Skip to content

General Information

Salary
£49,325 - £53,081
Working Pattern
Full Time, Part Time, Part Time/Job Share, Flexible Working
Vacancy Approach
External
Location
London
Region
London
Closing Date
05-Jan-2026
Post Type
Permanent
Civil Service Grade
SEO
Number of jobs available
1
Reserve List
12 Months
Job ID
12719

Descriptions & requirements

Job description

Senior communication officer (public confidence)

Grade: Band B/SEO

Location: Royal Courts of Justice, London

Overview

The Sentencing Council for England and Wales is an independent non-departmental public body and part of the Ministry of Justice family of arm’s-length bodies. The Council produces guidelines that provide a sentencing framework for the judiciary throughout the courts in England and Wales. The Council also has a statutory remit to improve public confidence in the criminal justice system and sentencing in particular.

The sentencing of offenders is an issue of great public interest, with high-profile cases frequently attracting the attention of the media and Parliament, and the context is changing. The government is implementing reforms recommended by the Independent Sentencing Review and the Independent Review of the Criminal Courts that will make fundamental changes to the structure of sentencing and how the courts work.

The Council is chaired by a Court of Appeal judge and has 14 members, including judges from every level of the criminal court jurisdiction, the Director of Public Prosecutions, a barrister, a chief constable and other senior representatives from the fields of offender rehabilitation, victim welfare and the academic study of criminal law.

Our principal stakeholders are judges and magistrates, but the guidelines are also used by a range of other criminal justice professionals and are of particular significance to victims and witnesses.

The Sentencing Council is supported by the Office of the Sentencing Council, a high-performing, multi-disciplinary team of policy makers, lawyers, statisticians, researchers and communication professionals.

The communication team is responsible for managing all communication and reputation issues; planning and delivering high-quality communication activities to support the Council’s work to improve public confidence in sentencing; providing a strategic engagement function and a press office; and delivering digital reforms.

Job description

The Senior communication officer (public confidence) will take a leading role in developing and delivering communication and stakeholder engagement activities to support the Office of the Sentencing Council public confidence and communication strategy.

The post-holder will also provide support as required for the Council’s press office.

The post-holder is expected to acquire a thorough knowledge of the Council’s work and the environment within which we operate. They must be able to present complex legal information in a way that is engaging and easily understood by non-expert audiences.

The post reports to the Head of communication and digital and involves engagement with the most senior levels of the judiciary and senior criminal justice professionals.

Key responsibilities

Responsibilities of the role

  • Developing a thorough understanding of the Council’s guidelines, consultations, research, analysis and other work, and the context within which the Council functions, in order to communicate the Council’s work and key messages to non-experts accurately and completely.
  • Developing and delivering public confidence communication strategies and activities to improve knowledge and understanding of sentencing among criminal justice focused stakeholders and public audiences, including victims of crime, witnesses and offenders.
  • Contributing to the Council’s strategic engagement work, identifying engagement opportunities, developing briefs for stakeholder meetings, compiling content for presentations and speeches and working with stakeholders and partners.
  • Developing and maintaining an appropriate social media profile for the Council, planning and developing content and monitoring performance.
  • Supporting the Council’s press office when required, handling media enquiries and drafting news releases, articles, bulletins, briefings and lines for external media and internal, criminal justice channels. Occasionally providing an out-of-hours press contact.
  • Writing content for the Council’s website, blog and social media accounts.
  • Representing the Communication team at meetings and public engagements, as required, and contributing to the effective running of the office.

Skills and qualifications

Essential criteria

Excellent written, verbal and presentational skills, including the ability to assimilate complex issues quickly and draft clear, concise, engaging copy for a range of audiences and channels.

Experience of working on public-facing communication activities or campaigns, or experience of stakeholder engagement.

Sound news sense and an awareness of political context.

Ability to work autonomously and proactively to tight deadlines.

Desirable criteria

Experience of building credibility at a senior level, for example with senior judiciary, Ministers or senior officials.

Experience of working in a press office and handling enquiries from journalists.

Experience of working on communication within the criminal justice system would be an advantage, as would experience of working with the judiciary.

Membership of the Government Communication Service and/or the Chartered Institute of PR, Public Relations and Communications Association, Chartered Institute of Marketing or other professional body.

How to apply

Please submit a personal statement (maximum 1,000 words) to communication@sentencingcouncil.gov.uk, telling us why you would be the best person for the post.

You will be assessed against the Civil Service Success Profiles Framework for:

·     Communicating and influencing

·     Managing a quality service

You will also be assessed for your professional competence. Please refer to the Government Communication Service Competency framework – technical specifications relevant to the grade of this post (SIO):

·     Insight

·     Ideas

·     Implementation

If you are invited for interview, you will be asked to complete a short, written exercise.

Contact

If you would like to talk to us about this vacancy, please contact Phil Hodgson, Head of communication and digital, on 020 7071 5788 or at phil.hodgson@sentencingcouncil.gov.uk.


Additional Information

Working Arrangements & Further Information

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity.

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.

For nationally advertised role: all successful candidates will be appointed to the nearest viable office nearest to their home postcode and on its respective pay scale.  This will be at either a HQ building (subject to desk allocation, a Justice Collaboration Centre (JCC) or a Justice Satellite Office (JSO) – See Map. All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity). 

For current MoJ employees, your base location will need to be changed to the nearest viable office (to your home postcode), either at a HQ building, JCC or JSO within the National Office Network and moved its location’s respective pay scale (any legacy arrangements/locations will need to be amended).

Some of MoJ’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.

MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain their grade on lateral transfer.

All candidates who are currently in receipt of Mark Time / Pay Protection should ensure they are familiar with the new policy on permanent and temporary promotion which can be found on the employee intranet.

Flexible working hours

The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. MoJ welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.

Benefits

The MoJ offers a range of benefits:

Annual Leave

Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years’ service.

There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.

Pension

The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.

Training

The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Networks

The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

Support

  • A range of ‘Family Friendly’ policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
  • Access to flexible benefits such as voluntary benefits, retail vouchers and discounts on a range of goods and services.
  • For moves to or from another employer or moves across the Civil Service this can have implications on your eligibility to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for alternative government childcare support schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. More information can be found on www.GOV.UK or Childcare Choices. You can determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
  • Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
  • Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code 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. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order

As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.

For more information on applying for a role as a candidate with a disability or long-term condition, please watch our animated videos.

You will be able to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process within the application form. If you need additional help completing the application form, please contact the TBS Recruitment Enquiries Team.

Diversity & Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

A Great Place to Work for Veterans

The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces.
For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans

Redeployment Interview Scheme

Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ is committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are 'at risk of redundancy'.

MoJ is able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidates will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

Civil Service Nationality Rules

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

  • UK nationals
  • nationals of the Republic of Ireland
  • nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
  • individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
  • Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules

Reserve list

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.


Contact Information

MoJ:

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference: 12719

HMPPS

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference: 12719

Application form stage assessments

Behaviours
A sift based on the lead behaviour, Communicating and Influencing, may be held if a large number of applications are received. If a large number of applications remain after the initial sift, your application will be progressed to a full sift, where all behaviours will then be considered.
Behaviours Application Form Question Word Limit
250
Communicating and Influencing
Managing a Quality Service
Technical
Technical Questions Application Form Question Word Limit
250
Competency 1: Insight
Competency 2: Ideas
Competency 3: Implementation

Interview stage assessments

Interview Dates
Expected: W/C 19 January
Behaviours
Communicating and Influencing
Managing a Quality Service
Technical
Competency 1: Insight
Competency 2: Ideas
Competency 3: Implementation
Level of security checks required
DBS Standard
Counter Terrorism Check (CTC)

Use of Artificial Intelligence (Al)

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.  Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.