About the job

Job summary

As Area Coordinator for Leicester and Leicestershire, you will become an expert on economic growth in your local area and utilise in-depth knowledge of its politics, economy, challenges and opportunities. You will develop and hold productive working level relationships with local authority economic development officers, HE/FE and other institutions, local government associations, local business organisations and others.

You will use your detailed local knowledge to lead on high-quality briefing material tailored for a specific audience (usually Ministers and Senior Civil Servants) and to arrange and support ministerial and other visits. You will report on your local economy, developing a strong comprehension of economic trends and their impact on the area, and work with your team to produce analysis and recommendations for action. Working flexibly alongside other team members and depending on the needs of the team, your role may focus across the East Midlands at times. 
 
With about 5 million people, the East Midlands is at the heart of the country, covering Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Rutland – technically it covers Northamptonshire but we work with them from another part of the Unit! As well as being home to much of the Peak National Park and National Forest, we have sector specialisms, including advanced manufacturing, anchored by Derby's world-class advanced manufacturers; life sciences centres in Nottingham and Loughborough; space, including Leicester’s world-leading space cluster and agrifood in Lincolnshire. We are well-connected and had the second highest growth rate of any region between 2001-2020, but face challenges around skills, social mobility and areas of long-standing deprivation. The team works with a breadth of people and organisations to drive growth, improve lives and devolve power to the local level, as well as regenerate towns and high streets, and support policies ranging from freeports to business support to innovation. We also make sure voices from across our region are heard when decisions are taken by Government. 
 
You will need to be based in our Nottingham office. There is an expectation of at least 40% of time working in the office or visiting stakeholders in the Leicester and Leicestershire area under current hybrid working arrangements.  Whilst roles may occasionally involve out-of-hours working to accommodate travel and meetings, we work as a team to balance our diaries and our lives appropriately. We support flexible working. We would love to see applications from a diverse range of candidates to join our inclusive team. 

Job description

• Support Government’s relationships on local growth in your local area, including devolution, collaborating on economic development plans and supporting local authorities, universities, business groups and others in their interactions with central Government. 
• Lead on drafting high quality briefing for senior officers and Ministers and arrange and support ministerial and senior official visits to the area. 
• Lead on drafting and regularly updating a range of place-focussed core briefing products for the Leicester and Leicestershire area.
• Support your team to work with local partners to deliver funds including the £4.8bn Levelling Up Fund, UK Shared Prosperity Fund, UK Community Ownership Fund and Freeports.
• Build and maintain a day to day relationship with local authorities and other organisations in your area, developing an overview of local programme performance and working with Departmental colleagues on interventions should delivery issues be faced. 
• Deputise for your G7 representing Government at meetings.
• Prepare reports on your local economies, developing a strong understanding of economic trends and their impact.
• Use local knowledge and awareness of policy to draft well written pieces of correspondence on key issues in their area.
• Support a range of engagement by your team, including developing agendas and arrangements for meetings inside and outside HMG.
• Support the efficient running of the team by taking ownership for important corporate tasks including coordination of cross- cutting requests, compilation of risk registers, leading the team’s response on specific funds amongst other responsibilities.
• Be an active member of your team, promoting an inclusive atmosphere. 
• Be flexible to support other areas of the team as required.
  
  

Person specification

Personal Attributes & Skills

We would love to hear from you if:

• You are a motivated individual, who enjoys learning and self-development.
• You are able to build relationships with others.
• You have good organisational skills, able to work quickly and with attention to detail.
• You have good interpersonal and communication skills, both written and verbal.
• You have good critical thinking and reasoning skills.
• You work well in a team, being flexible and adaptable to support the wider team goals.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £32,858, Department for Business and Trade contributes £8,871 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.

Interviews for this vacancy will be conducted virtually. We will, however, consider in-person interviews by exception.

Please ensure that you check your emails regularly as all updates from us will be sent to you this way.

To apply for this post, you will be asked to complete the following as part of the online application:  

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Provide employment history that relates to the essential criteria, and that any gaps in employment history within the last 2 years are explained. The CV should not exceed more than 2 x A4 pages.
• A Personal Statement of up to 750 words, explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role in reference to the essential criteria.

It is likely that the sift will take place 1-2 weeks after the closing date and interviews 3-5 weeks after the closing date though this is subject to change.

In the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift will be conducted on the Personal Statement. We will also sift on the lead behaviour: Delivering at pace. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview. 

Reasonable Adjustments 

We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. This includes making reasonable adjustments to our process. In order to request an adjustment:  

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section on the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process.  

Alternatively contact the Government Recruitment Service at DBTrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.   

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

Candidate Support 

You may want to join a virtual Candidate Support Session. These sessions include helpful tips and advice on the recruitment process, from application to interview.   

Please see attached Candidate Pack for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department.  

Further Information: 

• A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Reserve Lists will be for each location and appointments made in merit order based on location preferences.    
• Any move to the Department for Business and Trade from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. 
• The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.   
• New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.   
• Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty. Any applicant who has details held on the IFD will be refused employment.    
• A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.   
• Terms and Conditions are attached.  Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.   
• Please note – the successful candidate will be expected to remain in post for a minimum of 18 months before being released for another role. 

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

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.