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 FCJPD Directorate is recruiting permanently for a Grade 7 role. This campaign is being run externally and so is open to all eligible individuals who wish to apply.
Location:
Successful candidates will have the option to be based at one of the following locations:
- 102 Petty France, London
- 5 Wellington Place, Leeds (occasional travel between Leeds and London may be required post Covid-19)
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.
At the moment the majority of our staff are currently working from home due to Covid-19
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)
The principal role of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is to uphold the rule of law, the cornerstone of the British way of life. It delivers services that are some of the most fundamental in a democratic society. In doing so it has responsibility for a number of key elements of the justice system, including prisons, courts, tribunals, legal services, youth justice and the probation service.
The Ministry of Justice supports the Secretary of State and the Justice Ministerial team to deliver the Government’s programme. Our work spans criminal, civil, family and administrative justice, together with responsibility for making new law and safeguarding human rights. The Ministry works in partnership with other Government departments and agencies to serve the public, improve the justice system and support victims of crime.
Working with ministers and senior leaders, you will play a vital role in how policy proposals are developed, delivered and managed in government. Further, you will do so on policy areas which have a significant impact on our society: protecting the public, upholding the rule of law, and providing a just, proportionate and accessible justice system.
Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
What we do
The Family & Criminal Justice Policy Directorate sits at the heart of MoJ’s policy agenda, working to reform complex systems that deal with some of the most vulnerable members of our society. We work closely with Ministers, No10, the Senior Judiciary, as well as a wide range of other Whitehall departments, to tackle a range of complex issues. Everything the team does to deliver our wide-ranging portfolio of work is uniquely focussed on supporting those that need it most.
We are a friendly, supportive and dedicated team, where flexible working is strongly encouraged (including home working, condensed hours and job sharing).
There is a vacancy for a Grade 7 in a new team leading the cross-system reform and recovery programme.
Joining our team will give you opportunities to:
- Use problem solving and strategic thinking skills across a number of complex and challenging issues
- Work closely, and often at speed, with senior officials and Ministers, as well as press and private offices on high profile issues
- Demonstrate and develop your programme management skills in overseeing the design and implementation of a number of new pilots to recover and reform the family justice system
- Work in partnership with other government departments, operational partners at a local level, and a wide range of high-profile stakeholders
- Demonstrate and enhance your financial and analytical skills working closely with finance and analytical colleagues to understand the financial impact of policy ideas and make innovative policy within wider financial constraints;
- Manage key relationships with senior judiciary and other external stakeholders and ensure that the Government, prisons, probation and the Courts work together effectively to deliver for vulnerable people
- Develop your leadership skills
Job Description overview
We are looking to recruit a Grade 7 to lead a new team formed in response to the pressures on the system made by Covid-19, and to address the need for longer term reform in family justice. The team will coordinate the immediate need for recovery work to stabilise the system alongside managing longer term reform projects.
The postholder will be responsible for overseeing, managing and delivering a programme of work to tackle demand in the family justice system and to ensure that cross-system reforms are appropriately sequenced and prioritised. This will require you to bring together operational, regional and national partners to deliver change. Separate teams will design and implement specific pilots and their work will be, overseen and managed by your team. You will also be responsible for ensuring that appropriate reporting mechanisms are in place, and that risks to delivery are appropriately identified and mitigated.
You will have organisational responsibility for the national Boards which have oversight of the family justice system in England and Wales, including the Implementation Group which identifies and sequences reform and recovery in the system. You will also work with the Judiciary, colleagues in the department and other Government departments as well as external stakeholders to ensure that the work of the unit is aligned with the wider objectives of Department and, importantly, brings together the different strands of reform.
You will have the opportunity to persuade and influence stakeholders of the need for change and will line manage 2 Band Bs (SEO).
We are a friendly team with a strong emphasis on providing support and opportunities for development. We will be keen to work with you to understand your interests, skills and areas for development. Alongside your core role, you will have the opportunity to get involved in corporate projects across the wider team and Directorate, to support how we work as a team and contribute to the MoJ as a whole.
The Directorate also places a strong focus on effective line management, learning and development and wellbeing, and the Team Leader will be responsible for taking strong corporate leadership on these issues in the directorate and more generally across the MoJ.
Skills and Experience
The successful candidate should be able to evidence the following criteria in the application form and at assessment.
Skills
Successful candidates will demonstrate strong leadership and line management skills and have experience of successfully managing projects or programmes across complex systems, ideally with some of this experience being within a policy environment. Working with key stakeholders will be an important part of the role, and candidates will need to demonstrate excellent communication skills, the ability to deliver results quickly in highly fluid environments, an ability to analyse complex problems using evidence to identify what needs to change, and the ability to deploy project management techniques. Successful candidates will be self-starting, committed to continuous professional development and enjoy working at pace.
Essential criteria
- Excellent programme management skills, including experience of developing and maintaining programme governance and the use of risk management and planning tools
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- The ability to take onboard complex information and conflicting views and to make sound judgements and to articulate these persuasively.
- The ability to deal with a wide range of stakeholders including influential or challenging individuals/bodies and to build strong working relationships.
- Experience of designing and supporting governance arrangements
Desirable criteria
- Awareness of policy work and family justice issues
Application process
You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.
Experience
You will be asked to provide your work history during the application process.
Behaviours
Please provide examples of how you have met each one of the behaviours listed below (see Annex A for more information):
- Delivering at Pace (Lead Behaviour)
- Working Together
- Leadership
Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade (Level 4 – Grade 7 and Grade 6 or equivalent which can be found on page 8):
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 Delivering at Pace. 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 remotely. During the interview, we will be assessing you on Behaviours and Strengths from the Success Profiles framework.
Interviews are expected to take place in February 2021.
At the interview stage, any candidates who do not score high enough to be appointed to this role but were assessed by the interview panel as having passed the minimal requirements for an SEO/Band B could be offered a role at the lower grade in the future.
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