About the job

Job summary

The Insolvency Service is a leading Government agency which plays a crucial role in providing essential services to the public and to business. The work we do is important to the proper functioning of markets, the economy in general and support for thousands of people each year who are in financial difficulty.  

Inclusive and diverse teams are important to us. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups underrepresented in our workforce. The Insolvency Service strives to ensure that the agency is a safe, inclusive and welcoming place for everybody to bring their true self to work and to help the agency to achieve its diversity objectives. We have 10 active employee network groups available to join or become an ally, these include Break the Stigma, Carers Network, Disability & Health, FACES Network Group, Grass Roots, LGBT+, No Limits, Part Time Workers, The Shed, and Women’s Network Group. 

We offer full-time, part-time, job share and flexible ways of working. We value capability, technical skills and experience and we place great emphasis on lifetime development to support our people. We encourage our employees to become more involved in areas they feel strongly about, whether it be for the benefit of the agency, though our Engagement network or in their own local communities via volunteering opportunities.  

The Insolvency Service is a great place to work, learn and grow your career. 

The Legal Services Directorate undertakes both criminal enforcement work on a range of offences that underpin the insolvency regime, as well as civil litigation work arising from director misconduct. The purpose of this post is to provide support and assistance to the in-house legal team in achieving our enforcement outcomes.

Job description

This is an exciting role within our Legal Services Directorate. As a Paralegal Officer you will work closely with our lawyer teams to facilitate the delivery of our criminal and civil enforcement outcomes. 

Responsibilities

As a Paralegal Officer you will:

• Be responsible for managing your own caseload of administrative tasks concerning prosecution and civil cases from issue of proceedings to court result and closure.
• Compile documentary evidence for service on courts, defence solicitors and barristers;
• Liaise with all parties involved in criminal and civil casework, including witnesses, defence solicitors, barristers and the courts to ensure that cases are properly prepared and ready for trial;
• Attend criminal courts throughout England & Wales when required. While at court the Paralegal Officer is often the sole representative of the Department and assists in the day-to-day administration of a Crown Court trial or civil proceedings.
• Be responsible for updating internal case management systems and document storage and management systems
• Support the wider team when required through working collaboratively on cases to ensure that key legal milestones are achieved.
• Contribute to wider directorate and agency initiatives as required.

If intending to work on a part-time basis, a minimum of 34 hours will be required.

Person specification

The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

• You will have strong organisational skills, with an ability to proactively self-manage, prioritising caseloads and work to tight deadlines
• You will have the ability to work as a team player, with strong interpersonal skills and an ability to work flexibly and effectively across teams to support colleagues in times of increased workload or reduced resource
• You will have a willingness to adapt to change and promote the positive benefits of a culture of continuous improvement.
• You have excellent IT skills and confidence in using the Microsoft Office suite
• You have excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• You will be willing to travel to various court locations, if required. Please note that this could involve overnight stays.
• Any successful candidate would need to undergo police vetting and be cleared at NPVV2 level as they will have access to police information
• If based at a location other than Stratford you will be willing to travel to this location on a frequent basis for training, team meetings and to assist the wider team 

Essential Criteria

• You will have previous experience of working in an operational civil or criminal litigation team

   

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £24,283, Insolvency Service contributes £6,556 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Strengths.

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete Behaviour statements. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Verbal Test and Civil Service Numerical Test. If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the final stage of the application.

Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the tests is 23:55 on 6th October. If you fail to complete the online test and full written application before the deadline your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the tests will be available when you are invited to take the tests. The tests are administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead behaviour 'Delivering at Pace'. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview. 

We will test your ability and behaviours as part of the sift process, if successful you will be invited to a short interview where we will test your behaviours and strengths. Full details of the selection process will be made available to shortlisted candidates once the sift has been completed.

This is a rolling campaign and sifting will be conducted in stages. We advise you not to wait until the closure date to submit your application.

Candidates may only apply for this vacancy once within a 6-month period. Any subsequent applications made within the 6-month period following the first application will be automatically marked as ‘Campaign duplicate’ and will be withdrawn.

We encourage candidates to apply early to secure a favourable interview slot and to reduce the risk of a longer delay between sift and interview.

Expected Timeline (subject to change) 

Sift – w/c

Tranche 1 - 26 February 2024

Tranche 2 - 17 June 2024

Tranche 3 - 21 October 2024  

Interview – w/c

Tranche 1 - 11 March 2024

Tranche 2 - 01 July 2024

Tranche 3 - 04 November 2024 

Location - MS Teams

Candidates are asked to note the above timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process 

Further Information

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Any move to Insolvency Service from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out. 

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service /Disclosure Scotland on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. 

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk 

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

Transforming Workplaces

The Insolvency Service is currently delivering an exciting five-year transformation project that started in April 2022 which will define our future direction supporting a gradual migration to a Regional Centre model combined with smarter ways of working. As part of this, transforming our estate will align us with the government modernisation programmes making The Insolvency Service a great place to work.  

We are letting you know about our future plans because if you are joining the Insolvency Service and are recruited into an office over the next five years that is not one of the Regional Centres, you will be expected to move to one of the Regional Centres in the future. This move would not attract financial assistance.   

The 11 Regional Centres are : Birmingham, Cardiff, Croydon, Edinburgh, Exeter, Ipswich, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Stratford.

Hybrid Working

Insolvency Service operates a hybrid working policy subject to business need, giving people the flexibility to choose when and where they work and collaborate with others.

Individuals are expected to work from one of the office locations stated in the advert to connect with their colleagues, as required by their role and business team needs. There is flexibility to split the working week, spending a minimum of 60% in the workplace, which includes the office, site visits, court etc.

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes. 

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: 

Contact Government Recruitment Service via Insolvencyrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. 

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional. 

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

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