Policy and Operations Officer
SEO
Corporate Services Team, Law Commission
The Law Commission is recruiting permanently for a Policy and Operations office at SEO
level. 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 have the option to be based at one of the following locations:
1. 102 Petty France, London
In order for Law Commission to meet its evolving business needs all Law Commission staff
are expected to attend their base location (102 Petty France) at least 2 days a week. This
hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend
their base location more frequently.
Ways of Working
At the Law Commission 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.
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
Salary
New entrants to the Civil Service will be expected to join on the minimum of the pay range.
If you are already a civil servant and are successful in an external recruitment competition
for a role with us, your starting pay will be the better of:
•
promotion terms or transfer terms, as appropriate; or
•
pay on appointment arrangements (minimum of pay range)
About The Law Commission
The Law Commission is the statutory body set up under the Law Commissions Act 1965 to
keep the law of England and Wales under review and to recommend reform where it is
needed. It operates as an independent non-departmental body sponsored by the Ministry of
Justice.
The Commission’s aims are:
• To ensure that the law is as fair, modern, simple and as cost-effective as possible
• To conduct research and consultations in order to make recommendations for reform
for consideration by Parliament
To codify the law, eliminate anomalies, repeal obsolete and unnecessary enactments and
reduce the number of separate statutes.
Further information can be found at For more information about each role, and how to
apply, please visit our website at: Current vacancies - Law Commission
The Work of the Corporate Services Team
The Law Commission of England and Wales is a statutory independent body. We
aim:
• to ensure that the law is as fair, modern, simple and as cost-effective as
possible
• to conduct research and consultations in order to make systematic
recommendations for consideration by Parliament, and
• to codify the law, eliminate anomalies, repeal obsolete and unnecessary
enactments and reduce the number of separate statutes.
In addition to four law reform teams staffed by Lawyers, Legal Assistants, and
Research Assistants, the Commission has a Corporate Services Team that leads on
organisational strategy, finance, HR, communications, and other corporate functions.
As Policy and Operations Officer, you will be working under Corporate Operations
and Services Lead and the Head of Corporate Strategy and Operations to manage
our key corporate functions and organisational policies. It is a wide-ranging role, and
your focus will be on supporting the organisation’s corporate and strategic
objectives.
Job Title - the role
As Policy and Operations Officer, you will have regular contact with the entire
organisation, supporting them to deliver on their projects. You will be dealing with
queries that are escalated from project teams, supporting the Head of Corporate
Strategy and Operations, Head of Legal and the CEOs with their strategic decision
making, and working closely with the Corporate Operations and Services Lead to
support our governance structure. Whatever you are working on, you will be
expected to promote a culture of continuous service improvement.
This role is suited to a self-starter who wants to stand out in an organisation. There
are lots of opportunities to lead work and get exposure to senior management and
spaces. The role will be fairly independent, although lots of support will be offered
through the line management chain. The successful candidate will be in a small and
friendly corporate team, and part of the wider Law Commission community.
This position will change over time depending on the operational needs of the
organisation, so the role holder should be comfortable working with ambiguity and
enjoy new challenges.
You will also:
1. Support delivery of our office/estate move, including working closely with our
Board, Chair and NEBMs to understand the organisation’s needs, and
working with OGDs to deliver the best result for the Commission
2. Deliver on tasks related to risk management, FoI and Data Protection
3. Support the core corporate work in the organisation, including working with
our Corporate Mission Groups
4. Contribute to briefings and reports, working closely with Head of Legal, Head
of Strategy and the CEOs.
5. Actively engage with the Public Bodies Centre of Excellence and other
business areas in MoJ as necessary
6. Contribute to strategic resourcing planning
Desirable experience of/in:
• Working independently
• Working in a fast-paced environment
• Corporate/cultural or operational work
• Supporting senior leadership
• Managing a large project
Essential Criteria:
• Excellent communication and influencing skills.
• Well-developed analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to communicate and present complex issues and to develop good
working relationships with a variety of stakeholders.
• Demonstrable influencing/negotiating skills.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and relationship building skills.
• The ability to work flexibly and at pace.
• A drive to seek continuous improvement of processes and ways of working.
Desirable Criteria:
• Innovative AI and/or technology skills.
• Experience in strategy and/or corporate services.
• Project management skills.
• An understanding of the way lawyers work.
Application process
You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.
Experience
You will be asked to provide a Work History during the application process in order to assess
any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.
Behaviours
During the application process you will be asked to provide an example of how you have met
the following behaviour (see Annex A for more information):
•
Seeing the Bigger Picture
•
Changing and Improving
•
Delivering at Pace
•
Working Together
Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_da
ta/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf
Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the lead behaviour
of Seeing the Bigger Picture. 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 panel interview, you will be asked behaviour-based questions to explore in detail
what you are capable of, and strengths-based questions to also explore what you enjoy, and
your motivations relevant to the job role.
There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions
in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on
what you enjoy doing and what you do well.
You can refer to the CS Strengths dictionary for more details: Success Profiles - Civil
Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)
In addition to the Behaviour(s) listed in the application form, you will be asked by the
interview panel to provide examples of how you meet the behaviours listed below.
•
Seeing the Bigger Picture
•
Making Effective Decisions
•
Working Together
•
Communicating and Influencing
Interviews are expected to take place January 2026
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. Katherine.Sirrell@lawcommission.gov.uk
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.