Business Support Officer
House of Commons
About the job
Job summary
The Parliamentary Security Department (PSD) sets security strategy and provides expert advice and delivers an operational service. They are also responsible for physical and personnel security across both Houses of Parliament and provides support to Members and staff when away from the Estate. Its purpose is to keep Parliament safe and open for business.Job description
The Business Support Officer (BSO) provides a business support functionality to the Parliamentary Security Department (PSD) to deliver its strategic objectives. The BSO role is part of the wider business support function providing administrative support to all PSD business areas. As such, flexibility in the role is key in order to meet the ever-changing needs of the business. The post holder may be required to undertake a variety of tasks in support of different business areas and their designated business area(s) may change, at short notice, subject to business needs.
Some of the responsibilities for this role include:
- Proactive diary management for designated work area(s) and other managers as required;
- High quality administrative support, organising and managing the administration of meetings, including booking rooms, printing papers, taking accurate minutes to produce a written record, and distributing the minutes, with awareness of information security and FOI implications;
- Support operational and administrative projects as required across the team;
- Support team in following up enquiries and answering queries generated by clients, reviewing information and data and identifying any errors and omissions;
Person specification
You will be a motivated and organised individual, who can work well in a pressurised environment. You will be comfortable working with a wide range of colleagues at all levels, confident in responding to queries from senior stakeholders,
To be successfully in this role you will demonstrate the following skills and experience:
- Experience of delivering comprehensive administrative support within a busy team utilising Office 365 tools (SharePoint, Word, Excel and Outlook, OneNote) demonstrating excellent organisational skills and the ability to plan, prioritise and monitor tasks in a systematic way and an ability to and quickly learn new IT skills as needed.
- Experience of working with diverse groups of people, upholding the principles of diversity, equality and inclusion, ensuring that everyone is, at all times, treated with dignity, courtesy and respect. Ability to build inclusive and effective relationships with a diverse group of colleagues and gaining the confidence of others.
- Understanding of the need to maintain strict confidentiality of sensitive information and the ability to exercise judgment and discretion, including the demonstration of political sensitivity.
- Ability to share information clearly and concisely through excellent oral and written communication skills with the ability to deliver when under pressure, while maintaining a focus on detail to ensure the accuracy of documentation.
- Ability to take decisions based upon own experience or knowledge. Judgement to decide when it is more appropriate to seek advice from senior colleagues.
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £29,150, House of Commons contributes £7,870 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
If you would like to apply for this role, please submit your CV and covering letter with a 500 word limit.
More information on the role and the full criteria can be found in the Job Description.
Please note that most job offers will be made at the minimum of the salary range, other than in exceptional circumstances.
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
Open to UK nationals only.
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.