Chief Media Officer
Job Title: Chief Media Officer
Salary: The starting salary is £59,839, which includes allowances totalling £2,928.
The salary is broken down as £56,911 basic salary, which will increase annually until you reach the top of the scale £69,342. Plus, a location allowance of £1,928 and a non-pensionable allowance of £1,000.
Location: Westminster
Job advert
Do you have the ambition to drive some of the country’s biggest news stories and passion to show Londoners how the Met is changing for the better? We are seeking a creative, driven Chief Media Officer with the skills, expertise and impact to help take the Met’s Communications & Engagement team to new heights.
The Met is striving to meet the Commissioner’s goals of More Trust, Less Crime and High Standards. From neighbourhood crime to violence against women and girls, county lines and homicide – our performance is improving and we need a leader capable of inspiring a team to tell our stories to maximum effect.
The successful candidate will have a track record of delivering exceptional results in a high-pressure environment. They will be adept at steering complex, headline-grabbing announcements and have the judgement to advise a Newsdesk dealing reactively with hundreds of enquiries a day.
This is a great time to join one of the most exciting press offices in the business. Following a recent restructure, we are a new and vibrant team and the successful candidate will have the opportunity to play a leading role in our evolution. If you have the energy, ideas and determination to do that successfully, we would love to hear from you.
You will be responsible for one of the following:
- Leading a proactive media team responsible for a specific area of the Met’s delivery under the priorities set out in A New Met for London - our blueprint for improving policing in the capital. You will oversee and co-ordinate the planning and delivery of a media strategy, identifying proactive opportunities and effectively managing proactive and reactive communications of nationally significant and often controversial issues in a fast-paced environment.
- Jointly leading a team of up to 20 people on reactive communications - handling media enquiries and engagement across digital channels under the glare of global media scrutiny. In this role you will be responsible for overseeing the team to provide support to frontline officers, respond to media and monitor public commentary. You will lead them in prioritising work and responses and ensuring delivery is to the highest standards, matching operational pace and demand.
The role is exciting, demanding, and involves close contact with high-profile leaders in the Met, as well as members of management board, providing high-quality communications advice.
Every member of our team is expected to be multi-skilled and to work across several communication disciplines using modern tools and up-to-date professional practice.
You will provide advice and leadership across media, digital and internal communications. You must be able to plan strategically and use insight and data to support your plans.
You will build effective networks of influencer and community voices and understand how to collaborate effectively with teams handling campaigns, marketing and stakeholder management.
About you:
You’re not just a media professional - you’re a strategic thinker with a keen sense of the news cycle, political awareness, and a proven track record of managing media in high-pressure environments. You’ll need to be quick on your feet, leading a team with energy and vision while navigating the complexities of policing communications in the capital.
Key skills & experience we’re looking for:
- Ability to leading and drive proactive media planning and non-paid-for campaigns, and the ability to turn ideas into media coverage, along with digital and internal content.
- A proven track record in a large 24/7 media operation, including handling multiple demands simultaneously.
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills and a passion for supporting teams to tell the story of the Met.
- A track-record of leading a team to deliver effective media and channel monitoring, including the use of a range of digital tools to support this.
- Strong evidence of your team delivering high quality, fast-time rebuttal on digital channels and an understanding of how this can shape media narratives.
- An understanding and experience of shaping and delivering digital content, and knowledge of a range of channels as ways of engaging audiences.
- Managing crisis communications, including critical incident planning and a track-record of implementation.
- A demonstrable ability to lead a team at pace and under deadline pressure on fast-moving opportunities and challenges, set out effective handling and oversee consistent messaging.
- A record of building professional relationships with a range of journalists, stakeholders and influencers and a track-record of continuously establishing trusted networks.
- Strong co-ordination skills, sharing and escalating opportunities and challenges where appropriate and liaising with operational colleagues in a large and complex organisation.
- A deep knowledge of how the most impactful communications are delivered using all of the available disciplines.
- A track record of using data and insight to drive communications, and of the importance of targeting audiences.
- An experienced leader with proven ability to understand and develop your own and your team’s capability to deliver. This will include coaching, mentoring, developing and empowering others to achieve high performance, encourage innovation and creativity, and foster an inclusive environment.
- High ethical and professional standards that align to the values and principles set out in A New Met for London.
What you’ll get:
In addition to a competitive starting salary, you’ll be part of a team that has a tangible impact on public safety. You’ll be a leader in one of the most exciting media environments in the UK, with opportunities for growth, learning, and progression as part of the Met’s communications transformation.
Competency and Values Framework:
The Competency and Values Framework (CVF) aims to support all policing professionals, now and into the future. It sets out nationally recognised behaviours, which will provide a consistent foundation for a range of Met and national processes.
As part of the role, you are expected to operate and demonstrate the behaviours as set out in the national policing competency and values framework to the levels as shown below:
Level 2: ‘We are emotionally aware’; ‘We are collaborative’; ‘We deliver, support and inspire’; ‘We are innovative and open minded’; ‘We take ownership’, ‘We analyse critically’
An overview and full details of the Competency and Values Framework can be downloaded from Met Careers application pages or found at Competency and values framework (CVF) | College of Policing.
How to apply
To begin your career at the Met, please click the "apply button “. The application process requires a comprehensive CV, a Personal Statement, and an online application form. In your Personal Statement, you should explain your interest in the position and illustrate how your skills and experiences make you a suitable candidate. Please note that you should not submit two copies of your CV, and ensure that your documents are saved in either PDF or Word format, clearly labelled as CV and/or Personal Statement.
Candidates who successfully pass the interview process, but are not offered this job, may be contacted in due course about alternative roles at the same grade in the Met’s Comms & Engagement team where their experience and skillset are an appropriate fit.
Completed applications must be submitted by 23:55 on 9th December 2025.
Once received, your application will be reviewed against eligibility criteria, following this, your application will be reviewed by the hiring manager.
Following application review, successful candidates will be invited to interview.