About the job

Job summary

If you’re interested in making a difference to people’s lives, the Treasury can offer you an exciting opportunity to influence decision making that affects the whole of the UK. Working at the heart of government, we collaborate across government to promote responsible public spending and drive strong and sustainable economic growth.  

Our work ranges from protecting customers through the regulation of the financial sector, helping to reduce carbon emissions and creating a greener economy, to promoting British trade around the world and supporting people across the country on jobs, growth and more.  

HM Treasury is proud of a diverse and inclusive work environment, committed to fairness and the promotion of equality of opportunity for all. We know that having a range of experiences, ways of working and thinking makes us stronger and better at developing policy that reflects the needs of every community. We embrace different views and experiences and value the new perspective that people from a variety of circumstances bring to the work we do. We welcome applications from candidates who have not previously worked for the Civil Service, mid- and late-career changers with transferrable skills, people from all backgrounds and circumstances regardless of disability, gender, age ethnicity, LGBT+ identity and socio-economic status.  

We are part of the Darlington Economic Campus, a pioneering new cross-government hub which brings people together to play an active role in the most important issues of the day whilst working closer to the communities we serve. The campus provides the opportunity for people from all over the UK to help shape the future of the country, and our flexible working practices ensure you can collaborate effectively with our partners. It’s central government, made more accessible to you! 

Job description

About the Group

International Group

Do you want to advise ministers on promoting and protecting the UK’s economy and its competitiveness internationally in a fast-changing environment?  If so, read on!

International Group provides opportunities to work on areas including - spending control on international development, trade policy, climate change, health, cooperation on Ukraine, economic security, financial sanctions and tackling illicit finance.  We also manage economic relationships with Europe, US, China and other advanced economies and emerging markets.

We build relationships with external and international partners and represent the UK in a range of international groupings and institutions, including the G7, the G20, the International Monetary Fund and at some of the Multilateral Development Banks. We also analyse international comparisons and the wider global economic context, including for fiscal events.  Although international travel is an important part of some roles, it is not required for every role in the group and will be specified if required.  

About the Team

This is an exciting opportunity to join the Group Management Support (GMS) Team to provide personal assistance and corporate support.  The role is wide-ranging and fast-paced at the heart of the Group. The GMS team is made up of six professional and friendly PA’s supporting from the center, responsive to changing priorities and taking a flexible and proactive approach to meeting business needs. This is an excellent opportunity for the right candidate and will be a great introduction to a career in the Civil Service. We offer tailored training to PAs, dedicated networks for professions and interests and offer other development opportunities.

About the Job

The role of a Personal Assistant at HM Treasury is varied and exciting and gives individuals a fantastic opportunity to experience working at the heart of Government whilst also providing them with the opportunity to work alongside senior leaders. If you are organised, efficient and people-focused, then we would love to hear from you.

• Diary management - Proactively plan and manage the diary using your professional judgement to line up meetings in well-organised way. Resolve conflicts, negotiate and allocate time to Director and/or Deputy Director (DD) priorities. Develop a good understanding of the Group’s work and priorities so you can make decisions on behalf of the Director/DD.
• Ensure the Director and/or DD are clear on their schedules for the day and prepare diary and meeting folders in preferred format. Organise all logistics of virtual and in-person, internal and external meetings including organising international travel, hotels, taxis, visas, rooms, conference phone lines etc.
• Mailbox management - Develop or adopt efficient systems for handling and prioritising emails on behalf of the Director and/or DD and where required delegate actions to others in the teams and use own judgement to filter unnecessary emails.
• Support Director and/or DD priorities to anticipate problems, risks, issues and corporate tasks that they will have to deal with and proactively make suggestions about the best way to take them forward.
• Get to know the Departmental processes and timescales, such as recruitment and performance management rounds, to enable you to support the Director and/or DD with these.
• Building Relationships - Take the initiative to develop and lead relationships with key external and internal partners and colleagues to effectively do the job.
• Provide administrative support to the team that the DD leads, gaining a sound understanding of the teams work and where requested coordinating briefing and occasion project support.
• Ensuring the Director and DD has regular meetings with their team members and respond to ad hoc requests for help, such as raising Purchase Orders, travel arrangements and room bookings for the team.
• Work collaboratively with the GMS team to lead or support the Groups corporate activities and seamlessly cover colleagues during absences, having comprehensive handover notes prepared for your own absences.

Candidate Drop-In Session 
 
We will be running a candidate drop-in session for this role to give you greater insight about the role as well as the chance to learn more about HM Treasury and the recruitment process. If you would like to join us, then use the appropriate link below to join the call at the right time. 

Thursday 22 February 2024 11:00 to 11:30 - Click here to join the meeting

If you would like to speak to the hiring manager informally prior to the closing date for applications to find out more about the job, please contact Vaishali.sadrani@hmtreasury.gov.uk

Person specification

About your Application

We are looking for the below skills, experience and behaviours and we will ask you to demonstrate these in your application form. Please review the Candidate FAQ document that is attached to the advert for guidance on how to complete your application form.  

1. Managing a Quality Service - deliver service objectives with professional excellence, expertise and efficiency, taking account of diverse customer needs.
2. Communicating and Influencing - demonstrate excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to work with colleagues at all levels be able to express information and ideas clearly.
3. Delivering at Pace - ability to work independently and manage a busy workload to deliver changing deadlines and priorities.  

The lead criterion is: Managing a Quality Service

If we receive large volumes of applications, we will conduct an initial sift on the lead criterion only.

Candidate Guidance Support Session 
 
We will be running an overview of Success Profiles and the STAR approach; top tips for the application and interview process and an opportunity to ask general questions around our recruitment practices. If you would like to join us, then use the link below to join the call at the right time. 

Friday 16th February 2024 12:30 - 13:15 Click here to join the meeting

Monday 26th February 2024 17:30 – 18:15 Click here to join the meeting

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £26,770, HM Treasury contributes £7,227 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.

Recruitment Timeline 

• Closing date: 28th February 2024
• Shortlisting: 29th February 2024
• Interviews:  W/C 11th March 2024

This timeline is indicative and may be subject to change. We will inform you if there is a substantial change to the recruitment timeline. 

If your contact details change at any time during the selection process, please ensure you update your Civil Service Jobs Profile. 

Please note that only applications submitted through Civil Service Jobs will be accepted.

Eligibility Statement  

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role in the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government. Checks will be performed as part of pre-employment checks in line with this. Please refer to the Candidate FAQ document attached to the advert for more information. 

Individuals appointed to the Treasury Group will be subject to National Security Vetting. To allow for meaningful checks to be carried out applicants will normally need to have lived in the UK for at least 3 out of the past 5 years. A lack of UK residency in itself is not always a bar to security clearance but the Department will need to consider eligibility on a case by case basis using all information that can be obtained following a successful application. 

Everyone working with government assets must complete Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) checks.  

For many roles, security clearance is also required. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements of the role before they can be appointed. The level of security clearance required for this role is Security Check (SC)

Please read the Vetting Charter for information on what to expect during the vetting process and what will be expected from you.  

Many areas of your life may be explored during your vetting journey, and it is important that every individual, regardless of their background and experiences, should feel comfortable going through this personal process, whilst having confidence that it is fair, proportionate, and inclusive.  

These short videos address common concerns and preconceptions which applicants may have about national security vetting.  

If you have questions relating to security clearances, please contact HMTSecurityVetting@hmtreasury.gov.uk

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 security 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.