About the job

Job summary

The Prime Minister’s Office enables the Prime Minster to deliver the Government’s overall priorities and to communicate the Government’s policies to Parliament, the public and international audiences. From the Policy Unit, Press Office, Switchboard and Custodians, to the Events & Visits team and the Private Office support; the diverse Downing Street team draws on varied expertise from across the Civil Service and beyond. The teams come together to deliver excellent service to the Prime Minister while also making No10 a great place to work.

Job description

The Senior Foreign Affairs Press Officer in the No 10 Press Office leads on an exciting, varied and fast-paced portfolio of international issues.

Working to the Chief Press Officer for Foreign Affairs as part of a small team, this is a stretching role that involves working closely with senior stakeholders in the Prime Minister’s Office and across Whitehall.

The postholder will be responsible for devising and delivering communications plans and media handling for the Prime Minister’s international and defence engagements and response to major news stories.

They will also prepare the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesperson for twice-daily lobby briefings and support relevant Whitehall departments in clearing press products and media handling.

The role involves working under pressure, flexibly and to tight deadlines, as well as routine out of hours work. That includes taking part in a duty rota and regular overseas travel with the PM (which can be at short notice).

It would suit an ambitious self-starter with a passion for foreign affairs and strong news judgement.

Person specification

Responsibilities of the role

• Responsibility for a portfolio of policies as the subject matter expert in No10 press office;
• Preparing the Prime Minister’s official spokesperson for twice-daily briefings with lobby correspondents;
• Travelling with the Prime Minister to manage media as part of overseas visits;
• Leading major policy announcements across government and co-ordinating communications plans for the PM’s international and defence-related engagements, including with the digital, grids and events teams;
• Advising departments on the presentation, planning and delivery of announcements and events, as well as the handling plans for major news stories;
• Clearing departmental press notices and media handling for MoD, FCDO, DBT and other departments as relevant;
• Clearing media products and reactive lines across Whitehall departments and responding to breaking news relating to the PM as part of the No 10 duty system;
• Building and maintaining excellent relations within No10, in particular with No10 Private Office and Events & Visits, and with relevant government departments.

Essential Skills & Experience;

• First-rate media handling skills and the proven ability to shape and respond to the news at pace;
• Experience of delivering high-profile announcements and media events;
• Excellent crisis communications skills and the ability to identify and mitigate risks;
• Confidence and expertise to brief the Prime Minister and their senior advisers;
• Interpersonal skills to negotiate and influence with a range of interlocutors, from departments and political advisers to foreign governments;
• Demonstrable interest in and knowledge of international affairs.

Desirable Skills & Experience;

• Press office experience;
• Experience leading briefings and international visits for senior ministers;
• Specialised knowledge in foreign affairs, defence or international trade;
• Skills in digital communications or broadcast media.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £44,500, Cabinet Office contributes £12,015 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.

Application process

Please include a CV and use the Personal Statement (max 1,000 words) to explain how you meet the Behaviours outlined in the Job Description and how your skills and experience make you a suitable candidate for the role.

For any examples of your previous work and experience, please use the STAR format to set out the steps you took (Situation – Task – Action – Result).

Selection process

Candidates successful at sift will be invited to a Behaviour & Strength based panel interview. There will be a short written exercise at the start, which will be discussed at the interview.

Candidates who meets the requirements for the role but are not successful in this recruitment round may be placed on a reserve list and considered for other suitable positions in No 10 Press Office.

Expected timeline (subject to change)

Expected sift date – Late Dec
Expected interview date/s – January 2024
Interview location - TBC

Reasonable adjustments

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact Government Recruitment Service via cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. 

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

Further information

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

Please note that this role requires DV clearance, which would normally need 10 years’ UK residency in the past 10 years. This is not an absolute requirement, but supplementary checks may be needed where individuals have not lived in the UK for that period. This may mean your security clearance (and therefore your appointment) will take longer or, in some cases, not be possible.

Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

Any move to Cabinet Office from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

A reserve list will be held for a period of 12 months, from which further appointments can be made.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

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. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is developed vetting (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.