Curious about data. Eager to analyse it. Determined to transform it.
Data Governance Specialist
£42,000 - £50,000 (+ Benefits)
Grade: P2
Reports to: Lead Data Manager
Contract: 12 month fixed-term contract
Hours: Full time 35 hours per week
Location: Stratford, London . Office-based with high flexibility (1-2 days per week in the office)
Visa sponsorship: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.
External closing date: 16 January 2026 23:55
Internal closing date: 23 January 2026 23:55
This vacancy may close earlier if a high volume of applications is received or once a suitable candidate is found, therefore we strongly recommend that you apply early to avoid disappointment. If you require more time to apply as part of a reasonable adjustment, please contact recruitment@cancer.org.uk as soon as possible.
Recruitment process: One to two competency-based interviews
Interview date: From 21 January 2026
How do I apply? We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won’t be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to fully complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you quickly, fairly, and objectively.
At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer.
We are professionals with purpose, beating cancer every day. But we need to go much further and much faster. That’s why we’re looking for someone talented, someone who wants to develop their skills, someone like you.
Cancer Research UK has a vision to bring about a world where everybody can lead longer, better lives, free from the fear of cancer. To achieve this mission and grow our funding, we must build even greater momentum and urgency around our cause, and engage and inspire millions of people in deeper, more meaningful ways to join our mission. Therefore, we have created a long-term Engage Strategy and a bold transformation programme to better harness data and digital marketing technology to deliver more relevant, trusted, and frictionless experiences for our audiences (and in turn drive growth).
It’s an exciting time to join our Data Management team. As we migrate from Siebel to Salesforce, which goes live in May, ensuring our Marketing, Fundraising, and Engagement (MFE) directorate’s data is efficient, accurate, and robust is a critical part of this challenge.
As a Data Governance Specialist, you will play a crucial role in supporting the management, quality, and governance of this critical data. You’ll ensure that the data for millions of our supporters is accurate, consistent, secure, and used responsibly across our architecture, enabling better decision-making, regulatory compliance, and business value. This will involve working across domains to embed data governance principles, support master data integrity, and foster a data-driven culture.
Collaborating with stakeholders and business partners to support delivery teams in classifying, categorising, and managing our master data in support of prioritised business-focused use cases. This includes resolving issues as they arise, while developing policies and procedures for data management and governance that enable effective data usage and protect the charity.
If you're an experienced Data Management professional who has implemented data governance policies and standards in large organisations, we would love for you to join our mission.
What will I be doing?
Supporting the design and implementation of data governance policies, standards, and procedures.
Promoting the adoption of data governance practices across Cancer Research UK.
Defining and monitoring data quality metrics and KPIs, providing communication on the charity’s data condition.
Collaborating with subject-matter experts, data owners, stewards, and stakeholders to resolve data quality issues and ensure accurate reference data.
Maintaining metadata repositories, data dictionaries, and supporting data lineage documentation.
Assisting with the investigation of data incidents and root cause analysis to improve data quality.
Supporting data lifecycle management (including classification, retention, and deletion processes).
Ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations and internal governance frameworks.
Supporting audits and risk assessments related to data usage and protection.
Collaborating with the Technology Directorate, teams, and data engineering teams to embed governance into data pipelines.
Delivering training and awareness sessions on data governance principles and responsibilities.
Acting as a change agent to foster a data-driven culture across the organisation.
What skills will I need?
Experienced Data Management/ Governance professional who has implemented data governance policies and standards in large, complex organisations handling millions of supporters’/ customers’ data.
Proven success in resolving data quality problems through error detection, correction, and process improvement.
Strong understanding of data compliance, privacy, and security requirements, and data quality measurement frameworks.
Strong knowledge of CRM systems (ideally Salesforce).
Has built credible and collaborative stakeholder relationships with strong interpersonal and influencing skills.
Experience training stakeholders and data owners to embed data governance practices with the ability to communicate complex data concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
Analytical and proactive problem-solver with a continuous improvement mindset for encouraging innovation while promoting best practices and strong data governance.
Familiarity with agile methodologies and lean ways of working.
Some knowledge of charity data would be advantageous, but is not essential, meaning we welcome applicants without charity experience.
Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do.
Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination
Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism
Human: Act to have a positive impact on people
Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively
We’re looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.
If you’re interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience we’d still love to hear from you.
What will I gain?
We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.
You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page.
Additional Information
For more information about working with us please visit our website or contact us at recruitment@cancer.org.uk.
For more updates on our work and careers, follow us on: LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.
Our vision is to create a charity where everyone feels like they belong, benefits from and participates in, the work we do. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under-represented.
We want to see every candidate performing at their best throughout the job application process, interview process and whilst at work. We therefore ask you to inform us of any concerns you have or any adjustments you might need to enable this to happen. Please contact recruitment@cancer.org.uk or 020 3469 8400 as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, we are unable to recruit anyone below the age of 18, so that we can protect young people from health & safety and safeguarding risks.