About the job

Job summary

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is a small government department with a big mission: to keep food safe, ensure that it is what it says it is, and that it is increasingly healthy and more sustainable. Communication plays a significant role in the way we reach and inform both the consumer and the broad range of stakeholders whose actions inform food safety.

We are looking for a Senior Strategic Communications Manager who will help our messages have a far-reaching impact. You’ll join a team that plays a vital role in building and maintaining the trust between the FSA, the public, and the wider food industry.

Job description

Your focus will be improving the effectiveness and impact of the FSA’s communications team. By putting insight and evaluation at the heart of our work, and leading and supporting on cross-cutting communications projects, you’ll help our important messaging to reach the widest possible audience.

You’ll be excited by the opportunity to improve the reach of a communications team that has the power to make a real difference to lives throughout the UK. You’ll champion the use of insights to inform decision-making within the team, making sure that our communications mirror the FSA’s wider dedication to evidence-based output. Collaborating on the development of an annual communications plan, your input will draw in audience insights while aligning our work with wider organisational strategy.

If you are looking for a communications role working on communications that really matter and are skilled in developing and delivering multi-discipline comms strategies, this is the role for you. Apply to join the FSA as our Senior Strategic Communications Manager and help us ensure that everyone hears what we have to say.

Person specification

Please read the attached Candidate Pack to discover further details about the role, our organisation, who we are looking for and the criteria we will assess against during the selection process.

We look forward to receiving your application and wish you every success.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £39,611, Food Standards Agency contributes £11,475 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, Experience and Technical skills.

Full details of the selection process are detailed in the attached candidate pack. 

Application and shortlisting

You will be asked to provide personal details (not seen by the Panel) and to confirm your eligibility to apply for the role.

You will then be asked to complete an application which will be used to assess you against the following essential criteria.

Essential criteria

Experience

• Lead criteria: Experience of developing and delivering multi-discipline communication strategies
• Experience of communications planning, and how to prioritise communications projects according to audience need and/or organizational requirements
• Good working knowledge of communications evaluation, including how to develop and set appropriate communications objectives and measure success against them
• Experience of leading collaborative communications projects, working with colleagues from a range of disciplines

Lead Criteria An initial sift will take place on the Lead Criteria.

In the event that we receive a large number of applications, the minimum pass mark for the Lead Criteria may be raised at shortlisting stage. Candidates who apply under the DCS, GPTW or RIS schemes and meet the minimum requirements will be unaffected by the pass mark raise.

Interview

If successful at shortlisting stage, you will be invited to a final interview in which we will assess you against the following Technical elements of the role and Civil Service Behaviours Level 3.

Technical (assessed via one assessment exercise)

• Insight: understanding and experience applying a range of sources of communications insight
• Ideas: ability to develop a communications approach (considering creative content and channel strategy) to deliver a particular goal
• Implementation: ability to plan and manage the delivery of a communications strategy, working with and through others

Competency Framework - technical specifications - GCS (civilservice.gov.uk)

Behaviours

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving
• Making Effective Decisions
• Leadership

Full details of the positive indicators being assessed for each Behaviour can be found in the Candidate Pack.

Assessment exercise

As part of the interview process, you will be asked to prepare a seen presentation. Further information will be provided to you on the invitation to interview email.

Expected Timeline

Advert closes: 16 July 2024 (23:55)

Sift: Expected to take place during week commencing 22 July 2024

Final panel interview: Expected to take place during week commencing 5 August 2024

Interviews will be held remotely via MS Teams. (If you do not have the Microsoft Teams application installed on your computer, you can join on the web without installing the application).

Please note that indicated dates may be subject to change.

Childcare Vouchers

Any move to the Food Standards Agency 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

Reserve List

A reserve list will be held for a period of up to 12 months from which further appointment may be made.

Candidates that do not pass the interview but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that the FSA does not hold a licence to sponsor any visa applications and we are unable to provide any advice about visas.

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.