Public Sector Director

Job Description

Base salary range: £70,000 - £90,000*

All salaries listed on our roles are based on UK salary bands, however if you'd like more information on the bands for your country give us a shout.
We're looking for a Public Sector Director to shape the future of our growing Public Sector practice.

A bit about Torchbox

We build digital products for governments and the wider public sector, as well as international NGOs and universities. We're the creators of the open source Wagtail CMS, trusted by organisations including the NHS, NASA, and Google.

Over the last nine years, we've grown into one of the UK's leading digital partners for the public sector. We work with organisations including the Office for National Statistics, The National Archives, GOV.IE and the National Institutes of Health, helping them design and deliver better digital services that make a meaningful difference to people's lives.

Our diverse team of over 120 people is mostly UK-based, with colleagues in Manila and around the world. We're on a mission to set a new standard for a purpose-led business. As a 100% employee-owned  company, everyone becomes a co-owner from day one, helping shape the future of Torchbox while sharing in our success. If you're excited by meaningful work, collaborative leadership and building something special, we'd love to hear from you.

What we're looking for

We're looking for a senior leader with strong experience in providing digital services to public sector organisations. We want you to shape and define how Torchbox partners with the public sector, grow our consulting capability, and help clients deliver better digital services that create meaningful impact.

You might currently be a Practice Lead or Principal Consultant within a digital consultancy or agency. Equally, you may have built your career in government or the wider public sector before moving into consulting. We're particularly interested in people who've experienced both worlds and can bring that perspective to our clients and our team.
You'll already have credibility within the public sector and be comfortable building trusted relationships with senior stakeholders. Whether you've developed that through consulting, government, or a combination of both, you'll understand how to navigate complex organisations, influence decision-makers and identify opportunities to create lasting impact.

This is a hands-on leadership role. You'll lead our Public Sector practitioners, helping them do their best work while taking responsibility for the health and growth of the practice, our client relationships, and the pipeline that sustains it.

We know no one will tick every box, so we're open to different backgrounds. What matters most is your ability to bring people together, provide clear strategic direction, build trusted relationships and help us win meaningful work.

Our Public Sector team is small but ambitious, curious, collaborative and genuinely cares about the work we do. If you're excited by the opportunity to shape a growing practice and help public sector organisations deliver better outcomes for people, we'd love to hear from you.

You will:

• Define, shape and continuously improve our public sector practice, keeping it aligned with both client needs and our commercial goals.

• Lead, support and empower a multidisciplinary team to do their best work.

• Drive the growth of the practice — identifying opportunities, shaping propositions, and leading pitches and proposals.

• Build and maintain strong relationships with senior stakeholders across the sector, staying ahead of changes in policy, regulation and funding.

• Serve as a public face of our public sector work — contributing to our thought leadership agenda, speaking at industry events, and maintaining a visible presence in the networks that matter.

• Be accountable for a high-quality client experience and outcome-focused delivery across the portfolio.

• Work with the CSO to monitor portfolio health, resourcing and financial projections, flagging risks early.

• Collaborate with our Innovation Team to help clients understand and respond to emerging opportunities in digital, data and AI, ensuring innovation is always grounded in real user and organisational needs.

• Lead agency-wide knowledge transfer of public sector ways of working, including the GOV.UK Service Standard and what it means for us.

• From time to time, get hands-on with client-facing consultancy work where your skillset is the right fit.

What you'll bring

• Sector credibility: an established reputation in the public sector, with strong relationships and a record of successful delivery.

• Commercial and sales experience:  crafting strategies, winning proposals, and driving business development.

• Service Standard expertise: in-depth knowledge of the public sector Service Standard and confidence advising on it.

• Leadership:  proven ability to lead teams, manage programmes and shape practice direction, fostering accountability and high performance.

• Multidisciplinary leadership:  you don't need to be a specialist in every discipline, but you'll have enough understanding of research, design, engineering and delivery to bring multidisciplinary teams together and help clients make informed decisions.

• Influence and communication:  excellent at articulating complex ideas, negotiating outcomes and building trust with senior stakeholders.

• Market awareness: skilled at reading market trends and client needs to inform strategy and adapt our services.

• Judgement under pressure: confident identifying and managing risk across a portfolio of work.

What we offer

• Become a co-owner of Torchbox, shape our success and share in the reward

• Work with awesome clients doing rewarding, purposeful work

• Competitive salary + annual review + bonuses

• Ethical pension scheme, with a 6% contribution from Torchbox

• 27 days holiday, plus public holidays

• Fully remote, hybrid, office full-time, whatever works for you

• Training and conference budget to discover new ideas

• Paid time off to volunteer for causes that matter to you

• Health schemes and access to mental health support

• Electric car salary sacrifice scheme (UK only)

• Wellness programme and cycle-to-work scheme, alongside other lovely things that are good for you and the environment

• Some pretty epic socials (virtual and in-person), weekly free veggie lunches in the office and a bunch of other cool stuff we'd love to tell you about

The money bit

* As an employee-owned company our remuneration is made up of two parts, your base salary £70,000 - £90,000 and your tax-free co-owner bonus of £3,600 which is prorated and paid quarterly. There is an additional profit share scheme.

The application process
The closing date for this role is Friday 21st August 2026.

The application process will consist of 3 stages:

• Submit your CV and a covering letter demonstrating your expertise

• 30-minute first-stage interview, we will ask you more about your previous work experience and skills. You'll also get a chance to learn more about Torchbox and the role.

• 90-minute panel stage interview with senior members of the Torchbox team. We will delve more into your experience and ask you some competency-based questions. During this stage, we'd like you to complete a presentation; we will send you details in advance.

Everyone is welcome

We're committed to being an inclusive employer, from recruitment to everyday life. If you need help or have questions, give us a shout: View email address on t.gohiring.com .

No agencies, please.