Tara Smith is the Chief Operating Officer at the Home Office.

Prior to joining the Home Office Tara served as Chief Operating Officer at the Department for Business and Trade from May 2023 until 27 April 2026.

Tara has also worked as the Director of People and Resources at the Food Standards Agency and as the Strategic Finance Director at the Department for Work and Pensions.

She is a chartered accountant and started her career with PwC. She worked in Ireland, Canada and the UK for more than 10 years before joining the civil service in 2006.