We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.
Assistant Private Secretary (up to 2 posts available)
HEO
Private Office
The MOJ’s busy Private Office directorate is recruiting permanently for two HEO Assistant Private Secretary roles. This campaign is being run externally and so is open to all who consider themselves suitable for the roles and meet the eligibility criteria in the wider advert within Civil Service Jobs.
Location:
Successful candidates will be based at 102 Petty France, London.
Ways of Working
At the MoJ we believe and promote alternative ways of working, these roles are available as:
Full-time
The roles will be based in Petty France.
If we receive applications from more suitable candidates than we have vacancies for at this time, we may hold suitable applicants on a reserve list for 12 months, and future vacancies requiring the same skills and experience could be offered to candidates on the reserve list without a new competition.
We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and pride ourselves as being an employer of choice. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace, visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
MOJ is one of the largest government departments, employing over 77,000 people (including those in the Probation Service), with a budget of approximately £9 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services across the UK - including at 500 courts and tribunals, and 133 prisons in England and Wales.
Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
The Work of the Private Office Unit
The Ministry of Justice’s Private Office is a friendly and collaborative Directorate. It is the interface between Ministers, the Permanent Secretary and the rest of the Department and Whitehall.
A number of roles are currently available in the Deputy Prime Minister’s Private Office. Candidates who apply for this role may be placed on the reserve list for roles in other junior ministerial offices. All roles in this Directorate are in busy, dynamic and supportive teams, and the successful candidate will be a credible source of advice to their seniors. They will coordinate and prioritise their portfolio responsibilities; anticipate and resolve issues – escalating when necessary; and support the wider team. In doing so, the post holder will develop an in-depth understanding of their policy and corporate briefs.
Assistant Private Secretary – the role
As Assistant Private Secretary to either Deputy Prime Minister’s or the Deputy Prime Minister’s special advisors and political advisor, you will help deliver the Department’s priorities, working in a fast-paced and exciting environment where strong team working is vital. You will gain invaluable experience at the heart of the Department’s decision-making process, working directly with the Permanent Secretary, Ministers, Special Advisers, senior officials, and external stakeholders.
Assistant Private Secretary, courts and crime desk: You will be the go-between the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice and the department, leading on all matters relating to civil, family and tribunal justice, with support from a Private Secretary and Deputy Private Secretary on the courts and crime desk.
On a day-to-day basis, you will work as part of a wider team of private secretaries helping to deliver effective and smooth delivery of advice to the Deputy Prime Minister. This role requires someone with a collaborative, constructive and positive attitude who will be able to work effectively with colleagues in private office and across the wider department. Special Advisor’s Office role: You will work directly with Special Advisor’s and the Deputy Prime Minister’s policy advisor, reporting to a Head of the Special Advisor’s desk, and working alongside a diary manager. This role requires someone with high levels of emotional intelligence, a ‘can-do’ attitude and the ability to provide trusted guidance and support to the DPM’s advisors.
On a day-to-day basis, you will collaborate with the Deputy Prime Minister’s Private Secretaries, and ensure our special advisors and political advisors are fully briefed ahead of meetings. You will be one of the go-betweens from them to the rest of the department, and you will work closely with officials at all grades, as well as having responsibility for managing the cross-government write-round process for spads.
Job description overview
Key Responsibilities
- Owning a broad portfolio of policy and corporate responsibilities and acting as an advisor and bridge between Ministers, the Permanent Secretary, Special Advisors and the Department.
- Delivering quality advice and feeding back views accurately and promptly. Analysing submissions, correspondence, briefing and other papers.
- Working closely with teams and senior officials to deliver the Department’s priorities, monitoring progress, exploring problems and negotiating solutions.
- Building positive relationships with teams throughout the Department and cross-Whitehall.
- Attending meetings with or on behalf of your Principal and working with officials after the meeting to progress the work and ensure deadlines are met.
Skills and Experience
Essential:
- Managing multiple deadlines to tight timescales.
- Experience of building productive stakeholder relationships, often bringing together people with differing views to develop consensus and support.
- The ability to manage risks, issues, and changes; escalating and specifically proposing solutions, where required.
- Personal resilience, including the ability to adapt quickly to new demands and work flexibly in order to deliver quality outcomes under pressure.
Desirable:
- Experience of working as part of a team to deliver high quality support
Application process
You will be assessed against the Civil Service Success Profiles framework.
Experience
You will be asked to provide a CV and a Statement of Suitability during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.
The Statement of Suitability must be of no more than 750 words stating what you would bring to the role, with reference to the Skills and Experience listed above.
Behaviours
During the application process you will be asked to provide an example of how you have met the following behaviours (see Annex A for more information):
- Making Effective Decisions
- Seeing the Bigger Picture
- Delivering at Pace
- Working Together
Please also refer to the Civil Service Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf
Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the lead behaviour of Making Effective Decisions. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both behaviours and strengths.
Candidates invited to Interview
Please note that interviews will be carried out in person.
During the interview, we will be assessing you on Behaviours and Strengths from the Success Profiles framework.
You can refer to the Civil Service Strengths dictionary for more details: Success Profiles - Civil Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)
Interviews are expected to take place in August/September 2022.
Candidates applying from HMPPS should note that the Ministry of Justice does not have the same conditions of employment as HMPPS. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful.
The MoJ is proud to be Level 3 Disability Confident. Disability Confident is the approach through which we offer guaranteed interviews for all people with disabilities meeting the minimum criteria for the advertised role as set out in the job description.
Annex A - The STAR method
Using the STAR method can help you give examples of relevant experience that you have. It allows you to set the scene, show what you did, and how you did it, and explain the overall outcome.
Situation - Describe the situation you found yourself in. You must describe a specific event or situation. Be sure to give enough detail for the job holder to understand.
- Where are you?
- Who was there with you?
- What had happened?
Task - The job holder will want to understand what you tried to achieve from the situation you found yourself in.
- What was the task that you had to complete and why?
- What did you have to achieve?
Actions - What did you do? The job holder will be looking for information on what you did, how you did it and why. Keep the focus on you. What specific steps did you take and what was your contribution? Remember to include how you did it, and the behaviours you used. Try to use “I” rather than “we” to explain your actions that lead to the result. Be careful not to take credit for something that you did not do.
Results - Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behaviour. Quote specific facts and figures. Explain how the outcome benefitted the organisation or your area. Make the outcomes easily understandable.
- What results did the actions produce?
- What did you achieve through your actions and did you meet your goals?
- Was it a successful outcome? If not, what did you learn from the experience?
Keep the situation and task parts brief. Concentrate on the action and the result. If the result was not entirely successful describe what you learned from this and what you would do differently next time. Make sure you focus on your strengths.
TOP