Job Title: Digital Strategy Advisor (DSA)
Salary: The starting salary is £63,409, which includes allowances totalling £3,009.
The salary is broken down as £60,400 basic salary, which will increase annually until you reach the top of the scale £65,886 Plus, a location allowance of £2,009 and a non-pensionable allowance of £1,000.
Location: Lambeth
Digital Strategy Advisor (DSA)
The Opportunity
This is an exciting opportunity to join the Metropolitan Police Service Forensic Directorate as a Digital Strategy Advisor (DSA). We are seeking a motivated, adaptable and knowledgeable individual who can bridge the gap between rapidly evolving technology and the complex operational environment of policing London.
As a DSA, you will provide expert, operationally informed digital advice across the MPS, helping investigators identify digital opportunities early, apply proportionate forensic activity, and obtain the right digital evidence from suspects, witnesses and victims.
Your work directly supports the Met’s “Putting Crime‑Fighting First” commitment by enabling precise and defensible use of digital capabilities, improving investigative productivity and reducing unnecessary demand.
Although DSAs do not hold line‑management responsibility, they operate as senior specialists supporting managers, championing best practice and supporting the development of police officers’ digital investigation knowledge.
Why This Role Matters
A DSA is a senior specialist advisor who ensures digital opportunities and forensic requests across investigations are lawful, ethical and operationally justified. They guide decisions around intrusion, data acquisition and technical deployments to ensure they remain proportionate and appropriate to investigative need.
DSAs play a critical strategic role by improving digital confidence, strengthening digital literacy and connecting Digital Forensics with Open Source, Communications Data and other digital disciplines. They help embed a culture where digital approaches are grounded in frontline reality and driven by investigative requirements rather than the capability of the technology alone.
They maintain broad awareness of digital opportunities, from device extraction to specialist techniques such as cell site analysis, CCTV and audio/video work, telematics, data recovery and evidential presentation. This breadth enables DSAs to steer investigators towards proportionate, technically appropriate and operationally effective forensic actions.
By shaping effective digital strategies, DSAs ensure evidence is identified and secured quickly while upholding the highest legal, ethical, privacy and quality standards. They safeguard proportionality, necessity and compliance, ensuring digital evidence is robust, defensible and fully admissible at court.
Core Duties
As a Digital Strategy Advisor, you will:
- Provide coordinated digital advice to investigators: Deliver clear, consistent and joined‑up digital guidance that supports investigative priorities and evidential needs.
- Develop proportionate, defensible digital strategies: Work across digital disciplines, including DF, OSINT and Communications Data to create necessary, risk‑aware strategies tailored to each inquiry.
- Maintain awareness of evolving digital capabilities: Stay current with emerging tools, techniques and opportunities across digital forensics to ensure investigators receive accurate, up‑to‑date advice.
- Engage proactively across the digital policing community: Strengthen interoperability, share best practice and identify new approaches across specialist digital units.
- Manage case submissions to DF hubs and laboratories: Ensure requests are proportionate, necessary and directed to the appropriate technical capability.
- Prioritise work within Digital Forensics Submissions: Balance capacity, capability, CJS turnaround times, investigative risk and threat to life.
- Make robust and defensible decisions using appropriate models: Apply structured decision‑making approaches to assess digital opportunities, evaluate risk, determine proportionality and justify strategic recommendations.
- Act as liaison between investigators and technical specialists: Translate investigative requirements clearly, ensuring mutual understanding and effective delivery.
- Monitor performance and support DF leadership: Collate and present Management Information (MI) to inform performance and strategic decision‑making.
- Support the DF Quality Management System: Maintain high standards of documentation, competency and audit readiness.
- Support DF training and capability development: Contribute to the development of DF staff, Digital Media Investigators (DMIs) and Police Officers, helping to build a digitally confident workforce.
- Promote continuous professional development: Continually seek to maintain and enhance team and individual competence, identifying development needs and promoting CPD opportunities.
- Drive organisational change and improvement: Work with DF managers and Forensic Services to refine processes and implement new operating models.
- Comply with Forensic Standards and Regulation: Act in accordance with the legally binding Forensic Science Regulator’s Code of Practice.
- Ensure safe working practice: Comply with all Health and Safety requirements across the MPS estate.
Location and Working Pattern
This role is primarily based at Lambeth HQ, with travel to other MPS sites as operationally required.
Digital Forensics supports flexi‑time within defined parameters:
- Core hours: 10:00–12:00 and 14:00–15:00
- Bandwidth: 07:00–19:00
- Office coverage: 08:00–17:00
The role requires participation in the 24/7 on‑call rota, supporting urgent operational requests and coordinating practitioner deployment. This commitment is normally no more than one week in every twelve.
Blended working may be supported in line with MPS policy; however, staff must be able to attend DF sites at short notice when required.
Compressed hours and part‑time arrangements may be considered subject to business need.
Note: In the next 12–18 months Digital Forensics may be introducing a 24/7 operating model as part of an investment and transformation plan to ensure the best service to support operational policing. These teams will work on a rotational shift pattern compromising early, late and night shifts, inclusive of weekends. Approximately 20% of the overall staff in DF will be required to support it. These posts attract an additional 20% shift allowance plus weekend premium payments on top of the salary advertised above.
All new staff are eligible to be placed on a shift rota subject to the relevant notice given; however, in the first instance placements on these teams will be allocated to those who volunteer. Any remaining places will be allocated by management and will also be subject to certain skills required to support out‑of‑hours services.
Although this role is not expected to be directly affected by this requirement, by applying you acknowledge that you may be assigned to one of the 24/7 shift teams and could be rotated according to business needs.
Benefits
In addition to a competitive salary, you will have access to:
- 28 days annual leave (33 after 5 years)
- Civil Service Pension
- Flexible working where appropriate
- Interest‑free season ticket loans
- Membership of Met sports and social clubs
- Professional development opportunities
- A unique opportunity to contribute to London’s safety and security
Application Process
The application process will be made up of two stages: the application and the interview.
In your application, you must provide a personal statement (250 words maximum) explaining how you meet the essential criteria and ensure that you address the competencies outlined in the Competency and Values Framework (CVF). Please see the attached CVF documentation link which will assist you with this. Each competency includes a list of behaviours which you should demonstrate, where possible, within your example.
We take ownership (CVF Level 3)
Detail a time where you have identified a problem and explain the actions you took to resolve this. (Min 200 words, max 500 words)
We collaborate (CVF Level 2)
Detail a time where you have worked with others to achieve a task or goal. (Min 200 words, max 500 words)
We analyse critically (CVF Level 3)
Detail a time you have used data to inform a decision, the thought process behind it and other relevant considerations. (Min 200 words, max 500 words)
Those successful at the paper sift stage will be invited to attend an interview which will be assessed against the following CVF elements:
- We are emotionally aware (CVF Level 2)
- We support and inspire (CVF Level 2)
- We are innovative and open-minded (CVF Level 2)
The interview process will also include a 10-minute presentation (topic will be given on the day with 30 minutes preparation time).
How to apply
To begin your career at the Met, please click the "apply button “. The application process requires an online application form.
Completed applications must be submitted by 23:55 on 28th April 2026.
Once received, your application will be reviewed against eligibility criteria, following this, your application will be reviewed by the hiring manager. The application review for this vacancy will commence 2 weeks after the vacancy has closed.
Following application review, successful candidates will be invited to interview. Interview dates will commence 2 weeks after the hiring managers review.
