Financial Model Quality Assurance Analyst

Job summary About us At the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD) our mission is to support effective decision-making and robust reporting within the public sector as the first-choice provider of actuarial and specialist analysis, advice and assurance. The department’s work covers quality assurance of analysis, financial modelling, and valuation work and policy support in relation to insurance and contingent liabilities, pension schemes, financial risk, and social security.

To deliver our mission GAD works like a consultancy within the UK Civil Service, charging by the hour to recover our costs and ensure value for money in our advice and analysis. Being a Government Department allows us to still work more closely in partnership with our clients and to offer secondments and other ways of helping departments and public sector bodies. About the Role The roles sits within the Analytical Solutions Team (AST) which comprises around 80 analysts and actuaries and works across a wide and growing range of analytical areas.

You will be part of the Models, Development & Assurance team whose mission is to deliver high-quality models and systems that help government make better decisions. Within this team, this role will focus on the assurance of Excel-based and financial models as a distinct category of model types. Many important decisions across government are supported by spreadsheets, actuarial models, financial projection tools, budgeting models, valuation models, and other Excel-based analytical tools.

These models can be business-critical, even where they are smaller or less technically complex than statistical or machine learning models. They therefore require clear design, robust checks, good documentation, appropriate governance, and proportionate assurance. We are looking for a proactive and detail-focused analyst to help review, test, and improve the quality of Excel-based and financial models used across government.

You will help clients identify and manage model risks, improve model transparency, strengthen controls, and build confidence that models are fit for purpose. This role would suit someone who has experience developing, reviewing or analysing complex spreadsheet models used to support investment, regulatory, commercial, or public policy decisions. The ideal candidate would have relevant experience: Financial modelling / corporate finance, Actuarial, pensions or investment modelling Infrastructure or project finance, or Economic appraisal N.B.

GAD may work with recruiters on this campaign provided prior agreement is reached for this specific campaign Job description What does the role involve? As a Financial and Excel Model Quality Assurance Analyst, you will help deliver independent and proportionate assurance of models that support important public sector decisions. You will work with analysts, actuaries, policy teams and client organisations to review how models have been designed, built, tested, documented and governed, with a particular focus on spreadsheet-based, actuarial and financial models.

The role will involve examining model logic, formulae, inputs, assumptions, outputs, controls and audit trails to assess whether models are robust, transparent and fit for purpose. You will help identify errors, weaknesses and areas of model risk, and work constructively with model owners to agree practical recommendations that improve confidence in the model and the decisions it supports. You will support a range of assurance activities across the model lifecycle.

This may include helping clients define model requirements, reviewing documentation and governance arrangements, testing calculations and sensitivities, checking changes to existing models, assessing the suitability of assumptions, and preparing clear assurance reports for technical and non-technical audiences. You will also contribute to the development of GAD’s wider model quality assurance capability.

This will include sharing good practice, helping im