Cyber Security Consultant (Senior Security Advisor - CISO)

Job overview

At NHS England, cyber security is fundamental to delivering safe, reliable healthcare services to millions of people every day. Our Chief Information Security Office (CISO) Function plays a critical role in protecting national systems and enabling secure digital transformation across the NHS.

As part of the CISO Function, the Senior Cyber Security Advisor is a key member of the Security Consulting (Secure) team, providing expert cyber security consultancy across NHS England’s Critical National Infrastructure and major national services. The role focuses on ensuring systems and services are designed and delivered in line with secure by design principles, embedding security from the outset.

Our Senior Cyber Security Advisors work closely with programmes, project teams and DevOps teams to ensure systems are underpinned by resilient architectures. They provide clear, actionable cyber security guidance, support the identification and management of cyber risk, and influence design decisions to reduce the likelihood and impact of compromise.

This is a unique opportunity to contribute to the delivery of secure, resilient national services at scale. You will be empowered to apply your expertise, working collaboratively across organisational boundaries, to make meaningful impact on patient safety and the resilience of the NHS.

Main duties of the job

As a Senior Cyber Security Advisor, you will deliver expert consultancy to programmes and services, ensuring solutions are secure by design and resilient to evolving cyber threats. You will conduct threat modelling, security assessments and risk analysis, clearly articulating risks and recommending proportionate controls to reduce likelihood and impact.

You will provide authoritative guidance on security architecture, standards and patterns, embedding effective governance and controls across the technology lifecycle. Working collaboratively across technical and non-technical teams, you will resolve complex challenges, influence decisions, and strengthen cyber resilience outcomes.

The role requires championing a strong security culture, enabling delivery teams to build secure systems from the outset, and supporting programme objectives through clear security strategies and effective risk management.

You will identify, assess and manage cyber risks, ensuring they are understood, tracked and mitigated in line with organisational and national standards. This is a critical role in maintaining NHS England’s alignment with government policy and industry best practice.

You will apply technical expertise and creative problem-solving to protect patient data, support safe care, and maintain public trust.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification for more information about the role and responsibilities.

Please ensure your supporting statement includes demonstratable evidence and specific examples on how you meet the criteria for each of the key skills specified. This will be used in both the shortlisting and interview processes

Important: Please be aware there are residency requirements you need to meet:

All NHS England Cyber Security personnel must hold Security Clearance level as a minimum. To meet National Security Vetting requirements, SC clearances require 5 years continuous UK residency. In certain cases, this can be reduced to three years continuous UK residency, with additional overseas checks for the previous two years. Candidates who were posted abroad for service with HM Government, Armed Forces or within a UK government role - will still be considered.

Please make sure you meet these requirements before applying for this role. You don’t need to have SC already, however, failure to achieve the requirements for SC after offer will result in the job offer being withdrawn. For further advice please check https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels#security-check-sc

Please be aware that should you be successful in this position, you will be hired to the job title of Senior Security Advisor (CISO) and this job title is advertised to attract the right skills needed for the role.

The post of Senior Security Advisor (CISO) has been awarded a Recruitment and Retention Premia (RRP) in response to current labour market conditions. In recognition of this, the role attracts an additional monthly RRP payment equal to 20% per annum. Please be aware that RRP is non-contractual and subject to review

If you like what you have read and think you have the skills and experience, we need then don't delay, apply today! We get lots of applications for our roles and so we sometimes have to close our posts early. Don't miss out!

Applicant requirements

This post will require a submission for Disclosure to be made to check for any unspent criminal convictions.