About the job

Job summary

The Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC) is a unique position, independent of government, established by the Modern Slavery Act 2015, with an UK-wide remit to encourage good practice in the:

• prevention of modern slavery and human trafficking;
• detection and identification of potential victims;
• support to victims of modern slavery; and the
• investigation and prosecution of perpetrators of modern slavery offences.

The Independent Commissioner is supported by a small independent team. The team works collaboratively with the modern slavery ‘sector’ and key stakeholders (charities, the Home Office and other government departments, other public and local authorities, businesses, and international partners) to promote best practice in these areas.

Job description

This is a particularly exciting time to join us, following the December 2023 appointment of Eleanor Lyons to the post of Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, as the commissioner’s office establishes its new team, sets out and delivers its Strategic Plan for 2024-2026. The role will evolve as the team is embedded but broadly responsibilities will be as follows:

Communications

• Manage the IASC's media relations, including developing and implementing creative media strategies and a forward-looking grid.
• Respond to incoming media enquiries, ensuring timely delivery of statements and responses on behalf of the Commissioner and working to shape breaking news stories where necessary.
• Provide written and verbal briefings to the Commissioner ahead of all media interviews and appearances, ensuring they are aware of reactive issues and breaking news stories.
• Arrange and attend media interviews and broadcast rounds with the Commissioner.
• Overall responsibility for maintenance of the comms grid, working with the policy and research teams to plot publications, blogs and social media content against the wider media and political landscape, ensuring everything the IASC does relates back to her strategic priorities.
• Track coverage and produce regular coverage reports detailing relevant mentions of the Commissioner and the office’s work in media articles. Provide updates on wider coverage of modern slavery and human trafficking across media outlets.
• Manage the Commissioner’s social media accounts and website, creating and sharing creative content including infographics, videos, and photography to engage audiences.
• Build and maintain relationships with print and broadcast journalists across national, regional and trade publications.
• Deliver high-quality written materials including press releases, op-eds, and speeches for the Commissioner.

Stakeholders

• Provide communications advice and guidance to the Commissioner and wider team and develop the office’s stakeholder engagement plan.
• Maintain relationships with stakeholders and ensure regular communication with them sector to share and be the voice of IASC office in meetings. Convening and co-ordinating across stakeholders to make sure that there is regular engagement and communication to deliver the office’s work. Proactively reach out to stakeholders to understand and keep up-to-date with their work.
• Map and keep stakeholder engagement up-to-date across the office, including with Parliamentarians in areas of policy interest and manage reactive and proactive correspondence.

Further information

• Whilst the independence of the IASC is critical to this role, as the IASC is not a separate legal entity, you will be employed by the Home Office, on Home Office terms and conditions and benefits. However, your role and tasking will be set by the Commissioner and their Chief of Staff.
• Some travel across the UK may be required, in support of engagements the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner may have in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Important information 

• This post is being offered on a fixed term/loan basis for up to 21 months, with the possibility of extension to complete a finite piece of work. 

The current expectation is that an internal HO candidate applying for a loan position would take up the post on Detached Duty and return to their original post, if available, at the end of the period or a similar grade within their home business area. 

 Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs).

Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.

• Due to the nature of the role, this post is available on a full-time basis only and with the possibility of flexible working/compressed hours.

• 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

The Communications and Stakeholder Manager is a critical post within the IASC office and provides confidential comprehensive media relations support to the IASC enabling the IASC to fulfil their role. The post holder is required to be driven, forward thinking and able to communicate across the breadth of the key stakeholder groups.

Essential criteria

• Communicating and influencing: Strong communication, negotiating, influencing and interpersonal skills to form effective relationships across Government and statutory bodies, as well as journalists. Experience of working in a media relations or communications role, and understanding of how to develop media strategies in different environments. Excellent and proven written and verbal briefing skills.
• Delivering at pace: Ability to work at pace, prioritising different priorities and deadlines.
• Seeing the Big Picture: Strong political awareness, and experience of working in a complex, political environment.

Desirable criteria 

• Experience and/or understanding of working with vulnerable individuals or in the modern slavery space.
• Existing positive working relationships with press and journalists in the Home Affairs sector.

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 and Experience.

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

• a CV detailing job history/qualifications - setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role, including details where budgets and numbers of people managed, relevant achievements in recent posts. Your CV will not be scored, but instead will be used to provide further context on your personal statement, and support conversations at interview.

•  a statement of suitability/personal statement (maximum 750 words), which should demonstrate your skills and experience for the role and how you meet the essential criteria as detailed in the job description, other than Communicating and Influencing (which will be assessed separately). It is essential that in your written application you give evidence, using examples, of proven experience. These responses will be developed and discussed with candidates invited for interview.

Click Here for guidance on how to construct your personal Statement.

• evidence of the behaviour Communicating and Influencing (250 words maximum).

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

We expect to hold the sift on the statement of suitability and the civil service behaviour: Communicating and Influencing. However, in the event a high volume of applications are received, the sift may be carried out just on the lead civil service behaviour: Communicating and Influencing.

 If you are successful at sift stage, you will be invited to an interview which will be behaviour-based questions on all those listed.

Sift and interview dates

The sift is expected to take place from 28th May 2024

Interviews are expected to take place from week commencing 10th June 2024.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert, however on occasions these dates may change. 

Interviews will be carried out via video.  

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 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.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting

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

A reserve list may be held for a period up to 12 months from which further appointment may be made.

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.

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.