Julie Lennard will join the Crown Prosecution Service next month as chief operating officer.
Lennard, who has been the chief executive of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency since 2018, will start her new director general-level role on 25 November.
Meanwhile, efforts to recruit a second director general responsible for legal delivery are taking longer, with the CPS launching a second public recruitment campaign for the role after failing to fill it the first time around. Both roles were initially advertised in April.
Lennard’s role will see her work with partners to direct significant change across the criminal justice system. She will be responsible for overseeing transformation and improvement within the CPS, as well as setting the overall strategy for the organisation’s corporate functions, including finance, people and digital.
The hire is part of a shake-up of the CPS's management structure, creating two new roles. The COO and DG for legal delivery will jointly share executive responsibility for the strategic management of the service, its 7,000-plus workforce, its performance, and its £890m budget, alongside their individual responsibilities.
The two DGs will work closely with the director of public prosections – who heads up the CPS – and provide visible leadership and direction to develop and deliver the agency's vision and strategic priorities.
Commenting on Lennard's appointment, Stephen Parkinson, director of public prosecutions, said: “Julie brings a wealth of valuable skills and experience to the CPS – not least her work to successfully lead the digital and business transformation of the DVLA.
“She has also transformed the way customers interact with the organisation with some truly impressive results. I am very much looking forward to welcoming Julie to our executive team in the autumn.”
Lennard has spent the last decade at the DVLA, joining as director of strategy, policy and communications in 2014 and becoming chief exec four years later.
She said the DVLA “has been an amazing place to work” and that “it’s been a privilege to lead such a brilliant organisation and such a talented team of people”.
“The role has been very rewarding but the opportunity to join the Crown Prosecution Service as director general was just too good an opportunity to miss,” she added.
“It’s a fascinating time to join and I’m looking forward to meeting the team and helping to lead the CPS to an exciting future.”
Before working at the DVLA, Lennard had several roles at The National Archives and before that worked for Which?, the largest consumer organisation in Europe.
The legal-delivery role is now open again for applications until 18 November, with a salary of between £128,000 and £160,000 on offer. The CPS is seeking an “experienced” and “outstanding” lawyer who “brings the professional credibility to deputise for the director of public prosecutions on legal matters”.
A CPS spokeperson confirmed that the agency was unable to fill the role through its first round of recruitment.
The DG for legal delivery will oversee the day-to-day operational management of legal services and operations, and is responsible for the CPS's performance, 6,000-plus workforce and £610m budget.
Applicants must have 10 years post-qualified experience as a solicitor or barrister who is entitled to practise in England and Wales, with “proven experience of providing legal advice, input and decision-making into complex and sensitive cases”.
They must also demonstrate “the ability to operate under pressure and scrutiny”, "excellent interpersonal skills" and a “track record of operational leadership in a complex, delivery focused organisation” and have “excellent interpersonal skills".