About the job

Job summary

Please refer to job description.

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 – Public Sector Prisons

Grade    SEO

Number of Vacancies    1

Business Group    FBP Group

Directorate    COO

Location    HM Prison Long Lartin, WR11 5TZ,  and HM Prison Wakefield, WF2 9AG

Requirement of a minimum two visits per month to both establishments. Travel to other national meetings is expected on an ad-hoc basis, locations do vary around the country. 

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 SEO, Finance Business Partnering role available within the Finance Business Partnering Group supporting Public Sector Prisons within the Long-Term High Security Group.

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 flexible but there is a requirement to regularly visit the prisons in person and attend scheduled meetings. 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 support the Governor and their teams in these prisons as well as working flexibly across the region as required. (http://www.justice.gov.uk)

Role Summary

As a Finance Business Partner, you will need to understand the prison business area that you support and the way they operate in a prison environment. You will build trust with decision makers so that your advice is actively sought.

You will be the financial advisor to a range of operational colleagues. You will need a clear understanding of the financial management arrangements of the MoJ – from budget setting to in year control and support to the financial accounts as necessary. You may be required to help develop business cases or to help demonstrate value for money. At all times you will be upholding the integrity of financial management in the public sector and the need to ensure value for money for the taxpayer.

You will have a level of authority and respect to proactively influence decision making and help drive continuous improvement. You will be a trusted adviser to stakeholders, providing support and independent challenge.

This role will build on your experience of finance fundamentals and provide the opportunity to help in managing finances within Public Sector Prisons.

National Security Clearance will be required via a Counter Terrorist Check level in addition to normal recruitment clearance. This is due to working in High Security Prisons.

Typical Role Responsibilities

SEO FBPs are developing expertise and responsible for building strong relationships and understanding the business within a directorate or possibly supporting a lower risk Director led unit. They aim to communicate financial data and other information clearly and provide valuable financial advice, challenge and support, strategic insight, and business solutions.

Specific duties may include:

• 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 staff with the required skills and / or experience from within or outside Finance.

Within Finance 

This role may be suitable for Finance individuals at HEO or SEO with the required influencing and interpersonal skills.

From Outside Finance

This role may be suitable for HEOs and SEOs with the required data analysis, influencing, stakeholder management and numeracy skills and who are interested in joining the Finance function.

Progression Routes

Staff in this role typically transfer to Management Reporting SEO, Financial Accounting and Reporting SEO or Business Support SEO roles, or progress to Financial Business Partnering G7, Management Reporting G7 or Financial Accounting and Reporting G7 roles.

Role Responsibilities/Tasks

• Developing an understanding of the business, its stakeholders, and deliverables
• Building and maintaining relationships with customer budget holders
• Providing advice on compliance with policy, standards, accountabilities, and controls
• Translating, owning, and adding insight to financial data to provide clear information and evidence to support business activities and requirements
• Providing guidance at appropriate level budget holder meetings and boards
• Reviewing and providing input to business cases/ strategic documentation
• Identifying and applying relevant costs, benefits, and investment appraisal techniques
• Providing relevant coaching and training to the business
• Providing ad-hoc analysis and presentations to drive and support business decisions, such as efficiency and cost reduction options, using all available data and analytics tools

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
• Making Effective Decisions

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, please provide:

• A Statement of Suitability consisting of a maximum of 500 words.
• Work History.

Interpersonal Skills

• Possesses emotional intelligence and can 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:

• Part Qualified with CCAB, CIMAor equivalent
• Working towards qualification. Support to achieving full qualification may be provided through the Apprenticeship Scheme.

In addition to salary, a pensionable, non-contractual specialist allowance will be applied to this role. Specialist allowances apply to certain roles only, are non-transferable to other roles and are subject to annual review.

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.

Regular travel to and from prison sites will be required (typically 2 days per week). These sites are Wakefield Prison and Long Lartin Prison (see post codes above). It is therefore expected that the successful candidate lives within a reasonable distance of these sites. 

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 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, which includes the behaviours, work experience, and a statement of suitability. 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. 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.

Interview dates: Expected end of April

For further information please feel free to contact Jocelyne.poole@justice.gov.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, Experience and Technical skills.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. 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.