About the job

Job summary

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is a unique law enforcement organisation in that we both investigate and prosecute the most serious, complex and high profile fraud and bribery and corruption cases. The SFO has a small Victim and Witness Care Unit team who provide advice and support to investigating case teams on victim and witness care throughout the life of the case from investigation through trial to possible confiscation procedures.

As the Senior Victim and Witness Care Officer you also be expected to support your Coordinator in the development of SFO policy and process to ensure the organisation is employing the latest good practice and keeping pace with current legislation. Throughout the life of an investigation you will respond to requests from case teams to support vulnerable victims and witnesses requiring intervention to ensure they can fully participate in the investigation process. You will have a case load as a lead Witness Care Officer on cases preparing for trial and work closely with the case team to assist in supporting all witnesses required to attend court to give live evidence. You will also be expected to attend court during our trials and work collaboratively with Counsel, the case team, court staff and the Witness Service to ensure our witnesses receive support they deserve. This could mean travel to Crown courts within England and Wales and staying away from home during extended trial periods.

The role of Senior Victim and Witness Care Officer will help ensure the team are delivering a high quality service in accordance with national victim and witness care legislation, best practice guidance and SFO policy.

Job description

As a Senior Victim and Witness Care Officer you will be responsible for:

• Ensuring victim and witness care is delivered in accordance with the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime, the Witness Charter and best practice guidance.
• Supporting the Witness Care Coordinator in the development of victim and witness care at the SFO.
• Providing expertise and advice on victim and witness care to operational colleagues across the SFO working closely with case teams from pre-charge, through trial and to confiscation to ensure victims and witnesses are supported and updated on the progress of the case.
• Meeting the obligations of service to ensure victims and witnesses are able to achieve their best evidence.

Person specification

See above and attached Job Pack.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £32,797, Serious Fraud Office contributes £8,855 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 and Experience.

Application stage

As part of the application process you will be required to provide:

• A personal statement of no more than 750 words that explains how your skills and experience meet each of the essential experience and technical criteria as listed in the job pack.
• A supporting CV outlining your job history

It will not be possible to provide feedback to applicants who are unsuccessful at the application stage.

Interview stage

Behaviours and essential criteria as outlined in the job pack will be tested at interview. 

Candidates invited to interview will also be required to complete an assessment.

Full details of the interview process will be made available to shortlisted candidates in the invite to interview.

Sift to take place from 16 January 2024.

Interviews are expected to take place w/c 29 January 2024.

All dates are indicative and subject to change.

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 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.