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.
Job Description
The Private Office Division in the Ministry of Justice is recruiting for a Deputy Private Secretary (DPS) role. The role presents an exciting opportunity to take on an intellectually and professionally stimulating role at the center of the department. The role available is in the Permanent Secretary’s office, covering the Prison and Probation portfolio.
The Ministry of Justice’s Private Office and Parliament Directorate is a supportive and collaborative group. It is also a busy and interesting place to work – it is the interface between Ministers, senior civil servants, the rest of the Department and Whitehall.
Working in a dynamic and supportive team, the successful candidate will be a credible source of advice to the Permanent Secretary; coordinate and prioritise their portfolio responsibilities; anticipate and resolve issues – escalating when necessary; have line management responsibility and support the wider team. In doing so, the post holder will develop an in-depth understanding of their policy and corporate briefs.
Working within a busy, dynamic and friendly team, the successful candidate will be a credible source of advice to the Minister; coordinate and prioritise their portfolio responsibilities; anticipate and resolve issues – escalating when necessary; and support the Private Secretary. The post holder will develop an in-depth understanding of their wide-ranging policy brief which covers areas across the justice system. They will also play a wider leadership role across private offices, ensuring the smooth running of the division.
This campaign is open to current civil servants on level transfer and excelling candidates on promotion.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
MoJ is one of the largest government departments, employing over 80,000 people (including those in the Probation Service), with a budget of approximately £11 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services across the UK - including at 500 courts and tribunals, and 123 prisons in England and Wales.
Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
Key Responsibilities
- Provide high quality advice and support to the Permanent Secretary, driving forward their priorities and supporting policy, operational and parliamentary work.
- You will support the Grade 7 Private Secretary in the effective management of the team and you will have line management responsibilities.
- You will be comfortable with working independently and are able to manage and prioritise a significant number of reactive and proactive tasks.
- Building effective working relationships across the department to provide leadership and being an effective channel of communication for the Permanent Secretary with other private offices, the Department, the rest of Whitehall, and the public.
- Using your relationships, judgement and understanding of the wider context to support the Permanent Secretary in their work and to add value to the process and substance of decision making, ensuring financial and ethical probity.
Skills and experience
We would encourage you to apply if you:
- Have experience of building productive stakeholder relationships, often bringing together people with differing views to develop consensus and support;
- Demonstrate strategic oversight across a wide portfolio or policy area and an ability to forward plan.
- Possess excellent interpersonal, written and oral communication skills, with an ability to communicate steers clearly and succinctly;
- Personal resilience, including the ability to adapt quickly to new demands and work flexibly to deliver quality outcomes.
- Have impeccable organisational skills and can keep track of large amounts of information and different pieces of work, and are confident in taking a structured approach to information management;
Application process
We assess all candidates against the Civil service success profiles framework.
- As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and Statement of Suitability. Please note the CV is for information purposes only and will not be scored.
- Please provide a statement of suitability (max 500 words) which details why you want the role, your relevant skills and experience.
- During the application process, you will be asked to provide an example of how you have met the following behaviours:
- Making Effective Decisions
- Seeing the Bigger Picture
- Delivering at Pace
- Leadership
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, where they will be assessed against both behaviours and strengths.
Candidates invited to Interview
Please note that interviews will be carried out in person and are expected to take place in September.
For the interview, you will be asked to deliver a short presentation. We will also be assessing you on Strengths and the following Behaviours from the Success Profiles framework.
- Making Effective Decisions
- Seeing the Bigger Picture
- Delivering at Pace
- Leadership
You can find a definition of these Behaviours here. We will be looking at how you meet the expectation for the grade of role you are applying for: Level 3 - SEO equivalent. You can find out definitions of Strengths here.
At interview stage, if candidates do not score high enough to be appointed to an SEO role, but have passed the minimal requirements, they could be offered a Private Office role at the more junior level of HEO.
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.
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.
Location
These posts are based at 102 Petty France – Headquarters for the Ministry of Justice
Ways of Working
At the MoJ we believe and promote alternative ways of working, these roles are available as:
- Full-time, part-time or the option to job share
- Flexible working patterns
Flexible working arrangements between base locations, MoJ Hubs and home
The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.
Point of contact
Please do get in touch if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team. Contact Alex.Holt@justice.gov.uk for further information. We look forward to hearing from you.
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.
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