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.  

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 - Financial Services

The Financial Services Group advises the government on how to promote a stable and efficient financial services sector, to deliver excellent outcomes for consumers and business, enhance the UK’s position as a global hub for financial services and support economic growth across the country.

The financial services sector is important to the UK economy – providing significant numbers of jobs and making a large contribution to the UK’s economic output. It also provides essential services to individuals – for example, helping them to purchase goods with ease, buy their first home, and plan for their retirement. During the COVID pandemic, it played a critical role in supporting individuals and businesses – for example, in providing payment holidays for individuals and businesses affected by the pandemic and working with the government to deliver Bounce Back Loans.

We ensure that financial services businesses such as banks, investment firms, financial advisors and insurers are well-regulated. Ensuring firms treat customers fairly, customers have access to a range of financial services as a result of competition in the market, and there are appropriate remedies in place when things go wrong.

We work on a significant international agenda which includes promoting openness and trading links between the UK and countries all around the world, including through Free Trade Agreements and other international dialogues and negotiations.  To do this we work closely with colleagues in offices overseas from the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office and the Department for International Trade.

Working with stakeholders is key in Financial Services – for example, we work closely with the independent regulators to help them fulfil their roles, consult consumer groups on issues affecting them, and work with the sector on wider issues like the net-zero agenda.

About the Team - Payments and Fintech

The Payments and Fintech Team sits at the forefront of government policy making to put the UK payments sector at the forefront of technology and innovation, protect access to cash, and ensure that UK financial services can take advantage of developments in fintech and cryptoassets.

The team is an exciting and supportive place to work, with high staff engagement, made up of around 15 people in size. We place a strong focus on championing a supportive team culture, seek to model best practice as a policy team, and explore new and innovative ideas, recognising the fast-moving nature of the team’s policy area.

About the Job

Government policies – the plans we make and actions we take – shape lives. The policy we create and implement sets the course of action for the whole UK economy.

Great policy making is about understanding what needs to change, what problems need to be solved and supporting Ministers to arrive at the best solution to deliver the change. Policy also means working out how we are going to make the changes or solve the problems, and then delivering on those plans. To do all this, we need to build relationships with Ministers, Civil Service colleagues, groups with expertise and the public. To work on policy as a Policy Adviser, you will need to demonstrate a range of skills, including strong problem-solving and decision-making skills, the ability to clearly explain your thinking both in writing and in person, and the drive to overcome challenges and see your ideas through into action and delivery.

You don’t need to be a policy professional or have any specific qualifications to apply to work as a Policy Adviser at HM Treasury. We are looking for people who have the right set of skills for the role, who demonstrate the values of our organisation, and who are motivated to come and work with us on a range of issues that are at the heart of how we grow the UK economy.

Payments in the UK have transformed – cash and cheque use has declined significantly, and most payments are now made by card or digitally, supported by a proliferation of new services performed by new market entrants. These changes offer exciting opportunities for UK businesses and consumers, but also present new challenges and risks.  The role holder will support the delivery of the government’s strategy to support the UK’s payments sector and help ensure that this sector can continue to thrive and innovate.

Key accountabilities for this role include:

1. Develop a strong understanding of the field of payments and broader financial services policy, working with others who are experts in the field to build and refine your understanding.
2. Provide high quality briefing and advice to government ministers and senior civil servants on payments issues, such as the government’s actions to protect customers’ ability to access cash.
3. Take responsibility for the timely response of parliamentary questions, letters from the public and freedom of information requests in your policy area.
4. Build and maintain positive relationships with civil servants across HM Treasury and wider government, the financial services regulators and industry, using these contacts to help develop and refine government policy.
5. Monitor ongoing developments in the payments industry, both domestically and internationally, and consider how they impact government policy.
6. Make a positive contribution to the Payments and Fintech team, and wider Financial Services Group culture.

Candidate Drop-In Session 
 
The hiring manager 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 ask any questions you may have. If you would like to join us, then use the appropriate link below to join the call at the right time.

Tuesday 4th June - 13:00 to 13:30 

If you would like to speak to the hiring managers informally prior to the closing date for applications to find out more about the job, please contact Jamie Slater (Jamie.Slater@hmtreasury.gov.uk) and Emily Doctor (Emily.Doctor@hmtreasury.gov.uk) 

Person specification

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

1. Working Together: The ability to build relationships with different stakeholders and use these to arrive at high quality outcomes.
2. Delivering at Pace: The ability to contribute to the delivery of work in a timely manner, balancing different priorities.
3. Making Effective Decisions: The ability to develop and present reasoned arguments based on analysis of evidence.

The lead criterion is: Working Together

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 including top tips for the application and interview process and an opportunity to ask general questions around our recruitment practices. Please note that the session is not role specific, so we will be unable to answer specific questions about the roles we are advertising. If you would like to join us, please use the link below to join the call at the right time.

Wednesday 5th June – 12:30 – 13:15

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £31,710, HM Treasury contributes £8,561 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: 10th June
• Shortlisting: w/c 10th June
• Interviews:  w/c 17th June and w/c 24th June

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. 

Everyone working with government assets must complete Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) checks. Additionally, individuals appointed to the Treasury group will be subject to National Security Vetting. The level of security vetting required for this role is Counter Terrorist Check (CTC)

To allow for meaningful checks to be carried out, applicants will need to have lived in the UK for at least 3 out of the past 5 years. In exceptional circumstances, a lack of residency would not be a bar to security clearance however the Department will need to consider eligibility on a case by case basis once the advert closing date has passed. 

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 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.