Job Description

Head of Audit Portfolio, London, Permanent

We’re looking for a Head of Audit Portfolio to help shape a clear, well-managed audit portfolio in an organisation at the centre of UK retail payments. This role offers the chance to work in a setting where scale is real and visible: Pay.UK’s systems process over 11 billion transactions worth over £10 trillion. For an audit leader with substantial experience, this requires using your capabilities in a complex environment with major responsibility, where detailed planning, practical judgment, and dependable delivery matter each day.

You’ll join an organisation that is open about its purpose and grounded in trust. We value clear thinking, constructive challenge and shared accountability. If you’re looking for a leadership role where you can bring structure to a broad audit portfolio and support high standards in an essential national service, we’d like to hear from you.

Accountabilities

• Oversee the planning and management of the audit portfolio, making sure audits are prioritised, scheduled, and delivered in a clear and consistent way.
• Review audit plans, findings and reports to ensure work is evidence-based, well documented and aligned with agreed standards.
• Work with senior stakeholders to maintain visibility of audit activity, track progress and support timely responses to audit actions.
• Monitor portfolio-level risks, dependencies and delivery issues, and put in place practical steps to keep work on track.
• Prepare clear updates on portfolio status, themes and outcomes for leadership discussions and governance forums.

This role exists to provide oversight and coordination across the audit portfolio so that audit activity is planned and delivered in a structured, consistent way. As Head of Audit Portfolio, you help create clarity across a complex environment and support consistent standards in work that contributes to trust, integrity and accountability at Pay.UK.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience

• Experience leading an internal audit portfolio, audit programme or similar audit planning function within a regulated environment.
• Knowledge of audit planning, reporting, risk assessment and follow-up tracking across multiple concurrent audits.
• Experience reviewing audit plans, findings or reports and ensuring work meets agreed professional and governance standards.
• Experience presenting portfolio status, risks and outcomes to senior stakeholders, governance groups and audit committee
• Engaging with and building relationships with Executive Committee members.
• Experience coordinating audit activity across multiple stakeholders and maintaining delivery against plan.
• Demonstrated ability to lead audit innovation.
• Experience auditing across more than one of the following areas: Financial services, cybersecurity, operational resilience, TPRM.