About the job

Job summary

House of Commons

The House of Commons is a unique and exciting place to work right at the heart of the UK's thriving democratic system. 

Behind the scenes, the House of Commons Service is made up of more than 3,000 employees who support and facilitate the smooth day to day running of the House. They provide professional services to Members of Parliament, their staff, and the wider parliamentary community.

Introduction 

The Customer Experience and Service Delivery team delivers integrated facilities management services to ensure a comfortable, safe, and efficient environment for MPs, their staff, and staff of the House to work in; as well as providing a welcoming and functional environment for all visitors to the House of Commons. 

Catering Services sits within the Customer Experience and Service Delivery team and are responsible for the efficient operation of the House of Commons catering facilities. Catering Services at the House of Commons promotes a culture that adheres to the highest ethical standards across all areas of our business.

Job description

This is a great opportunity for a customer focused individual to join a thriving team within a busy in-house corporate events operation, right in the heart of the Parliamentary community. We are all about embracing passion, energy, and teamwork to serve memorable moments for every one of our guests.

We are looking for an enthusiastic individual with previous experience organising personal and business-to-business events in a busy and ever-changing environment to provide exceptional care and give a polished and professional service, exceeding our customers’ needs and expectations. The successful candidate will handle events from start to finish, working with in-house stakeholders and external contractors, will be responsible for every part of the event planning process, such as understanding and translating customer requirements, approving menus, developing seating plans, and evaluating success afterward.

Some of the responsibilities for this role include:

• Act as first point of contact for customer enquiries, qualifying leads, and progressing clients through the sales process, ensuring a ‘best fit’ solution considering client requirements, venue optimisation, profitability, and available resources.
• Liaise with the client and other parties associated with a booking offering guidance and recommendations in all matters relating to our event services - including advice on facilities, House rules and regulations, catering services, menus, completion of required paperwork and additional services, upselling and maximising revenue where appropriate.
• Help manage a quality, pro-active and consistent customer experience. Positively influence customer’s perception of the House of Commons (including our brand reputation and values) by identifying and meeting customers’ needs and exceeding their expectations.
• Effective management of the events diary maximising utilisation of venues, minimising provisional holds, increasing overall revenue generating opportunities.

Person specification

To be successful in this role you will demonstrate:

• Experience of organising or managing successful events, in line with the objectives of a hospitality business in a diverse environment of customers and other stakeholders, demonstrating a positive suggestive sales approach. 
• Evidence of the ability to create and maintain positive, and effective working relationships with a wide range of customers and colleagues to illicit information and inform decisions whilst upholding the values of equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• Ability to work successfully within a team demonstrating a flexible approach; understanding team goals and objectives; offering help to team members when requested and being proactive at quiet times. 
• Experience of investigating issues, identifying, or developing options, and selecting solutions to problems which have occurred within a hospitality or other customer facing role.
• Evidence of the ability to prioritise tasks and a high level of organisation to enable collaborative working within a hospitality or other customer facing team. Able to respond to rapidly changing circumstances at short notice and demonstrate flexibility under pressure.

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

• Application Form - If you would like to apply for this role, please submit an application providing evidence against criteria 1-5 in the Job Description. 

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 undergo a criminal record check. 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

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission. 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.