About the job

Job summary

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) are the public sector’s property valuation experts and advisers. We are one of the largest employers of surveyors in the country offering access to a whole host of learning and development opportunities to support your career development.

We’re looking for talented people who are eager to contribute to vital public services and assist us to deliver taxation and benefits support to the government and local authorities. Your skills and experience will enable us to provide an efficient, effective service right at the heart of the public interest.

At the heart of the agency, we are committed to providing our people with a work environment which is accommodating and accessible to all and which values diversity and inclusion in everything we do.  We encourage our people to bring their whole selves to work by providing a culture that values different perspectives to help tackle complex problems, promote innovation and deliver stronger decision making in a safe and supportive environment. We therefore welcome applicants from a diverse range of backgrounds to join our organisation and enable us to be representative of the communities we serve.

Our people have the freedom to manage their own diaries and are empowered to deliver under their own autonomy. We trust our people and look forward to welcoming your skills into the VOA community.

Job description

Department For Education Sector Head – Role Overview

District Valuer Service (DVS) provide professional property advice across the public sector, including private and third sector clients involved in delivering public services and functions of a public nature. Our clients include the Central, Regional, Local and Devolved Government, Health, Transport & Infrastructure and the Environment.

As a Sector Head, initially for the Department for Education (DfE) Project and thereafter for wider sectors across DVS the role holder will co-ordinate and lead across DVS and play an active role in both the DVS senior leadership team and the senior leadership community across the VOA.

DVS is the business stream tasked with providing a range of statutory and non-statutory functions, these are:

• Provision of advice on valuations and apportionments for national taxation purposes.
• Provision of valuations and property advice for Other Public Bodies (OPBs) to support their implementation of a wide range of regulatory and legislative functions.
• The delivery of government policies and estate strategies in situations where there is a property requirement related to the exercising of a public function and / or public money is involved.
• This majority of the work is untied and undertaken on a contractual ‘earned funding’ full cost recovery charging basis, some is fix funded.

Department For Education Sector Head – Key responsibilities

• Oversee high profile, complex, and contentious work ensuring considerations VOA reputation, while implementing appropriate assurance steps. Apply advanced analytical skills to effectively resolve these most complex and sensitive issues.
• Provide programme management, delivering large scale asset valuations with large portfolio values, produced on time and within budget.
• Responsible for the overall management of Net Capacity Assessment Programme for DFE.
• Providing strong leadership on operational delivery, ensuring successful delivery of Key Performance Indicators to ensure value for money is delivered.
• To co-ordinate with other Sector Heads in DVS, ensuring work is delivered to agreed budgets with full cost recovery.
• Ensure quality of outputs and compliance with Valuation Integrity requirements.
• To offer advice on Agency policy implementation, including escalating key issues as part of the DVS Senior Management Team.
• Planning for resource deployment within client budgets together with pipeline planning for work alongside Unit Heads to ensure delivery of annual income target, DVS income and cost contribution.
• To develop and maintain client liaison, delivery strategy and effective processes with clients agreeing the terms of the Service Level Agreements (SLA's) including timeliness, budgetary and quality standards.
• Build and maintain strong collaborative working relationships, whilst demonstrating adaptability within SLA’s.
• Oversee line management responsibilities ensuring effective performance management, team skills development and ensuring effective succession/knowledge planning, whilst also providing regular coaching and development discussions with direct reports, putting in place and actively managing their development plans.
• Act as a mentor/sponsor, making sure leaders and specialists use their experience, skills, and expertise to develop their teams.
• Effectively maintain own caseload dealing with complex cases, provide strategic and high-level technical advice and assist others with peer reviews to ensure appropriate quality standards are met.
• Be a visible and active member of the DVS Senior Management Team, Chief Valuer Group (CVG) and wider Corporate Leadership Community contributing to the strategic objectives of the team, including embedding VOA vision and values.

Person specification

Our Department of Education Sector Head will be a strong leader with extensive knowledge of, and practical experience in operational delivery experience and people management. They will work proactively to address risks and issues including escalation and litigation cases by understanding underlying causes before providing solutions. They will have the ability to inspire and motivate the team to deliver its objectives and continuously improve individual and business performance. They will maintain strong stakeholder management, effectively resolving potentially competing requirements. The ideal candidate will maintain a deep understanding and awareness of the external market activity and the political environment when thinking through the impact of decisions and outcomes and keeping up to date with relevant legislation.

 Essential Criteria

• Full RICS Surveying Qualification.
• Strong leadership ability developed through extensive operational delivery experience and people management able to develop and motivate the team to meet objectives.
• The ability to deliver against operational delivery targets.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, including high levels of negotiating, consulting, and interpersonal skills to achieve co-operation over mutually acceptable solutions.
• Experience of overseeing quality assurance processes, design, and delivery of training.
• Proven track record of managing large scale programmes for public sector contracts.
• An extensive valuation knowledge and legislative knowledge which you proactively keep up-to-date and use to provide advice and guidance to your team.
• Wide political and legislative awareness and the aptitude to grasp how this impacts valuation.
• Hold a full UK driving licence.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £67,238, Valuation Office Agency contributes £18,154 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 Experience.

If you can meet our person requirements above we are keen to hear from you.

To apply for this post, you must complete an online application with the following:

A CV setting out your Job History, Full Qualifications, Previous Skills and Experiences.

A Personal Statement - In no more than 1000 words, please outline your suitability for the role. Please ensure that you pay particular attention to the Person Specification and Essential Criteria outlined in the advert when providing your answer.

Sift - From 05 - 08 March 2024. Please note these dates are provisional and may be subject to change.

We will assess you on your CV, Personal Statement, Qualifications, Memberships and a full UK driving licence.

If successful at sift stage you will be invited to take part in a Staff Engagement Exercise on 09 April 2024 . This will take place virtually.

Interviews - 22 April 2024. Please note these dates are provisional and may be subject to change. These will be confirmed should you be invited to interview.

Interviews are currently taking place using Microsoft Teams Video. We will provide more detail if you are shortlisted for interview. 

We will assess you on the Behaviours listed in the job description and a Presentation. 

At the interview, the panel can then probe further and ask applicants to provide further specific examples that show how they best demonstrate their skills.

Behaviours

The distinguishing Behaviours (the required skills, knowledge and behaviours) for this role are set out in the Civil Service Behaviours Framework 2018 (Success Profiles - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)) and should be referred to when making this application.

You are required, under the Behaviours approach, to describe how you have dealt with a specific situation.

You must give evidence of your knowledge, skills and behaviours and how you have applied this, such as what you did or said and how you interacted with other people.

When you are giving your examples, do not spend too many words on description and background information. Avoid using general or unspecific statements. Instead say what the situation was, what you did what your thought process was and so on.

Presentation

You will also be required to conduct a presentation. Information on the presentation topic will be provided to you if you are shortlisted for interview.

Further Information

As part of the application process you will be asked to tell us which of the locations available, you can work in. You will be able to specify up to 2 options.

Driving Licence

Some sites are difficult to access via public transport and therefore a full UK Driving Licence is essential to the role. However, if you are considered disabled under the Equality Act 2010 and do not hold a full driving licence, we will consider your application. Please contact resourcingteam@voa.gov.uk with your details to discuss this further.

Any move to VOA 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

VOA employees only:  If you are currently in receipt of DTA as a result of a VOA office closure/restructure and it is agreed for you to take up this role in your current location, you may continue to receive DTA for the remainder of the period you can claim for.  Please check with the Vacancy Holder on preferred locations for this role before you apply.

The VOA is an office-based organisation, however as all of our roles have aspects which can be completed from home, all colleagues have the ability to work a hybrid working pattern. The amount that colleagues work from home or office is defined by several factors including the nature of the work they carry out, the needs of their stakeholders, their development needs and personal circumstances such as caring responsibilities. To learn more about the hybrid working arrangements that could be available in this role, please contact the vacancy holder.

Pre-employment Checks

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to either the Disclosure and Barring Service or 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.

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.

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

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 voarecruitment.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 an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Terms & Conditions - Voluntary terms apply.

Reserve Lists

If we have more successful candidates than available vacancies, we will hold a 6-month reserve list as standard. 

During that time, we may use the list to fill the same, or similar roles with closely matching essential criteria, without further testing of merit. Any appointments from the Reserve list will be made in strict merit order.

Starting Work

The successful candidate will normally take up duty within one month from notification of successful completion of pre-employment checks.

Applying

All applications for these vacancies must be made online. There are limited exceptions to this. Paper applications will only be considered if you have a disability that will prevent you from applying online. If this is the case, please email voarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Once you have submitted your application it cannot be amended; only submit your application when you have completely finished and answered all the relevant questions.

Please note that late applications will not be accepted.

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

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

Concerns/Complaints

The Valuation Office Agency’s recruitment processes are underpinned by the Civil Service Commissioner’s Recruitment Principles, which outlines that selection for appointment is made on merit based on fair and open competition.
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the values in the Civil Service Code and/or if you feel the recruitment has been conducted in such a way that conflicts with the Civil Service Commissioner’s Recruitment Principles, you may make a complaint, by contacting the Central Recruitment Team at the following address: resourcingteam@voa.gov.uk

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint you have the right to complain to the Civil Service Commissioners.

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.