About the job

Job summary

AfC Band 6: £35,392 - £37,350

CS HEO: £30,473 - £37,215

About Us

We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.

UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.

Summary

The post holder will be part of the multi-disciplinary team providing the day-to-day health protection function, including the management of infectious and environmental hazards and supporting response to major incidents. 

The post is an entry level Health Protection development post and as such will develop specialist knowledge and skills to undertake case management, liaise with, and provide health protection advice and response across a range of partner organisations, professionals and the public.

The post holder will undergo a programme of on-going development and education to build on existing knowledge and develop skills to provide specialist health protection advice and meet competencies required to undertake the role.

Location

This role will be based in 23 Stephenson Street, Birmingham B2 4BH, with regular travel within the geographical area of responsibility and travel elsewhere/nationally as maybe required by the post.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) operates a hybrid working model where business needs allow.  This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata, averaged over a month) working at Birmingham office. For certain roles, some additional flexibility may be possible, which will be agreed upon with the hiring manager based on individual requirements and business needs. 

*Please be aware that this role can only be worked from within the UK and not overseas. Relocation expenses are not available.*  

Job description

Main Duties and Responsibilities: See attached job description and person specification for full details.

• Under supervision, contribute to the day to day running of the acute response function to ensure high quality, safe and effective delivery of the health protection service.
• Provide first point of contact for specialist knowledge, support and advice to health professionals on health protection matters.
• Undertake initial assessment and management of routine acute response work and non-complex incidents.
• Escalate and refer challenging or complex incidents and outbreaks of infectious diseases and non-infectious environmental hazards to senior manager as appropriate.
• Manage and carry out continuing responsibility for a caseload ensuring accurate, up to date records of contacts/action by completion of relevant records and compliance with team handover procedures, in line with UKHSA’s standards for record keeping.
• To utilise an evidence based approach to manage clinical/professional advice and discussions within the team, seeking senior advice as/when appropriate.
• Support and participate in the team’s formal case review process.
• Contribute to and where required lead under supervision the ongoing longer term management of issues relevant to a defined geographical area.
• Contribute to the UKHSA response during incidents in line with UKHSAs Emergency Planning and Resilience Response (EPRR) arrangements as part of the region’s responsibilities under the Civil Contingencies Act.
• May be required to participate in a local on call rota at regional level as required.

The above is extracted from the Job Description; please refer to the job description for full details of the role.

Person specification

It is important through your application and Statement of Suitability of 1,000 words (max) that you give evidence and examples of proven experience of each of the following criteria:

Essential criteria

• Registered General Nurse or Allied Health Professional in relevant clinical discipline with current professional registration e.g. NMC
• Working towards registration with an appropriate health or science related professional body
• Post registration experience as a practitioner in a related field
• An understanding of and ability to work under the current Health and Social Care Act (e.g. safe guarding vulnerable adults; data protection, information governance)
• Proven experience in the establishment and maintenance of good relationships with managers, staff and external contracts
• Effective verbal and written communication skills including report writing and presentations
• Ability to work independently, manage and prioritise own workload and cope with competing demands
• Ability to problem solve whilst working in an unpredictable environment, often under pressure and to tight timescales
• Ability to analyse, interpret and relay information accurately
• Ability to analyse and interpret information in an effective manner to recommend  an appropriate course of action to address the issue(s)
• An awareness of Quality and Governance frameworks
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office including Word, and Excel
• Evidence of ongoing CPD and committed to self-development
• An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships, both in terms of day-to-day working practices, and in relation to management systems

Desirable criteria

• Professional Public Health qualification and registration e.g. Specialist Community Public Health (SCPHN) part of the NMC Register or UK PH Register for practitioners
• Recognised teaching qualification, e.g. ENB 998/PGCE or NVQ Level 4 Certificate in education or equivalent experience
• Recognised qualification in Infection Prevention and Control or demonstrable equivalent experience
• Experience of building and developing effective stakeholder relationships
• Experience of working in community settings and with health care providers
• Experience of risk management and associated reporting
• Knowledge of the principles of health protection
• Experience of supporting/assisting the development and delivery of presentations, training and/or education
• Understanding of public health law

 

 

Benefits

Working for the UKHSA

For more information on the UKHSA please visit: UK Health Security Agency - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%
• Range of health and wellbeing support

Any move to UKHSA 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 Childcare Choices , 30 Hours Free Childcare, Tax-Free Childcare and More , Help with Costs , GOV.UK

Things you need to know

Selection process details

STAGE 1 - APPLICATION & SIFT: 

You will be required to complete an application form and a statement of suitability. Your Statement of Suitability should outline your skills, experience, and achievements, providing evidence of your suitability for the role, against the essential criteria (outlined in the person specification section). Your Statement of Suitability must not exceed 1,000 words.

You will also be asked to provide information within the ‘Employer/ Activity history’ section of the application form. This is equivalent to the information you would provide on a CV, setting out your career history. The sift selection panel will only consider relevant career history information from the last 5 years.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to an interview.

STAGE 2 – INTERVIEW:

This competition will involve an interview in person

As part of the process, candidates will be invited to interview which will involve an in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Candidates might also be required to prepare and deliver a presentation to the panel. This will be followed by a question-and-answer segment. The presentation will be designed to assess each candidate’s experience in line with the requirements of the role. Full details will be provided prior to the interview.

Expected Timeline:

Advert close: 23:55hrs 29/02/2024 – unfortunately, late applications will not be considered. Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Interviews: TBC – week commencing 18/03/2024 – Interviews to be face to face at 23 Stephenson Street, Birmingham B2 4BH (Room TBC)

Please note these dates could be subject to change.  

Security clearance level requirement

Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.  Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Basic Personnel Security Standard.  People working with government assets must complete Basic Personnel Security Standard checks.

For posts on UKHSA Civil Service terms and conditions, new entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. For existing Civil Servants and roles advertised across government, the rules of transfer apply, i.e., level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive a 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest. 

Please Note

This role is to be appointed under Civil Service Terms & Conditions or NHS Terms & Conditions. Full details on the T&Cs are found https://www.ukhsa.reed.com/

Are you already a civil servant, or employed by a Civil Service Commission accredited public body? Please state home department on your application form.

Do you meet the nationality requirements for this post? https://www.ukhsa.reed.com/

The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: Complaints1@ukhsa.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website. 

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.