About the job

Job summary

Immigration Enforcement is responsible for enforcing the government’s immigration laws, tackling illegal migration, removing foreign national offenders and immigration offenders from the UK. It also aims to disrupt the organised criminal groups that exploit the vulnerable for their personal gain. 

Learn more on the Immigration Enforcement careers page.

Job description

Immigration Enforcement prides itself on being an open and supportive workplace. We actively embrace diversity and promote equality of opportunity, to enable us to reflect the communities that we serve. We provide people with the opportunity to work at pace and deliver in stretching roles. You will learn a lot in your day to day work – but we also provide excellent wider learning and development opportunities.

This is an exciting opportunity for the right candidate to develop and embed a wide range of people and engagement skills within a high performing team, delivering what is required to continue to make the team a great place to work and to support staff and senior managers in delivery.

This is a busy role in a high profile and high tempo work area which supports a key piece of operational activity within International & Returns Services Command (IRSC), part of Returns & Detention Operations in Immigration Enforcement.

IRSC was formed in 2023 bringing together Returns Logistics Operations, Escorting Services and Detention Progression and Returns. These teams are at the heart of Immigration Enforcement’s operational activity to deliver the return of Foreign National Offenders and those with no leave to be in the United Kingdom. Returns Logistics Operations (RLO) is at the heart of Immigration Enforcement’s operational activity to coordinate the return of Foreign National Offenders and those with no leave to be in the United Kingdom.

Returns Logistics Operations is at the heart of Immigration Enforcement’s operational activity to coordinate the return of Foreign National Offenders and those with no leave to be in the United Kingdom.

Teams across RLO are responsible for international engagement, procuring travel documentation, managing and developing returns arrangements with receiving countries, coordinating returns charter flight operations, managing the ticketing contract for all returns on commercial flights, engaging with returns partners across the world and operational teams at key airports to engage with airlines and facilitate the final stage of the returns process.

It is a fast-paced area of Immigration Enforcement that is under constant scrutiny. RLO’s work directly supports two of IE’s operational priorities:

• Tackle Foreign National Offenders, deporting criminals, both during and at the end of their sentences
• Maximise the overall numbers of returns of those with no leave to be here using voluntary returns as the desired outcome, with detention and enforced removal only for those for whom we are confident other approaches to return will not work.

The Charter team is responsible for the planning, procurement and operation of the Home Office charter removals programme, which has been in operation since 2001. This is a high-profile area of returns work; our charters have featured in the national media and television documentaries and are often on the agenda at the highest levels of government.

The Operational Support Administrators plays a key role in supporting and delivering Immigration Enforcement’s charter returns activity.

They will work closely with colleagues across the business and externally, ensuring that charter activity delivers operational value for Immigration Enforcement.

Please Note: You will be based in Croydon with the potential for some travel required.

Person specification

Responsibilities to include but are not limited to:

• Sending acknowledgements to case owners and maintaining accurate manifest information thereafter.
• Produce travel documentation in the form of UKL for individuals on the charter manifest
• Update Atlas with relevant case details relating to the charter removal.
• Liaise with internal partners to obtain relevant paperwork ahead of charter flights.
• Ensuring that all charter administration is completed accurately to agreed timescales in accordance with checklists.
• Working closely with a range of internal and external corporate partners including Immigration Removal Centres, Detainee Escorting & Population Management Unit, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Operational Support and Certification Unit (OSCU) and Mitie Care & Custody to ensure the charter process runs smoothly.
• On flight day creating a pack of essential documentation for the Chief Immigration Officer (CIO) travelling on the flight, including travel documents, Facilitated Return Scheme packs, the manifest, passenger lists and OSCU letters maintaining removal.

Essential criteria

• Previous admin experience.
• Excellent communication and organisational skills, can work well with others at all levels in a busy environment.
• Flexible in taking on tasks as and when they arise so the ability to prioritise and work under pressure is essential.

Desirable criteria

• Previous immigration administration experience.

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%

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.

This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete: 

• A statement of suitability (personal statement) (maximum 500 words)
• Provide evidence of the behaviour - Delivering at Pace (maximum 250 words)

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

The statement of suitability should be aligned to demonstrate your skills and experience for the role and how you meet the essential criteria as detailed in the job description.

For guidance on how to construct your personal statement, you are encouraged to visit Civil Service Careers. Links – Statement

For guidance on how to construct your behaviour examples, you are encouraged to visit Civil Service Careers. Links –Behaviours

The sift will be held on the behaviour - Delivering at Pace and the statement of suitability (personal statement). 

The statement of suitability will be scored first for all candidates. Those candidates who achieve the minimum pass score for the statement of suitability, will progress to a further sift where the lead behaviour (Delivering at Pace) will be scored. These candidates will therefore receive a sift score for both elements. Candidates who fail to meet the minimum pass score for the statement of suitability will not have their lead behaviour scored and will therefore only receive a sift score for the statement of suitability.

However, if a large number of applications are received, the sift will be conducted on the statement of suitability (personal statement) only. 

If you are successful at sift stage, you will be invited to an interview which will be a blended approach of strength-based questions and behaviour-based questions. 

Strengths are the things that you do regularly, do well and that motivate you. To find out more about strength based questions click here

Sift and Interview dates

Sift is expected to take place week commencing 29th January 2024.

Interviews are expected to take place week commencing 19th February 2024.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert, however on occasions these dates may change. 

Interviews will be carried out via video. Candidates will be required to have access to:

• A laptop (personal or work) with a working webcam
• Good internet connection
• Microsoft Teams

Further Information

Note for Candidates

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

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. All applications are screened for plagiarism and copying of examples/answers from internet sources. If any is detected the application will be withdrawn from the process. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving internal candidates. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants. 

If you are currently an agency member of staff working within the Home Office, a contractor or contingent worker you can only apply for roles that are advertised externally, i.e. outside the civil service. If you are eligible to apply for a role, you are required to select yourself as an external applicant and not internal when submitting your application on Civil Service jobs. This will prevent any delays in pre-employment checks should you become successful in being made an offer of employment after the Interview stage.

Part Time Working

If you are considering applying for part time hours, please contact horcbandenational@homeoffice.gov.uk to discuss your request as not all working patterns may be accommodated.

Flexible working

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working.  This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estates capacity, by Spring 2024.  Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details).

Every day, Home Office civil servants do brilliant work to develop and deliver policies and services that affect the lives of people across the country and beyond. To do this effectively and fairly, the Home Office is committed to representing modern Britain in all its diversity, and creating a welcoming, inclusive workplace where all our people are able to bring their whole selves to work and perform at their best.

We are flexible, skilled, professional and diverse. We work to recruit and retain disabled staff and area Disability Confident Leader. We are proud to be one of the most ethnically 

diverse departments in the civil service. We are a Social Mobility Foundation top 75 employer.

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 had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

For further information please see the attached notes for candidates which must be read before making an application.

Existing Civil Servants should note that some of the Home Office terms and conditions of employment have changed. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the Terms and Conditions they will adopt should they be successful in application and should refer to the notes for candidates for further details.

Transfer Terms: Voluntary.

If you are invited to an interview you will be required to  bring a range of documentation for the purposes of establishing identity and to aid any pre-employment checks.

Please see the attached list of Home Office acceptable ID documents.

Any move to the Home Office 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 https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk 

Reasonable Adjustments

If a person with disabilities is 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 HOrecruitment.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

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

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

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. 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.