Director of Assurance – Shared Service in London - MLC Partners

Director of Assurance – Shared Service

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea

Salary – Grade M - £134,616pa

Location: London

Working pattern - Hybrid

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is seeking an exceptional Director of Assurance to lead a significant shared assurance service across RBKC, Westminster City Council and the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham. This is a broad and influential senior leadership role covering internal audit, fraud, risk, insurance, procurement and cyber assurance. Reporting to the Executive Director of Finance and Assurance, you will lead established Heads of Service and provide strategic direction across a complex, high-profile and politically sensitive environment.

This is much more than a traditional audit, fraud or insurance post. You will lead a coherent assurance framework across three sovereign councils, providing trusted advice, constructive challenge and practical solutions that support confident decision-making, strengthen governance, manage risk and deliver better outcomes for residents. You will work closely with senior officers, Members, Audit Committees, external auditors, regulators and partners, balancing independence and professional integrity with the ability to build credibility and adapt your approach to each council’s priorities.

This is an excellent opportunity to take on a highly visible role with real breadth, influence and purpose. You will be joining at a time of change, recovery and transformation, with the chance to shape how assurance supports better decision-making, organisational resilience and public confidence across three distinctive London boroughs.

You will bring significant senior leadership experience in local government finance, audit, risk, fraud or insurance, or in a similarly complex public sector environment. Just as importantly, you will have the judgement, resilience and relationship skills to lead specialist teams, contribute to major corporate programmes, sensitive reviews, emergency response and organisational resilience, and ensure assurance activity is focused on the areas that matter most. A clear commitment to equality, inclusion, integrity, good governance and public service values is essential.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing strategic leadership for Assurance Services across RBKC, Westminster City Council and Hammersmith & Fulham.
• Leading reporting and engagement with the Audit Committees at all three councils.
• Overseeing internal audit, fraud, risk, insurance, procurement assurance and cyber assurance functions.
• Acting as a trusted adviser to senior management, Members and Audit Committees.
• Providing constructive challenge on governance, risk and control matters.
• Ensuring assurance activity is focused on the most significant risks and organisational priorities.
• Leading cross-cutting reviews, investigations and major assurance projects.
• Supporting emergency response, corporate resilience and organisational learning.
• Building strong relationships across three sovereign councils, each with distinct priorities and stakeholders.

About you

You will bring:

• Significant senior leadership experience in local government finance, audit, risk, fraud or insurance, or a similarly complex public sector environment.
• Experience of leading and developing professional teams.
• Strong knowledge of local government statutory assurance requirements, governance responsibilities and the wider legislative and policy environment affecting councils.
• Experience advising senior political and managerial leaders on complex issues.
• The ability to lead across complex organisations and bring multiple professional disciplines together.
• A track record of leading organisational improvement, transformation and change.
• Highly developed communication, influencing and relationship management skills.
• Strong personal resilience, sound judgement and the ability to operate effectively in a complex, high-profile and politically sensitive environment.
• A clear commitment to equality, inclusion, integrity, good governance and public service values.
• A professional accountancy qualification, or a relevant recognised professional qualification related to fraud, audit, insurance or risk, is required.

Why apply

This is a senior, visible and high-impact role with the opportunity to shape assurance across three important London boroughs. The functional leadership is already in place, providing a strong platform for the successful candidate to bring teams together, strengthen the overall assurance framework and ensure the service adds real value to organisational decision-making.

For someone motivated by public service, organisational resilience, good governance and the opportunity to influence at senior level, this is a highly distinctive appointment.

To apply

Please submit your CV and supporting statement, outlining your suitability for the role and how your experience meets the requirements set out in the person specification.

For a confidential conversation about the role, please contact Thomas Porter at MLC Partners.