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 MPSI Directorate is recruiting permanently for six Grade 7 Lead Policy Advisor roles. This is an external campaign and open to all, including current civil servants on level transfer and on promotion.
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)
Current circumstances require everyone to work from home for all or the majority of the time depending on local restrictions and individual circumstances.
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.
Job Description Overview
The Priority Projects Team is a high-profile, friendly and supportive team working at the heart of the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ’s) strategy function. We work across the whole of MoJ’s policy agenda to enable the department to deliver its highest priorities. We do this by delivering short policy projects to the highest standards.
Each posting is unique, fast-paced and exciting, with members of the team embedding in policy teams as an individual or as part of small team for anywhere from a few weeks up to six months. Recently our projects have included working on the 2020 Spending Review, developing the department’s approach to court fees and prison reform, and the response to COVID-19.
We are looking for motivated, resilient and adaptable individuals who are able to get to grips with new subject areas quickly, have strong analytical and problem-solving skills, are able to communicate complex ideas clearly and can provide supportive leadership to those they line-manage. You will need to be confident working independently and comfortable working with ambiguity, leading the delivery of complex and challenging policy projects across the Ministry of Justice’s policy responsibilities.
You will be confident in managing relationships with senior stakeholders, providing the strategic overview for a project whilst ensuring day to day milestones are met. You will provide a “bridge” between PPT and the teams they are working in; ensuring good communication with activity managers throughout projects
You will be part of the PPT Senior Management Team, adopting a leadership role across PPT and feeding into discussions on performance of those colleagues you directly line manage as well as other Band Bs and Cs on the team.
The role will give you the opportunity to work with senior stakeholders across MoJ as well as other government departments and will usually involve engagement with the ministerial team and private offices.
In return, we are committed to providing you with a positive team culture where you can thrive. People are our most valuable resource and through flexible working, our commitment to learning and development, network events and mentoring, we ensure our directorate is a positive environment to work in.
The team has a diverse range of experience, some who are new to the Civil Service from the private sector or the third sector; and others who have worked in different parts of MoJ and other central government departments. We want to maintain a diversity of backgrounds and experience. We are a friendly team and you will have a full induction into the team and with many training opportunities to enable your personal development.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
MOJ is one of the largest government departments, employing around 70,000 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
Lead Policy Advisor in the Priority Projects Team – the role
As a Lead Policy Adviser in the Priority Projects Team you will:
- Lead the delivery of policy projects in priority areas of the department – the specific work area will be based on a regular allocations process. It will be your responsibility to establish the scope of each project you lead, ensuring risks to delivery are actively managed.
- Work collaboratively with other policy professionals, analysts, lawyers and operational colleagues to understand complex issues quickly and develop robust and evidence-based solutions. This will include working with quantitative and qualitative data to develop a robust evidence base.
- Establish strong relationships with key stakeholders from across MoJ and wider government quickly and secure the trust and confidence of senior leaders in a short space to time.
- Produce high-quality written and oral briefings for senior officials and Ministers, distilling complex ideas into clear and concise advice.
- These roles will have line management responsibility for up to three Band B/Senior Executive Officers and the jobholder will be expected to coach team members to deliver excellent performance, with a strong focus on personal development and wellbeing.
Alongside your core role, you will have the opportunity to take a leading role in corporate projects across the wider team such as Wellbeing, Diversity & Inclusion, mentoring, recruitment, etc. to underpin how we work as a team and contribute to MoJ as a whole.
In return, you will have access to many training opportunities on a range of topics, for example: leadership and coaching, effective writing, stakeholder engagement and partnership working.
Skills and Experience
- Previous experience in government is not essential, but you will need to have good political awareness and the ability to communicate effectively to a wide range of audiences and the ability to solve problems using structured problem-solving techniques.
- Experience of working in a project environment and/or strategy consulting experience would be an advantage.
Application process
You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.
Experience
To apply, you will be asked to submit a CV alongside a statement of suitability (no more than 750 words). This statement should explain your relevant experience and why you believe you are a suitable candidate for this role, providing evidence against the key skills listed below:
- Working collaboratively – the ability to build strong relationships within and outside government to ensure you take an open approach to policymaking, using collaborative approaches and ensuring the recommendations you make are informed by a broad range of input and expertise, and meet user needs.
- Making effective decisions - experience of working with large amounts of sometimes conflicting or incomplete information to make clear recommendations which take account of the broader context, ensuring policy development is data driven and evidence-based.
- Project delivery – You will be highly organised, ideally with experience of working in a project environment, with the proven ability to impose structure on complex problems, scope projects, set-up and lead teams and bring colleagues together to reach your end goal.
- Communicating complex ideas clearly – understanding and clearly articulating complex issues to senior stakeholders and ministers, drawing on your understanding of the bigger picture to ensure communications are clear, effective and relevant.
- Leadership - you will be an open and engaging leader, committed to building an inclusive and high-performing culture within the team, supporting your direct reports through coaching and a focus on personal development, and playing an active leadership and management role across your directorate and the Ministry of Justice.
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.
Behaviours
At interview you will need to provide evidence of how you have met each one of the behaviours listed below (see Annex A for more information):
- Leadership
- Working Together
- Making Effective Decisions
- Delivering at Pace
Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade (Level 4 – Grade 7 and Grade 6 or equivalent):
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf
Interviews are expected to take place April 2021.
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.
Contact information
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 Mark Hayward (Head of the Priority Projects Team), email: mark.hayward3@justice.gov.uk
Support with your application
We are running an online information session for potential applicants on the W/C 8th March. During the session you will hear from existing Priority Projects Team members and have an opportunity to ask questions about working in the team and the application process. If you would like to attend, please email Rikki.Wolkind@justice.gov.uk with the subject title - Grade 7, Information Session. You will be sent the link in due course.
If you are unable to attend the event but would like additional information about the role, previous projects, what it is like working in our team or the applications process we encourage you to contact Mark Hayward (Head of the Priority Projects Team) mark.hayward3@justice.gov.uk or Rikki Wolkind (Lead Policy Adviser) Rikki.Wolkind@justice.gov.uk.
If you are applying from outside the civil service, you might find this blog-post useful. It gives some useful tips for how to approach a civil service application: https://openinnovation.blog.gov.uk/2020/03/02/how-to-get-a-job-in-the-civil-service/
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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