About the job

Job summary

Border Force is a Law Enforcement arm of the Home Office. We are responsible for handling the UK border control by implementing immigration and customs regulations and working with the wider Home Office on counter terrorism, organised crime, modern slavery and trafficking. Learn more on the Border Force careers page.

Job description

As a vital element in delivering the Home Office mission, the Small Boats Operational Command (SBOC) is responsible for ending small boat crossings in the English Channel.

Our strategic priorities are designed to save life, protect the vulnerable, uphold the integrity of border process and pursue the criminal networks responsible for risking lives and facilitating abuse.

SBOC has a unique public facing profile and is accountable directly to the Home Secretary for delivery.  
Drawing on existing expertise from across government and the wider law enforcement and intelligence community, SBOC is a command specifically set up to tackle this threat with a broad mandate to mobilise the whole-Government response to these threats. Being at the forefront of the Government’s response to this issue we operate in a fast-moving operational environment, using cutting-edge technology and working closely with international law enforcement and intelligence partners to deliver a comprehensive and robust operational response.

The PB1-led Directorate for International Operations has responsibility (in the context of the Command’s mission) for working across Government (particularly across Immigration Enforcement, Border Force, National Crime Agency, Police Forces, Maritime and Coastguard Agency) and other partners across the Intelligence Community, other government departments, and in the French and Belgian systems. 

Our mission is to degrade the viability of the small boats business model through enhanced diplomatic and operational cooperation with near border partner countries. With a focus on improved information sharing, border hardening measures, technology, and enhanced law enforcement operations. 

There is a requirement for an HEO International Liaison Officer to join the SBOC International Operations France Engagement Team to manage small boat data exchange, assurance, and international engagement. The successful candidate will form part of a small support unit to the International Operations Director of the SBOC, providing an interface with French law enforcement partners at the Prefecture Nord in Lille.

The role is focussed on ensuring the UK and France are exchanging information effectively and provide a link into the UK landside operation as well as the upstream prevention work with overseas partners.

The post will be based in Dover or Croydon with regular travel to Lille approximately 2 to 4 times a month. Candidates will be expected to spend a minimum of three days per week in an office.

Please note that this role is shift working and as such attracts an AHA rate of approximately 23.6%, which is reviewed annually. 

Person specification

Key responsibilities include but are not limited to:
 - Developing and maintaining excellent stakeholder relationships with key partners at all levels.
 - Day to day operational support for the France Engagement Team 
 - Ability to operate effectively in a challenging and fast-moving environment.
 - Supporting the delivery of a comprehensive programme of operational activity in France.
 - Managing stakeholder relations across the Home Office, ensuring deliverables under the UK/FR Sandhurst Agreement are clearly articulated in meetings and briefing.
 - Coordination and delivery of UK requirements (security, IT, equipment, resource) to the Lille Zonal Coordination Centre.
 - Building and maintaining awareness of cross-government levers and capabilities to disrupt organised immigration crime activity in France.
 - Providing business support and deputising to the senior management team.

This is a stretching role that offers strong potential for professional development.

Essential Criteria:

 Candidates are expected to demonstrate evidence of;
- Highly organised and capable of managing time effectively.
- Strong communicator, both verbal and in writing, able to deliver key messaging concisely and effectively.
- Able to prioritise and produce high quality work in a fast-paced environment.
- Able to develop good working relationships and be confident engaging with stakeholders including international partners at all levels.
- Experience of working in a liaison role.
- A good level of French is required.  

Desirable Criteria:

 - Good level of operational knowledge across Borders & Enforcement.
 - IT and data/analytical skills.

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

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, Ability and Experience.

As part of the application process, you will first be asked to confirm your eligibility by providing some basic personal information. 

After submission of this first stage, you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Management Judgement test. If you successfully pass this test, you will then be invited to complete the full application form. Please complete the online test as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the test and full application form is 23:55 on 12/03/2024. If you fail to complete the online test or full application before the deadline, your application will be withdrawn.  

Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the Civil Service Jobs website.  

You CANNOT complete the Tests on a mobile phone or tablet.

Following successful completion of the test, you will then be asked to complete:

• CV detailing your Job History/skills, experience and Qualifications – these will not be scored
• Statement of suitability (personal statement) (maximum 500 words)
• provide evidence of Lead behaviour Communicating and Influencing (250 words maximum)

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

The statement of suitability should be aligned to demonstrate your skills and experience for the role and how you meet the essential criteria as detailed in the job description. 

For guidance on how to construct your personal statement, you are encouraged to visit Civil Service Careers. Links – Statement

For guidance on how to construct your behaviour examples, you are encouraged to visit Civil Service Careers. Links – Behaviours

The sift will be held on the behaviour Communicating and Influencing and the statement of suitability (personal statement). CVs will not be scored and are for information purposes only.

Sift will be completed on the Statement of Suitability (personal statement). The Statement of Suitability (personal statement) will be marked first for all candidates. Candidates who meet the minimum pass score for the suitability of statement, will then go on to have their Lead behaviour scored and will therefore receive sift scores for both of these elements. Candidates who fail to meet the minimum pass score for the suitability of statement will not have their Lead behaviour scored and will therefore only receive a sift score for their statement of suitability.

However, if a large number of applications are received, the sift will be conducted on the statement of suitability (Personal Statement) only.

Candidates who are shortlisted will be invited to an interview which will incorporate strength-based questions (no preparation necessary) and behaviour based questions. The strengths and/or behaviours being assessed have been ranked in order of importance to enable us to differentiate between candidates with tied interview scores. Please note that the order in which behaviours are listed in the advert does not necessarily reflect the order of importance.

Strengths are the things that you do regularly, do well and that motivate you. To find out more about strength based questions click here

Sift is expected to take place week commencing 18/03/2024

Interviews are expected to take place week commencing 01/04/2024

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert, however on occasions these dates may change. 

You will be invited to attend a video interview utilising MS Teams where you will be required to have access to

• A laptop (personal or work) with a working webcam
• Good internet connection
• Microsoft Teams

Or Where restrictions allow interviews may be carried out face to face in the future.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to time constraints we may not be able to offer alternative interview date(s). It is therefore expected that candidates who are successful at sift stage will make themselves available during the above time frame given.

Further Information

For meaningful checks to be carried out, individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years if the role requires CTC clearance, 5 years for SC clearance and 10 years for DV.  A lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar to a security clearance and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

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

A location based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role or similar role become available within that period you may be offered this position. 

When completing your application you will have the opportunity to select your preferred location(s). Please ensure you select all locations you are interested in. Candidates who are successful at Interview will be placed in order of merit per location and provisional job offers will be made in strict merit order per location preference. Provisional offers are made, as they are on condition that you successfully pass all pre-employment checks.

Note for Candidates:

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. All applications are screened for plagiarism and copying of examples/answers from internet sources. If any is detected the application will be withdrawn from the process. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving internal candidates. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants. 

If you are currently an agency member of staff working within the Home Office, a contractor or contingent worker you can only apply for roles that are advertised externally, i.e. outside the civil service. If you are eligible to apply for a role, you are required to select yourself as an external applicant and not internal when submitting your application on Civil Service jobs. This will prevent any delays in pre-employment checks should you become successful in being made an offer of employment after the Interview stage.

Are these Reserved Posts for UK Nationals only?

UK nationals who hold dual nationality are able to apply for this reserved post. If a UK passport is not being presented, then candidates will need to provide alternative evidence of UK nationality in line with the Civil Service Nationality Rules.

Annual Hours Working Allowance

We operate 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year and you would be required to work flexibly and operate over a 24/7 shift rota, this can include: Night shifts; Early morning starts, sometimes before 6am; Late night finishes, sometimes after midnight; Weekend and Public Holidays; Shifts can vary in length and can be up to 12 hours; Shifts that change or extend according to business need.

These posts include shift allowances which varies by flexibility, shifts, location; however, the average allowance is 23.6 **%. You would be deployed to a range of different duties, shifts and locations and should expect to have a variance in the AHW dependent on the varying duties and shifts.

Age: These are shift working roles and so you must be 18 years or over.

If you are considering applying for part time hours, please contact HORCCampaignTeamBorderForce@homeoffice.gov.uk to discuss your request as not all working patterns may be accommodated. 

Flexible working

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working.  This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estates capacity, by Spring 2024.  Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details).

Every day, Home Office civil servants do brilliant work to develop and deliver policies and services that affect the lives of people across the country and beyond. To do this effectively and fairly, the Home Office is committed to representing modern Britain in all its diversity, and creating a welcoming, inclusive workplace where all our people are able to bring their whole selves to work and perform at their best.

We are flexible, skilled, professional and diverse. We work to recruit and retain disabled staff and area Disability Confident Leader. We are proud to be one of the most ethnically diverse departments in the civil service. We are a Social Mobility Foundation top 75 employer.

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.

For further information please see the attached notes for candidates which must be read before making an application.

Existing Civil Servants should note that some of the Home Office terms and conditions of employment have changed. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the Terms and Conditions they will adopt should they be successful in application and should refer to the notes for candidates for further details.

Transfer Terms: Voluntary.

If you are invited to an interview you will be required to  bring a range of documentation for the purposes of establishing identity and to aid any pre-employment checks.

Please see the attached list of Home Office acceptable ID documents.

Any move to the Home 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

Additional Security Checks: As well as successfully obtaining UKSV clearance and passing the right to work and pre-employment screening, anyone who applies to work for Border Force will also be subject to additional Border Force specific security checks, as part of the pre-employment process, to determine their suitability to work for the organisation.

Please see the Home Office Recruitment Privacy Information Notice (PIN) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/recruitment-privacy-information-notice for more information on how your details may be shared for the purpose of additional security checks.

Please see the Border Force Privacy Information Notice (PIN) on Border Force privacy information notice - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) for more information on how your details may be shared.

Reasonable Adjustments

If a person with disabilities is 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 HOrecruitment.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

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

Feedback

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

Open to UK nationals only.

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.