About the job

Job summary

The Home Office is here to make our country safer. As well as working to protect the most vulnerable, reduce crime and enforce the law, we also work to, and have a proud history of, providing refuge to those who have been displaced or are seeking asylum. Whether it is fighting crime, protecting our borders or combating slavery, the Home Office (HO) is at the cutting edge of public policy in this country and our work is some of the most challenging and rewarding in government.

The role of the Public Safety Group (PSG), which sits within the HO, is to keep the public safe by protecting the vulnerable, cutting crime, disrupting the highest harm criminals, and ensuring that our police, fire and rescue services are as trusted, efficient and effective as they can be in delivering front line public services. 

The people in our Group develop and implement policy, provide funding, and deliver legislation. We make the most of innovation, data, and partnerships to protect the vulnerable, prevent crime, and tackle the highest harm crimes. We work with our partners in law enforcement, establishing governance arrangements at a national, regional, and local level.

Tackling serious violence and homicide is a top Government and Ministerial priority. This work is delivered by the Serious Violence Reduction Unit (SVRU) in the Crime Reduction Directorate (CRD) in PSG. As well as tackling serious violence and homicide, the CRD leads the Government’s efforts to tackle neighbourhood crime, drugs misuse, and county lines.

Job description

This area of business is fast paced, with high visibility and an opportunity to contribute to the real impact of reducing and preventing serious violence. The role offers a good opportunity to develop a variety of skills, such as in business management, programme management and grants management, while supporting the Unit to deliver our funding and strategic commitments for serious violence. 

Some of the programmes we are responsible for include:

• The Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) Programme - VRUs bring together key partners to identify the drivers of serious violence and deliver a multi-agency response to them (funding up to £47.4m for financial year 23/24).

• The GRIP Programme – providing investment to police forces to carry out ‘hotspot policing’ in the areas most affected by serious violence (funding up to £30m for financial year 23/24).

• The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) - a high-profile £200m investment over 10 years, focused on targeted early intervention with those children and young people most vulnerable to involvement in serious violence.

• The implementation and delivery of the Serious Violence Duty, a £13.1m investment for this year. The Duty requires a range of specified authorities to work collaboratively, to share data and information to analyse the local problem and put in place a strategy to prevent and reduce serious violence within their local communities.

• Trauma Informed Practice - an innovative intervention to help frontline workers recognise and respond to trauma in the young people they work with.

• The Winter Homicide Initiative – a coordinated Cross-Government initiative aimed at preventing homicide.

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estates capacity, by Spring 2024. Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details).

Person specification

This is a dynamic and varied role where the ideal post holder will be enthusiastic, proactive, organised, and adaptable.

The successful candidate will be required to:

• Proactively manage the Head of Unit’s time, and support the delivery of their key priorities, exercising judgement to ensure engagements are suitably prioritised or delegated.

• Lead the coordination and implementation of corporate functions for the Unit, including the unit’s data protection implementation and information management.

• Play a key Secretariat role for the Senior Management Team (SMT) meetings, as well as other key priority meetings in the Unit.

• Manage the Unit’s recruitment and onboarding processes to ensure they are processed quickly and efficiently.

• Work collaboratively across the Unit on serious violence reduction and prevention policies and programmes to support the delivery of our major milestones and priorities.

• Support our Commissions Hub with the development of timely and high-quality Products, including briefings for Ministers and other senior colleagues.

Responsibilities of all staff can change depending on Directorate and Unit business priorities. 

Essential criteria:

• Good organisational skills with an ability to work at pace, managing multiple priorities.

• Ability to build and maintain relationships with internal and external stakeholders at varied levels.

• Good written and oral communication skills, with an ability to communicate clearly and effectively.

• Be a self-starter who is confident working independently and using their initiative.

• Take a collaborative approach to work and have the flexibility and willingness to support wider team members when required. 

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Things you need to know

Selection process details

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

As part of the application, you will be asked to complete:

• A CV (job history)
• Statement of Suitability (Personal statement) (750 words maximum)

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

The Statement of Suitability must be aligned to demonstrate how you meet the essential criteria as detailed in the job advertisement.

The sift will be held on the Statement of Suitability only. CVs will not be scored.

Successful candidates shortlisted for interview will be tested on a blended approach of Strength based questions (no preparation necessary) and all the behaviours listed in the advert

Sift and Interview Dates:

The sift will take place week commencing the 22nd January 2024.

Interviews are expected to take place week commencing the 5th February 2024.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.

Interviews will take place remotely. Candidates will be required to have access to:

• A laptop (personal or work) with a working webcam
• Good internet connection
• Microsoft Teams

PLEASE NOTE: Due to time constraints we may not be able to offer alternative interview date(s). It is therefore expected that candidates who are successful at sift stage will make themselves available during the above time frame given.

Further details and instructions will be provided closer to the scheduled interview.

Further Information

For meaningful checks to be carried out, individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years if the role requires CTC clearance, 5 years for SC clearance and 10 years for DV.  A lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar to a security clearance and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

Please be aware the levels of national security clearance are changing which may impact on the level needed for this role by the time of appointment. All efforts will be made to keep candidates informed of any changes and what that will mean in terms of vetting criteria. For more information please See our vetting charter

Please Note: The successful candidates will be required to hold or be willing to secure Counter Terrorist Check (CTC) clearance.

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. All applications are screened for plagiarism and copying and generating of examples/answers from internet sources including Artificial Intelligence. If any is detected the application may be withdrawn from the process. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving civil servants. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants.

When completing your application you will have the opportunity to select your preferred location(s). Please ensure you select all locations you are interested in. Candidates who are successful at Interview will be placed in order of merit per location and provisional job offers will be made in strict merit order per location preference. Provisional offers are made, as they are on condition that you successfully pass all pre-employment checks.

We often have similar roles available at different grades. If a candidate is suitable for a similar role or a lower grade than they have applied for, we may offer the candidate that role without the need for them to go through a further selection process.

A location based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role become available within that period you may be offered this position.  

Every day, Home Office civil servants do brilliant work to develop and deliver policies and services that affect the lives of people across the country and beyond. To do this effectively and fairly, the Home Office is committed to representing modern Britain in all its diversity, and creating a welcoming, inclusive workplace where all our people are able to bring their whole selves to work and perform at their best.

We are flexible, skilled, professional and diverse. We work to recruit and retain disabled staff and area Disability Confident Leader. We are proud to be one of the most ethnically diverse departments in the civil service. We are a Social Mobility Foundation top 75 employer.

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

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

For further information please see the attached notes for candidates which must be read before making an application.

Existing Civil Servants should note that some of the Home Office terms and conditions of employment have changed. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the Terms and Conditions they will adopt should they be successful in application and should refer to the notes for candidates for further details.

Transfer Terms: Voluntary.

If you are invited to an interview you will be required to  bring a range of documentation for the purposes of establishing identity and to aid any pre-employment checks.

Please see the attached list of Home Office acceptable ID documents.

Any move to the Home Office 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

Reasonable Adjustments

If a person with disabilities is 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 HOrecruitment.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

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

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). 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.