About the job

Job summary

Would you like to work in a fast paced operational team?

Do you have experience of working in an emergency planning role?

If so, we are looking for a Resilience Staff Officer to join us at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and we'd love to hear from you!   

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) implements the government’s maritime safety policy in the United Kingdom and works to prevent the loss of life and occurrence of pollution on the coast and at sea.    

Safer lives. Safer Ships. Cleaner Seas. 

Our vision is to be a world-leading organisation, accelerating the transition to sustainable shipping with non-negotiable safety standards. We put our people, our customers and our planet at the heart of everything we do. 

We are committed to giving all our colleagues purpose, professionalism and pride in what we do. We work in supportive, diverse and inclusive teams. 

We want everyone to feel valued and supported to achieve their potential at MCA.  

This culture of inclusion is underpinned by our staff networks groups covering, Women’s, LGBTQI+, Race, Carers, Mental Wellbeing and volunteer Respect Ambassadors.

Job description

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has a requirement to meet its obligations with regards to emergency preparedness and business continuity arrangements.

The Resilience Staff Officer role supports the Civil Resilience Lead in the development of policy relating to Civil Contingencies matters, and in drafting plans and procedures that ensure the MCA complies with its duties, which will enable HM Coastguard, through its officers and responders, to deliver an effective and comprehensive response to Major Incidents.

The role holder will also support tactical and strategic response teams responding to complex and protracted emergencies, and liaise with other emergency response partners, agencies and working groups to facilitate shared understanding of risks and capabilities for responding to civil emergencies within the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, as well as occasional international liaison.

This role offers the opportunity to and work across multiple services as well as many different teams across UK. The successful candidate will work with a variety of stakeholders with diverse interest in what they do, work collaboratively, get involved in problem solving, becoming more data driven, exploring data and getting value out of data using it for evidence based decisions.

Your responsibilities include but are not limited to:   

• Assist the Civil Resilience Lead in developing HMCG strategy in meeting its obligations under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, staying up to date with current legislation and guidance and developing workable, robust solutions for delivering those obligations within the context of maritime, coastal, aeronautical rescue, and counter pollution and salvage, developing effective, practical response arrangements to incidents and requests for mutual aid assistance.
• Be a point of contact for advice on business continuity arrangements for HMCG. Assist with regular planning and testing of the BCP to provide assurance to the Director of HM Coastguard that mitigation for unplanned loss of functions, technical capability, or staff is effective in maintaining delivery of core Coastguard functions.
• Contribute to planning and delivery of professional and technical development of Coastguard staff through webinars, face to face training sessions or workshops, and facilitate joint learning opportunities that further improve the capability and effectiveness of HMCG in the multi-agency resilience community.
• Provide support to assist other responder agencies and partners understanding of HMCGs functions, powers, responsibilities, capabilities and response structures through production of written and electronic reference material, delivering briefings in multi-agency forums, and participation in joint learning events and exercises.

For further information about the role and responsibilities, please see the attached role profile. 

Person specification

About You  

You will have excellent communication skills, confidently liaising with stakeholders at different grades and seniority.  You will be versatile and adaptable, reacting to different priorities in timely manner so that are deadlines are met.

Collaborative working is key so demonstrable personable skills are advantageous.

Strong negotiation skills and being prepared to challenge will allow you to make strong decisions and achieve results.

We would like you to have a degree in Emergency Planning and experience working in an emergency planning role, or equivalent experience working in a multi-agency planning and response role, particularly with Cat 1 and Cat 2 responders, in the assessment and mitigation of Risks and Threats.

Additional Information  

This role can be based in any of the locations listed above. MCA supports flexible working and operates a hybrid working model between home and office for this role, giving you greater flexibility over where and when you work.   

The expectation is that you will spend a minimum 60% of your working time based at your principal workplace or out on official business. Details of the arrangement will be discussed further with your line manager.

There will be occasional requirements to work outside core hours to support to pre-event & incident activation procedures, operational response, or planned exercises.

There will be an occasional need to travel to various locations around Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and some international travel may also be required.  Notice will be given prior to travel. 

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.  

Click here to get a copy of the MCA Staff Benefits Brochure    

Find out what it's like to work at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency    

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.

How To Apply  

As part of your application, you will be required to complete a CV and a Personal Statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Within your CV and personal statement please demonstrate your knowledge and experience of: 

• A degree in Emergency Planning; and a minimum 2 years demonstrable experience working in an emergency planning role for an Emergency Service, or equivalent experience working in a multi-agency planning and response role, particularly within a Cat 1 or Cat 2 responder agency.
• The development of response plans within the framework of UK civil contingencies (single and multi-agency) and integrated emergency management principles.
• The planning, delivery and assessment of exercises that validate response procedures and capabilities, and the identification of lessons through post-exercise debriefing.
• Drafting and delivering clear, concise briefings to a diverse range of stakeholders drawing, assessing, and validating information from multiple sources.

Your personal statement will be limited to a maximum of 1,000 words. 

It is essential when submitting your personal statement that you provide as much detail as possible, and utilise the full word count given, against the essential criteria outlined above as this will be used in conjunction with your CV to assess candidate suitability to move to the next round in the recruitment process.

Sift and Interview Dates:  

The sift is due to take place on 18th & 19th July 2024.

Interviews/assessments are likely to be held from 31st July 2024.

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.   

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. 
• A presentation.    

In addition, As part of your interview you will be assessed against:

Coastguard Framework

EXCEL HMCG Technical Framework

You’re encouraged to become familiar with the role profile, as you may be assessed against any of the criteria recorded within.  

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.

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.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. 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.