would address the issue(s) should they be successful in their application.  

Useful information 

• The closing date for this role is 23:55 on Sunday 6 September

• Selection will be via a two-stage interview and psychometric assessment  

• If successful, you will be required to obtain and retain SC Clearance.  

• We currently operate a hybrid working model, working a minimum of 40% in the office each month (50% for senior leaders). This way of working applies in our Stratford, Leeds and Edinburgh offices.  From September 2026, FCA employees will be required to spend a minimum of 50% of their working time in the office. Our Executive Director and Directors will be expected to be in a minimum of 60% per month.

• The salary range for the role is London £140,000-£190,000 and Leeds £126,000 - £171,000 Open to applicants in London & Leeds only.

• To apply please submit your CV and cover letter.

For further information about the role, please contact:

[email protected] or [email protected]