About the job

Job summary

This position is based nationally.

Job description

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.

Job Title/ Position        Finance Business Partner – Reducing Reoffending 
Grade    SEO
Number of Vacancies    1
Business Group    FBP Group 
Directorate    COO
Location    National
Hours    37
Post Type     Permanent
Role Type/ Team    Finance

Ministry of Justice an Inclusive Employer

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer of choice and ensuring equity of opportunity for all. We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring in terms of their culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

Overview

The Ministry of Justice is responsible for the provision of legal aid, administration of justice through courts and tribunals, and detention and rehabilitation of offenders.  Within the MoJ you will provide Finance Business Partnering to senior business leaders responsible for delivery of prison services in England.  Our business colleagues operating within Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (an Agency within the MoJ), are highly committed professionals who seek to protect the public and rehabilitate offenders.

More information can be found at: www.justice.gov.uk

There is one 1 FTE SEO, Finance Business Partnering role available within the Finance Business Partnering Group supporting Reducing Reoffending.

As a Finance Business Partner, you will be a key member of the finance team, working with other members of the team, wider MoJ Finance colleagues and key stakeholder from the Business Area we support. The finance team is geographically dispersed.

Post location is National with some travel required to meet stakeholders. Successful candidates will be allocated a base location within the region and the expectation is that candidates will fund travel costs to and from that base location.

You will provide support to the Reducing Reoffending Directorate, which supports central operations.

You will support Programme teams across Reducing Reoffending as well as working flexibly to support the Lead Finance Business Partner as required.

Role Summary 

Finance Business Partnering SEOs are responsible for building strong relationships with their directorate, understanding the business, and explaining financial information for budget holders in an understandable manner.

Typical Role Responsibilities 

The job holder will be required to undertake the following duties and responsibilities;

•    Budget management – work with budget holders to develop robust budget plans and monitor delivery
•    Risks and issues – identify and monitor budget risks and opportunities, supporting stakeholders to develop mitigating actions
•    Reporting – to be able to translate financial information to non-finance stakeholders, providing the narrative behind the numbers to influence decision making
•    Governance – understand and be able to advise on governance and compliance issues

Entry Routes 
Suitable for individuals with the required skills and / or experience from within or outside Finance.
If you are already working within a finance function this role may be suitable for you if you have the required influencing and interpersonal skills.
(If you are already working in the civil service this role may be suitable for Finance individuals in the at HEO or SEO).

If you are working outside of Finance this role may be suitable for you if you hold the required data analysis, influencing, stakeholder management and numeracy skills and are interested in joining the Finance function

Progression Routes

Individuals in this role typically transfer within the civil service to other Senior Executive Office roles (SEO) such as Finance Business Partner roles, Management Reporting, Financial Accounting and Reporting or Business Support roles, or progress to the next level within the organisational structure (Grade 7) within these or similar functions.

Role Responsibilities/Tasks 

Stakeholder engagement    Develop and maintain strong partnerships with key stakeholders. Help improve their financial awareness and provide accurate and credible advice on financial management and wider governance issues. Actively contribute at business meetings and be proactive in looking for efficiency. 

Financial management    Co-ordinate your business area’s annual financial planning activity and provide information and advice to support effective financial control in year. Present and explain financial information clearly and offer advice to inform decision making. Understand the cost drivers of the business and carry out analysis of information to improve efficiency and understanding. 

Service Delivery    Deliver high quality outcomes to meet stakeholder needs and give value for money. Identify risks and resolve issues efficiently 

Critical Friend to the business    You will feel confident to challenge business colleagues on their spending plans and keep a focus on outcomes and business priorities. Give advice to support decision making, encouraging options analysis and appropriate governance. Use your insight to add value.

Behaviours Required 

Success Profiles will enable a fairer and more inclusive method of recruitment by enabling us to assess the range of experiences, abilities, strengths, behaviours, and technical/professional skills required for different roles. This flexible approach to recruitment focuses more on finding the right candidate for the specific role. To find out more about Success Profiles to support your application please click here for further guidance.

•    Communicating and Influencing
•    Working Together
•    Managing a Quality Service

Please refer to the Civil Service Behaviours Framework, which can be found here, to complete this application: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

If we receive a large volume of applications, we reserve the right to conduct the sift based on one lead behaviour. The chosen lead behaviour for this campaign is Communicating and Influencing

In addition to Civil Service Behaviours identified above, if you will be using Experience, Ability or Technical standards to assess the candidate please provide further details below:

•    A Statement of Suitability is required consisting of a maximum of 500 words.
•    Work History
Interpersonal Skills 
•    Possesses emotional intelligence and has the ability to think empathetically, considering the strategic goals of others.
•    Fosters a culture of knowledge sharing and collaboration between the business, finance and other corporate services.
•    Can tailor their communication style to a range of audiences, including internal and external stakeholders.
•    Uses facts and evidence to aid negotiation and influencing.
•    Helps others to understand the interdependencies between business and finance.
•    Proactive and passionate, inspiring others to continuously improve.
•    Ability to "speak the language" of finance to business, and vice versa, acting as the critical translator between the two.

Professional Skills 

Key for Levels of Professional Skills

•    A = Awareness
•    W = Working
•    P = Practitioner
•    E = Expert

Core    Level

Budgeting, forecasting and costing    P
The Budgeting Framework    W
Commercial acumen    W
Investment appraisal and evaluation    W
Strategic analysis and insight    A
Oral and written presentation skills    E
Performance and risks    W
Data and analytics interpretation    P
Useful    Level
Taxation    A
Interpretation of accounts    A
Government financial reporting    A
Supporting the PAC agenda    A
Understanding the role of the NAO    A
Risk management and fraud    A

Qualifications 

Recommended:
•    Qualified under one of the main five Consultative Committees of Accounting Bodies [CCAB] i.e., ACCA; CIPFA; ICAEW; ICAI or ICAS, or CIMA.
•    We also welcome applications from individuals working towards qualification.  Support to achieving full qualification may be provided through the Apprenticeship Scheme.

Travel
The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working.  Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

Some travel may be required to meet stakeholders.

A base location near or within the region will be allocated to the successful candidate. The post holder is expected to meet their own travel costs to and from their base location. If required to attend a location other than their base location, post-holders may be entitled to claim some or all of any extra expense (beyond the usual base location travel costs) in line with the T&S policy.

The successful candidate will be appointed to either one of the locations specified in the advert or, if nearer to their home, an alternative MoJ office location in the region which may include their nearest Justice Collaboration Centre or Justice Satellite Office. This will be discussed and agreed upon completion of pre-employment checks.

Application Process

To apply please complete the online application form. Applications will be sifted by a panel who will look at the Civil Service Behaviour framework and what is evidenced in your application. Should many applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead behaviour, communicating and influencing.
Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview. Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the essential role requirements within the application behaviour responses.  
Candidates who are successful following the sift process will be invited to interview, where the behavioural elements and strengths will be tested further alongside other elements of the post. A short presentation will also be required if progressed through to interview stage. Further details will be provided to shortlisted candidates in advance of the interviews.

Training 

The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Networks 

The opportunity to join employee run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

For further information please feel free to contact (Matthew Lewis – Matthew.lewis1@justice.org.uk) 

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £39,868, Ministry of Justice contributes £10,804 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 and Experience.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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.