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.

Please note that external candidates will be offered Fixed Term contracts until 31/03/2025 with the possibility of an extension (subject to funding), existing Civil Service employees will be onboarded on secondment terms and conditions.

Join over 79,000 staff at the Ministry of Justice and help us make a positive and meaningful impact to the lives of thousands of people and the environment.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is a major government department at the heart of the justice system where we work to protect and advance the principles of justice. The MoJ Property Directorate manages one of the most diverse and complex estates in Government – covering a property portfolio including Prisons, Probation centres and approved premises, courts as well as the offices of the HQ and Arms Length Bodies. The MoJ Property Directorate is a supportive, people-focused organisation that provides high quality, easy-to-use services for customers, and positive, collaborative working environments for staff.

In this role, you will be part of Property Directorate’s exciting new multi-disciplinary team - the Climate Change and Sustainability Unit (CCSU). Our mission is to develop, deliver and embed key MoJ and wider Government sustainability programmes throughout our entire estate. We aspire to be a sustainability leader within Whitehall, and to do this we are seeking passionate, motivated people to lead and deliver meaningful and impactful environmental outcomes nationally. This is a great opportunity to cultivate an interesting and rewarding career in environmental sustainability while working with a dynamic and supportive team.

The MoJ is continuously dedicated to building staff capability and promoting staff wellbeing, with aspirations to be the best that we can be as individuals and as a directorate. We offer a range of development opportunities including accredited training courses, a work-life balance that works for you, a generous pension and staff discount voucher schemes.

Role Overview

The focus of the role will be leading the delivery of sustainability work across Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) with a specific focus on Community Payback - an alternative to a prison sentence for people who have committed a crime.

The Ministry of Justice has a target of reducing its carbon emissions by 41% from a baseline of 2017/18 carbon emissions by 2025 under the Greening Government commitments and HMPPS has a significant contribution to make in delivering these reductions. HMPPS will also be contributing to other similar targets on waste and water. It is therefore important that HMPPS embeds environmental sustainability in everything we do.

The environmental impact of our probation work, in particular Community Payback (CP) is increasingly a focus of Government attention.  Some CP placements actively contribute to broader Government targets to reduce carbon emissions and support nature recovery.  

Within our prisons, we are looking for opportunities to improve our environmental performance whilst also creating opportunities for rehabilitation and for prisoners to develop skills which will help with getting employment on release. We want to integrate environmental projects between prisons and CP for example by identifying opportunities for CP to collaborate with nature-related projects   or using equipment made/repaired in our prison workshops.

If you are inspired by the extensive scope of this role, love working at pace across diverse teams, enjoy using innovations and your initiative to solve complex problems and have brilliant communication and persuasion skills - we want to hear from you.

Team Overview

You will be part of a lively and creative multidisciplinary team responsible for the delivery of key MoJ sustainability priorities. The MoJ intends to be a sustainability leader within Whitehall, and as such, seeks high performing and highly motivated individuals to inspire and deliver meaningful environmental improvements. We work collaboratively across our areas of expertise to deliver positive environmental outcomes across a large range of themes including:

• Meeting the Greening Government Commitment targets (GGC)
• Net zero
• Waste management and circular economy
• Water efficiency
• Sustainable construction
• Sustainable procurement
• Biodiversity protection and enhancement.

The Climate Change and Sustainability Unit is responsible for embedding environmental sustainability across MoJ, its agencies (including prisons, courts and probation centres) and its Arm’s Length Bodies. Sustainability needs to be embedded across the department’s policy making, operations, finance, governance, estates and commercial activity.

Job Description, Duties and Responsibilities

You will work with colleagues across HMPPS on all matters relating to climate change and sustainability. The tasks will range from training staff to identifying and communicating best practice. The role is for an initial fixed term until 31 March 2025, however, there is potential for this to be extended subject to funding.

The post holder will:

• Deliver CP’s Sustainability Action Plan (SAP) and report on progress to the Unpaid Work (UPW) Sustainability Steering Group and relevant Boards . Identify opportunities to develop the SAP including highlighting risks to delivery and mitigations as they arise.
• Chair and promote the recently established Regional Unpaid Work Sustainability Working Group. Create a culture of collaboration and sharing of best practice on sustainability across regional UPW teams and promote delivery of key actions within the SAP.  .
• Identify opportunities to provide sustainability training to CP staff and people on probation where possible, promoting training and routes to employment through gaining ‘green skills’.  
• Reduce the impact of the way we work on CP sites, driving simple changes through awareness education and piloting new systems including waste reduction and elimination of single use plastics, increased use of electrical equipment and the transition towards electric/hybrid vehicles. Lead CP task and finish groups relating to tool electrification and greener consumables and explore opportunities to partner with prison industries on circularity initiatives.
• Quantify and champion the positive, visible impact CP can have on the natural environment. Lead associated projects including related to community tree planting and nature creation. Develop processes to normalise data collection and track progress.
• Provide sustainability input into CP National Partnerships. Lead sustainability national projects and campaigns as required, such as CP input into the Great British Beach Clean.
• Provide technical expertise to CP across a range of topics including waste, nature and emissions reduction. Develop guidance, embed considerations into operational processes and contribute to submissions/briefings as required.
• Identify, plan and deliver the contribution that HMPPS can make towards greening government commitments, particularly in terms of nature recovery and the circular economy. Act as a liaison to wider Probation teams as necessary.
• Raise the profile of the wider environmental and social benefits of Community Payback, including identifying annual awards for excellence.

We operate in a fast paced and complex environment, so you must be flexible and resilient. A big part of what we do is delivered through others, so you will need to be enabling and inspiring to bring others on board with our vision

Skills and Experience

Essential skills and experience:

• Demonstrable knowledge and experience of working in the fields of estates or sustainability.
• Good understanding of environmental legislation and standards.
• Experience and knowledge of leading, developing and implementing carbon reductions and/or other sustainability management programmes
• Experience of creating enthusiasm and commitment within an organisation for sustainability management programmes.
• Proven track record in solving problems by analysing complex information, probing to develop alternatives and proposing sound and timely decisions.
• Ability to work on own initiative, make decisions, work under pressure and deliver within tight deadlines.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to persuade and empower others to deliver sustainable solutions
• Experience of working effectively through others to achieve goals.

Highly Desirable:

Membership of the Government Property Profession or Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA)

Qualifications

• Relevant qualification in an environmental sustainability discipline
• Post holder must be willing to work towards achieving IEMA Practitioner Membership Level if not already held

Government Property Profession (GPP) Technical Skills

The GPP Framework is aimed at staff working in property or property-related roles and consider property to be their career anchor profession. This usually encompasses posts where professional qualifications and experience are directly relevant to the work being undertaken. However, it is also applicable to those who are currently not qualified property practitioners but wish to make this their profession of choice. Those with a property background at any level are encouraged to register with the GPP, which exists to support property practitioners at all levels.  Details of the GPP Framework can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-property-profession-competency-framework.

This role falls under Technical Specialisms & Assurance – Environmental Sustainability: Senior Practitioner and some or all of the following Technical Skills will be tested during the selection process:

• Sustainability – Level 2

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £54,358, Ministry of Justice contributes £15,165 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. 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.