About the job

Job summary

The Department of Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) is the UK government department responsible for safeguarding our natural environment, supporting our world-leading food and farming industry, and sustaining a thriving rural economy. Our broad remit means we play a major role in people’s day-to-day life, from the food we eat, and the air we breathe, to the water we drink.

It’s an exciting time for Defra right now, and it’s a great time to be joining us, as we continue to transform and develop our unified HR function. Defra Group HR provides an expert service to Defra, the Environment Agency, the Rural Payments Agency, Natural England, and the Animal Plant and Health Agency.

As HR professionals, we’re committed to enabling our leaders across the Defra group to find ways to engage and motivate all employees to deliver their maximum performance and potential. This includes being dedicated to promoting equality, valuing diversity, and supporting everyone to be part of the team whatever their background and whoever they are.

We currently have two HR Business Partner opportunities supporting the Environment Agency. They are truly varied roles that will give you wide exposure across the full range of HR activities. These roles have a huge scope for development and sit at the heart of an inspiring organisation. They provide an opportunity to actively contribute to improving and protecting the environment, through the innovative and strategic work that you will enable in your role. So, if you are passionate about sustainable development, and creating better places for people and wildlife, this is an opportunity to integrate this with a passion for HR.

Job description

In this role you will be the HR Business Partner to leaders within the Environment Agency enabling them to deliver their operational business. You will deliver cross cutting Environment Agency people priorities and enable the progression of an ambitious Strategic Workforce Plan.

You will influence leadership teams on strategic people issues and enable the delivery of people solutions that address risk and enhance performance and business outcomes.

You will also influence and challenge to shape business direction and achieve outcomes, whilst acting as an intelligent customer into the wider HR function on behalf of the business.

You will work as part of an integral team of HR Business Partners with a strong and supportive teamwork ethic. We work together to provide a consistent, once only approach; reducing effort, increasing capacity and creating an efficient way of working.

What will you be doing?

• Partnering leaders in the Environment Agency; influencing and challenging to help shape business direction and achieve business outcomes.
• Supporting the business to devise strategies for a range of people focused activities including workforce planning, organisational design, resourcing, talent management, employee engagement and leadership development.
• Providing HR input into cross cutting strategic business projects.
• Using HR analytics and business insights, performance, and informal feedback to identify areas for improvement and address the relationship between employee engagement and business performance.
• Coaching business leaders to understand, assess, and improve the capability and capacity of their team.
• Acting as a change champion across departments and playing a critical role in the full change cycle, to help the business become increasingly agile, flexible, and responsive to changing priorities.
• Engaging as an integral member of the HR Business Partner team, taking the lead in agreed areas on behalf of the whole team.
• Acting as an interface with other HR Expert Services colleagues to commission needs-based solutions on behalf of the customer.
• Building relationships and forming alliances with internal and external practitioners and networks to scan for emerging trends, innovations, and current best practice in the HR sector. 

Person specification

Essential skills and experience:

• The ability to influence, challenge and partner at a leadership level.
• Curiosity and critical thinking skills.
• Strong analytical skills with an ability to translate and use complex and sensitive information to support business discussions and strategic direction.
• The ability to build trusted quality relationships with peers and leaders, establishing rapport and credibility, and acting as a critical friend.
• Being comfortable to be autonomous, agile, flexible, and manage competing priorities as needed. 
• The ability to work with ambiguity and comfortable with change.
• The ability to demonstrate a commitment to valuing and respecting the diversity of others.
• You will hold a CIPD qualification or have the equivalent skills and experience and the desire to work towards the qualification. You will demonstrate a commitment to Continuing Professional Development.
• We are looking to appoint people who can demonstrate strong resilience, emotional intelligence, and recognise their own emotions and those of others in order to help build trusted relationships.
• To ensure we are delivering an exemplar service, you will be focused, adaptable, and a committed team player, remaining flexible in order to meet competing priorities and the changing needs of the business.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £39,439, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs contributes £10,648 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.

Application Process

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV, Personal Statement and one Behaviour Statement.

Your Personal Statement (750 word max) should demonstrate your experience and skills in relation to the responsibilities and essential criteria detailed within the advertisement. 

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Sift

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the Personal Statement.

Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

Sifting is expected to commence on the week commencing the 1st January 2024.

Interviews are expected to take place in the week commencing the 15th January 2024.

This is subject to change.

Interview

If successful at application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed on Behaviours and Strengths.

Interviews are expected to last no longer than 60 minutes.

Interviews will be held via MS Teams.

Location

Please be aware that this role(s) will be contractually based in a Defra group workplace/office. The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location, and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time.

Internal (core Defra) employees can apply for this role and choose to remain in their current location or to be based in one of the advertised Defra hub locations. All other applicants will be based in one of the advertised Defra hub locations. Defra’s current policy is that no more than 40% of the working week should be spent at home, averaged over a month unless exceptional circumstances apply and/or the post-holder is a contractual home worker. Office attendance will enable candidates to connect with their colleagues, as required by their role and business team needs. Travel and subsistence will not be paid for travel to a base office location.

Reserve List

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Merit Lists 

Where more than one location is advertised, candidates will be posted in merit order by location. You will be asked to state your location preference on your application.

Contract Type

Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.

This role is Fixed term and not permanent. It is time limited due to a fixed funding period or as part of a specific project. The fixed term will end when the funding or the project expires. 

There is a possibility that the contract duration may be extended or that these roles may be made permanent in the future.

Salary

New entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. The internal roles rules apply to existing Civil Servants, i.e. level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.

Visa Sponsorship Statement

Please take note that Defra does not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship.

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

• Contact Government Recruitment Service via defrarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
• Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Accessibility

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

Criminal Record Check

If successful and transferring from another Government Department, a criminal record check maybe carried out.

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 circumstance 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-Employment.Checks@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Internal Fraud Database Check

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 had their employment continued. Any applicant’s 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.

Higher Security Clearance:

Please be aware the levels of national security clearance are changing which may impact on the level needed for this role by the time of appointment. All efforts will be made to keep candidates informed of any changes and what that will mean in terms of vetting criteria. For more information please See our vetting charter.

Job offers are made on the basis of merit. Security vetting will only take place after the receipt of a job offer.

If you are successful at interview, we will ask you to undertake basic security clearance before the role is confirmed. If you are based in London, we will need you to pass a higher level of clearance (CTC) because of the security requirements for the Marsham Street office.

Childcare Vouchers

Any move to Defra from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

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.