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.

The Prison Policy Directorate is recruiting a temporary replacement for a 6-month loan for a EO in the OPS Secretariat. This campaign is being run externally and so is open to all who consider themselves suitable for the roles and meet the eligibility criteria in the wider advert within Civil Service Jobs.

Location:

Successful candidates will have the option to be based at one of the following locations:

1. 102 Petty France, London
2. 5 Wellington Place, Leeds (occasional travel between Leeds and London may be required post Covid-19)

In order for Policy Group to meet its evolving business needs all Policy Group staff are expected to attend their base location (102 Petty France or 5 Wellington Place Leeds) at least 2 days a week.  This hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend their base location more frequently.

Ways of Working

At the MoJ we believe and promote alternative ways of working, these roles are available as:

• Full-time, part-time or the option to job share
• Flexible working patterns
• Flexible working arrangements between base locations, MoJ Hubs and home. 

If we receive applications from more suitable candidates than we have vacancies for at this time, we may hold suitable applicants on a reserve list for 12 months, and future vacancies requiring the same skills and experience could be offered to candidates on the reserve list without a new competition.

We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and pride ourselves as being an employer of choice. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace, visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

Salary

New entrants to the Civil Service will be expected to join on the minimum of the pay range. 

If you are already a civil servant and are successful in an external recruitment competition for a role with us, your starting pay will be the better of:

• promotion terms or transfer terms, as appropriate; or
• pay on appointment arrangements (minimum of pay range)

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)

MOJ is one of the largest government departments, employing over 80,000 people (including those in the Probation Service), with a budget of approximately £9 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services across the UK - including at 500 courts and tribunals, and 133 prisons in England and Wales.

The Ministry of Justice is a major government department, at the heart of the justice system. We work to protect and advance the principles of justice and our vision is to deliver a world-class justice system that works for everyone in society. We do this by developing and advising on policy.

Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

The role - EO, Operational Policy Sub-board (OPS) Secretariat

This role sits within the Prison Policy Directorate. This directorate’s priorities include reducing the number of prisoners who reoffend on release from prison, ensuring that prisons are safe and secure, and developing a comprehensive strategy for the future of the prison estate and the recruitment and training of the prison workforce. Other important work includes the scrutiny of prison performance and developing policy that supports the effective management of Foreign National Offenders and other specific cohorts of prisoners.  

OPS is a joint HMPPS/MoJ Board that is responsible for approving all new and amended operational policies, for prisons and probation, in England and Wales.  The Board consists of senior members from across both organisations.  The Secretariat’s role is to ensure that the Board fulfils its functions – as set out in its Terms of Reference – by providing support and guidance to Board members. 

Key responsibilities include:

• Collating, reviewing and circulating policy papers (and supporting documents) for OPS meetings, ensuring all are completed correctly and in accordance with OPS guidelines.
• Attending meetings, taking minutes and managing any follow-up actions with policy owners, as necessary.
• Checking two functional mailboxes and ensuring all messages are responded to and dealt with as appropriate, as well as supporting the AO in his role with this work.
• Maintaining regular communication with the offices of the chairs and deputy chairs of OPS around arranging OPS meetings and clearances for documents.
• Drafting and submitting weekly & monthly reports on prison and probation policy publications for internal and external stakeholders.
• Formatting of policy documents, to ensure they meet HMPPS corporate identity, publishing them on the Intranet and liaising with Communications Team to arrange publication on gov.uk.
• Maintaining the existing file structure, team trackers, policy indexes and the list of policy owners, and signposting/updating/republishing these records as appropriate to ensure accuracy.
• Provide support and advice as appropriate to policy leads in respect of policy governance.
• Help manage the team’s system for dealing with correspondence, ensuring replies are submitted on a timely basis.

Essential:

You are required to have: 

• Excellent written IT and numerical skills (proficient in Microsoft applications).
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills and be able to confidentially deal with senior officials.
• Excellent organisational and task management skills
• Demonstrate confidence and skill to act independently.

Desirable:

Further to this it would be desirable, but not essential, for the post-holder to:

• Have an understanding of the justice system.
• Have operational experience in the justice system

Candidates applying from HMPPS should note that the Ministry of Justice does not have the same conditions of employment as HMPPS. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful.

The MoJ is proud to be Level 3 Disability Confident. Disability Confident is the approach through which we offer guaranteed interviews for all people with disabilities meeting the minimum criteria for the advertised role as set out in the job description.

Application process

You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.

Experience

You will be asked to provide a CV during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

You will also be asked to upload a Statement of Suitability of no more than 500 words stating what you would bring to the role, with reference to the Skills and Experience listed above.

Behaviours

Please provide examples of how you have met each one of the behaviours listed below (see Annex A for more information):

• Managing a Quality Service (Lead Behaviour)
• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions

Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade (Level 2 – EO or equivalent):

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the lead behaviour of Managing a Quality Service. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both behaviours and strengths.

Candidates invited to Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely.

During the panel interview, you will be asked behaviour-based questions to explore in detail what you are capable of, and strengths-based questions to also explore what you enjoy, and your motivations relevant to the job role.

There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well.

You can refer to the CS Strengths dictionary for more details:  Success Profiles - Civil Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Interviews are expected to take place in early January 2024

Contact information  

Please do get in touch if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team. Please contact: Gerry.franks@justice.gov.uk or bridget.smartt@justice.gov.uk

Annex A

The STAR method

Using the STAR method can help you give examples of relevant experience that you have. It allows you to set the scene, show what you did, and how you did it, and explain the overall outcome.

Situation - Describe the situation you found yourself in. You must describe a specific event or situation. Be sure to give enough detail for the job holder to understand.

• Where are you?
• Who was there with you?
• What had happened?

Task - The job holder will want to understand what you tried to achieve from the situation you found yourself in.

• What was the task that you had to complete and why?
• What did you have to achieve?

Actions - What did you do? The job holder will be looking for information on what you did, how you did it and why. Keep the focus on you. What specific steps did you take and what was your contribution? Remember to include how you did it, and the behaviours you used. Try to use “I” rather than “we” to explain your actions that lead to the result. Be careful not to take credit for something that you did not do.

Results - Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behaviour. Quote specific facts and figures. Explain how the outcome benefitted the organisation or your area. Make the outcomes easily understandable.

• What results did the actions produce?
• What did you achieve through your actions and did you meet your goals?
• Was it a successful outcome? If not, what did you learn from the experience?

Keep the situation and task parts brief. Concentrate on the action and the result. If the result was not entirely successful describe what you learned from this and what you would do differently next time. Make sure you focus on your strengths.

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £27,223, Ministry of Justice contributes £7,377 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.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.