About the job

Job summary

Do you have experience of working within a project delivery environment or project management office?

Would you relish an opportunity to be part of a team improving transport for communities across the UK? 

If so, we are looking for two Project Delivery Officers to support local authorities in delivering over 50 Levelling up Fund (LUF) schemes, and we would love to hear from you.

Job description

The Levelling Up Fund delivers genuine local priorities for communities across all nations and regions of the UK, supporting the delivery of the Government’s flagship levelling up policy. Within the Department for Transport (DfT), our LUF Delivery team are responsible for working with Local Authorities to deliver 55 transport projects with a combined value of over £1bn.

Our work supports the delivery of the Department’s strategic ambition to Grow and Level Up the Economy and is at the heart of our commitment to Improve Transport for the User. The projects we support deliver investment in a range of modes from rail to road, buses to active travel, and ferries to electric vehicle charging meaning that our work is interesting and varied.

We engage closely with experts from across the department and work in partnership with local authorities across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. We are also supportive of team members visiting our schemes to see them “on the ground” and build positive relationships with our stakeholders.

As one of our Project Delivery Officers, you will support a range of project delivery disciplines which provides a fantastic opportunity to further develop your skills. These roles provide the opportunity to engage with, and build professional relationships with partners across the department, wider government, and local authorities to successfully deliver the LUF projects.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Collaborating with internal stakeholders and engaging regularly with Local Authorities to track progress and address issues when they emerge.
• Attending regular engagement meetings with local authority scheme promoters, both virtually and in person, and interrogating quarterly project reports to understand barriers to delivery and identify where further DfT intervention is required.
• Supporting the project management of the LUF to ensure that government has a complete picture on schemes as they are delivered, identifying programme-wide trends and issues.
• Owning and shaping the governance and monitoring process for the Fund, including close working with the DLUHC Programme Management Office to fulfil requirements of managing a programme within the Governments Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP).
• Managing grant payments to local authorities by organising budgeting requirements with finance teams and making payments to schedule, tracking local authority spend on projects, and identifying any issues with payments and spend.

Person specification

About you

You will have experience of working within a project delivery environment or project management office and be keen to develop new skills.

You will have excellent interpersonal skills and be someone who gains rapport quickly with others to build trusted working relationships within and outside of the Department.

You will be organised and adept at managing and co-ordinating a range of conflicting demands to ensure good outcomes.

You will be highly numerate, have an understanding or experience of managing financial information, and will be comfortable working with data to identify trends to support decision making and ensure project budgets are well managed.

You will have a good eye for detail and able to produce a high standard of written work which is well structured and coherent.

Additional Information 

A minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace, although requirements to attend other locations for official business, or carry out detached duty in another DfT workplace, will also count towards this level of attendance. 

Occasional travel to other DfT offices will be required and there will be opportunities to visit LUF schemes across the UK.

Benefits

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits. We offer generous annual leave, attractive pension options, flexible working, inclusive working environments and much more to support a healthy work/life balance.

Find out more about what it's like working at the Department for Transport.

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.

How to apply

When considering your experience, please tailor your CV and personal statement (maximum word count 500) to provide evidence of the following:

• Experience of working within a project delivery environment or project management office and tracking delivery of outputs or outcomes.
• Experience of working collaboratively and building working relationships with internal teams and external partners.

The sift is due to take place from 12/02/2024.

Interviews/assessments are likely to be held week commencing 04/03/2024.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.

The selection process will be designed specifically for the role. As a result, your assessment will include:

• an interview

This interview could be conducted online via Teams or face to face at one of our offices. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

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

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you cannot access the information on our website for any reason, please email DRGComms@dft.gov.uk for assistance.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Pre-employment Checking

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. 

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

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. 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.