Job summary
These Lead Business Analyst roles will be working on the Census 2031.Census 2031 represents our most ambitious data collection project yet – a once-in-a-decade opportunity to capture a complete picture of everyone living in England and Wales. Building on the digital success of 2021, we're pioneering new ways to reach every household and community, ensuring no one is left uncounted. This vital work will provide the foundation for policy decisions, resource allocation, and community planning for the next decade.
Your work will support delivery of this transformational project that will shape how we understand and support our nation's future. You’ll be part of a team that ensures everyone is counted—and every voice is heard. We're building a culture that values collaboration, fresh thinking, and respect for diverse expertise. Whether you're a seasoned professional or bringing new perspectives, you'll be part of a team that welcomes bold ideas, works transparently, and thrives on solving complex challenges together.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the UK’s largest producer of official statistics, covering a range of key economic, social and demographic topics. These include measuring changes in the value of the UK economy, estimating the size, geographic distribution and characteristics of the population, and providing indicators of price inflation, employment, earnings, crime and migration.
Job description
The Lead Business Analyst (BA) plays a key role in shaping how the Census is designed, delivered, and continuously improved. Working within the central End‑to‑End (E2E) Service Design Team, the BA ensures that the Census operates as a coherent, integrated, and user‑centred service across all business areas. This role collaborates with a wide range of stakeholders across ONS, delivery suppliers, enabling partners, and the Devolved Governments to support a unified UK‑wide Census experience.
The post holder may work across the full breadth of the high‑level Census design or specialise in particular business services—such as Field Operations, Communal Establishments (CE), Public Support, Contact Centre, Questionnaire Operations, or other core service components
Responsibilities
- Lead and manage investigations into business processes, information systems, functions, information flows, data structures and software development processes, using various technical, methodical, and consistent techniques.
- Review existing system capabilities, develop use cases and information models, and align business requirements to specific capabilities of system development, including working with developers to ensure that user needs are met.
- Define improvements to business processes, developing business cases to enable decisions to be made based on the benefits of the change.
- Facilitate, understand, and communicate the project scope and work to assure the overall goal is maintained in creation of the product backlog.
- Lead in defining solutions to real business problems through influence, facilitation and communication and ensuring the end-to-end process is considered.
- Shape and challenge business priorities and ways of working through collaboration with business and technology teams.
- Elicit functional and non-functional requirements using appropriate techniques, considering the nature of change and established practices.
- Deliver at pace using the most appropriate delivery methodologies and adopting agile principles.
- Develop suitable analysis models using appropriate modelling techniques, considering traceability, adherence to business objectives and fitness for purpose.
- Work with business and solution architects to ensure that the wider architecture considered when undertaking analysis work.
- Assist decision makers in gathering information to make informed decisions.
- Promote a culture of assurance and security.
- Help to quality assure test solutions and products.
- Actively participate in the Business Analysis community and broader communities to refine and develop standards, working practices, sharing of knowledge, and understanding.
- Where appropriate and in line with divisional organisation practice, Line management of Business Analysts within the ONS community. In addition, SEO and Grade 7 roles will be required to provide coaching and mentoring to Junior Business Analysts.
Person specification
Essential Criteria:
- Stakeholder Relationship Management (Expert) - Direct the stakeholder relationship strategy for your teams. Ensure stakeholders objectives are set and support teams to meet them. Influence and negotiate with senior stakeholders to resolve issues and enable progress.
- Business Modelling (Expert) - Determine the scope and methodology for the representation of complex programmes across an organisation. Document conceptual models to support strategic planning and decision making.
- Requirements Definition and Management (Expert) - Directs the approach to requirements management. Enable others to select and apply appropriate life cycle methods. Influence the prioritisation of complex requirements sets, enabling long-term strategic decision making and short-term tactical fixes. Ensure the proposed solutions align with the organisational strategy and vision.
- Business Process Improvement (Expert) - Lead the identification of large-scale opportunities to deliver business performance improvements. Set the direction for analysis, design and evaluation of business process improvements, including methods, tools and standards. Set the direction for design, execution and assessment of business process tests. Coach others in designing, testing, implementing and assessing business process improvements.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Delivering at Pace
- Communicating and Influencing
- Changing and Improving
- Working Together
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Business Modelling (Expert)
- Requirements Definition and Management
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £56,861, Office for National Statistics contributes £16,472 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
The Office for National Statistics is part of the Civil Service, and as such we share a number of key benefits with other departments, whilst also having our own unique offerings to support our valued colleagues across the organisation.
Whether you are hearing about us for the first time or already know a bit about our organisation, we hope that our careers site will give you a great insight into the benefits and facilities available to our colleagues, and our fantastic working culture.
Inclusion & Accessibility
At ONS we are always looking to attract the very best people from the widest possible talent pool, and we are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a Disability Confident Leader we’re committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.
As part of our application process, you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process that you need. If you would like to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying, please contact the recruitment team in the first instance.
If you would like an accessible version of any of the attachments or recruitment documents below or linked to in this advert, please contact the recruitment team who will be happy to assist.
ONS are committed to flexible ways of working that support a healthy work-life balance. ONS has already considered how this job could be right sized for applicants working flexibly and we are happy to explore options with you about working part time, in a job share or flexibly, in line with our hybrid working policies.
Things you need to know
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
Visa Sponsorship
ONS can offer visa sponsorship as part of this recruitment campaign. However, applicants must still hold valid right to work in the UK at the point employment commences.
To work at the ONS, candidates must meet both UK right to work and security clearance requirements (where applicable).
If you are unsure whether you meet the appropriate right to work or security clearance eligibility criteria, please refer to the guidance on Gov.uk or contact the recruitment email provided in the advert before applying. Failure to meet these requirements will result in your application being rejected and employment offers being withdrawn.
Application Process
Number of Stages: 2 stage process
Stage 1: Application
Stage 2: Interview
Stage 1 – Application
The assessment process at the application stage will be based on your work history, CV, skills, experience, and personal statement. It is important that your application is tailored to highlight the skills, knowledge, and experience relevant to the role.
A personal statement is required at application stage, the maximum word count allowed is 1000 words, which should not be exceeded. You should provide evidence for each essential skill criterion listed in the person specification. As these criteria are scored, it is advisable to give clear examples for each one, including the impact of your actions, ideally utilising the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
Please note that Success Profiles Behaviour examples are not required at this stage of the application process.
We often have similar roles available at different grades. If a candidate is suitable for a similar role or a lower grade than they have applied for, we may offer the candidate that role without the need to go through a further selection process providing the role has the same behaviours, and essential skills.
Stage 2 – Interview
If invited to interview, you will be assessed using techniques aligned with the Civil Service Success Profiles framework, covering all behaviours listed in the job advert and any required technical skills.
You will be required to provide a 10 minute presentation at interview. The presentation topic will be emailed to candidates who have passed the initial online application stage, 1 week prior to interview. This presentation will assess candidates against the Success Profiles Behaviour Communicating and influencing.
Interviews will be via Microsoft Teams.
A reserve list may be held for a period up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made.
Important Dates
- Sift will be conducted from 22/04/2026
- Interviews will be conducted from 05/05/2026
For the full terms and conditions of the post, please see attachment.
Please note that all campaigns may be subject to withdrawal at any stage if the internal resource position changes.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.
Nationality requirements
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)
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).
