About the job

Job summary

We are looking for an ambitious and proven communications professional to join our local communications team covering the North of England supporting Defra Arms Length Bodies. Responsibilities will include planning, delivering and evaluating communications activity to help the Environment Agency and Natural England deliver organisational priorities, including responding to incidents such as flooding when they occur.

This is a varied and exciting role, with a strong focus on media management and bringing the brilliant work of the organisations that we work with work to life using the latest communications techniques and tools.

You will join a supportive and friendly team which is versatile and able to balance razor sharp incident response with long term communications programmes that build reputations and change behaviours – for example, encouraging people to prepare for flooding, access the countryside responsibly or report waste crime.

Key to this role is providing strategic and tactical advice on risks and opportunities to senior clients, including media management around highly sensitive issues and leading on the planning, delivery and evaluation of creative and ambitious communications initiatives.

While some travel is essential, we are able to keep this to a minimum.

Job description

• Act as strategic communications advisor to senior local leadership teams, providing trusted communications advice and acting as a single point of contact into the wider Defra communications team
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with local and regional media and with communications teams from partner organisations
• Manage reputation risks around highly sensitive and contentious issues
• Play an active role in incident communications response for all organisations within the Defra group including providing external communications advice and support to senior management and ensuring partners and the public receive up-to-date information
• Create, deliver and evaluate communications strategies that support the delivery of organisational objectives
• Support, train and provide professional advice to spokespeople and social media account holders

Person specification

Strong candidates for this role will have demonstrable experience of:

• Responding confidently to issues / incidents and providing sound professional advice to manage reputation among diverse audiences
• Significant experience of working with the media – both proactive and reactive
• Building and maintaining strong working relationships across an organisation
• Planning, delivering and evaluating communications campaigns or sustained communications activity
• Influencing at a senior level to achieve desired outcomes
• Working flexibly across a number of projects to ensure that long term goals are completed on time

Candidates will need to demonstrate significant experience in the following GCS disciplines:

• Press and Media

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £39,439, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs contributes £10,648 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, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills.

Application Process

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV, Personal Statement and a Civil Service Behaviour statement.

Please set out in no more than 500 words in your Personal Statement how your skills and experience will help you to be successful in the role.

Please complete a statement on the specified Behaviour (250 word max)

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

Sift

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead Behaviour: Delivering at Pace.

Sift and interview dates, as well as the interview location, to be confirmed.

Interview

If successful at application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed on Strengths, the following Civil Service Behaviours: Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing, and Making Effective Decisions; and the following Technical Skill: Press and Media. 

A presentation or additional exercise may also be assessed.

Location

Please be aware that this role(s) will be contractually based in a Defra group workplace/office. The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location, and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time.

Internal (core Defra) employees can apply for this role and choose to remain in their current location or to be based in one of the advertised locations.

All other applicants will be based in one of the advertised locations. Our current office attendance approach requires 60% attendance in Defra group workplaces or off site meetings with partners and customers. This balance provides thriving workplaces to connect with colleagues, as required by their role and business team needs balanced with personal flexibility and choice. 

Travel and subsistence will not be paid for travel to a base office location.

Reserve List

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

Merit Lists

Where more than one location is advertised, candidates will be posted in merit order by location. You will be asked to state your location preference on your application.

Salary

New entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. The internal roles rules apply to existing Civil Servants, i.e. level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.

Visa Sponsorship Statement

Please take note that Defra does not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship.

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 defrarecruitment.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

Accessibility

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

Criminal Record Check

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 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.

Internal Fraud Database Check

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.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

Loan and Fixed Term Appointments

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.

This is a Fixed Term Appointment as a Communications Manager in the Operational and Local Communications Team.

The post is not permanent. It is time limited due to a fixed funding period or as part of a specific project. The post will therefore begin from the candidate's start date and end on 31st March 2025. 

Childcare Vouchers 

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

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.