Ministry of Justice

Background

The Parades Commission was established under the Public Processions (NI) Act 1998. The duties and functions of the Commission set out in 1998 Act are:1.     To promote greater understanding by the general public of issues concerning public processions.

2.     To promote and facilitate mediation as a means of resolving disputes concerning public processions.

3.     To keep itself generally informed as to the conduct of public processions and protest meetings.

4.     To keep under review, and make such recommendations as it thinks fit to the Secretary of State concerning the operation of the Act.

The Commission are currently seeking to appoint a Caseworker who will assist it in its decision making by providing advice and guidance.  The caseworker plays a crucial role in stakeholder engagement and will work alongside the Deputy Secretary and Secretary to ensure the Commission is fully briefed and receives representation from all stakeholders during its deliberation process.

For more information about what we do:

Visit: www.paradescommission.org

About the Role: 

Duties and Responsibilities: 

The main responsibilities of the role include but are not limited to:

• Establishing and maintaining relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, including parade/protest organisers, PSNI, local political representatives, residents’ groups, church representatives, PUL and CRN community reps, members of the public etc. 
• Building up an extensive knowledge of parading in Northern Ireland and undertaking research in relation to parading in other jurisdictions as required.
• Dealing with sensitive/contentious parades – seeking additional information and arranging oral/written representation from stakeholders; drafting determinations/correspondence following decisions made by the Commission; advising parade/protest organisers of the outcome of Commission considerations and dealing with enquiries and complaints.
• Preparing detailed briefs for the Commission on sensitive parades; presenting information to the Commission at formal meetings both verbally and in report format.
 

The Caseworker reports directly to the Deputy Secretary and to the Secretary. The post holder will exercise a high degree of autonomy for his/her particular area of work and have the ability to work as a key member of a small secretariat team. Hybrid working arrangements are offered as part of this role.

Note: 

The successful officer may be required to work normal office hours of 9am to 5pm, however additional hours may be required particularly during the main parading period of June – August. There will also be restrictions on annual leave during these months. 

Essential Criteria:  

The post holder will need to demonstrate the following in their application and at interview: 

The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate: 

• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Strong interpersonal skills to deal with a range of stakeholders
• Integrity, impartiality and sensitivity; and
• Local political awareness 

Notes:

The successful candidate for this opportunity will be a staff officer or equivalent substantive grade or meet the eligibility requirements for the post.

The post holder will be required to work outside normal conditioned hours e.g. evenings, weekends and public holidays to attend outreach meetings, Commission meetings and parades. 

Due to the nature of the work this can often be at short notice. The post holder will be, where possible, expected to take annual leave outside the busy parading periods of Easter and during June – August.

·        CTC clearance is an essential requirement for this post and successful applicants must undergo CTC clearance on taking up post if not already held.

• The post holder must have access to a form of transport for use in connection with work.

 Desirable Criteria:

• Previous experience of working with, or supporting relationships with organisations in a group structure;
• Previous experience of supporting senior decision makers

• Previous experience of working independently, to deadlines
• Previous experience of analysing information, producing concise briefings and reports

Behaviours:

We will assess you against the Success Profiles behaviours at HEO level during the application sift and interview process.

• Use evidence and knowledge to support accurate, expert decisions and advice. Carefully consider alternative options, implications and risks of decisions.
• Communicate purpose and direction with clarity, integrity and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses and opinions of others.
•  Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources and support.
• Take responsibility for delivering timely and quality results with focus and drive

Experience:

Please provide a work history no longer than 500 words outlining how you meet the essential and desirable criteria. Both will be used in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

Your statement of suitability needs to set out evidence of how your experience meets the requirements set out above. Your layout is entirely your preference; you may choose narrative, bullets, etc. One narrative example may cover the requirements needed. You don’t have to explain the whole process, just what you have done and the skills and experience you have used. Share with us what makes you suited to this role and why. What you can do, the skills you have that are transferable and the life experience or passion you have that are linked to this role.

If you don’t have work-based examples then give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in. 

You will also be asked to complete a CV with details of your education, professional qualifications, previous skills and full employment history. Your CV will not be formally assessed so please put the main evidence of your skills into your personal statement. Your CV will be used to add context to your personal statement.

More information on behaviours and success profiles can be found here.

Please note that in the event of a large number of applications being received we may run the initial sift on the lead Behaviour Working Together 

Interview:

You will be assessed against the same behaviours at the interview stage and will be asked to provide examples of how you have demonstrated the behaviours.

It may help to use one or more examples of a piece of work you have completed or a situation you have been in and use the WHO or STAR model to explain:   

• WHO- What it was? How you approached the work/situation? What the Outcomes were, what did you achieve? 
• STAR- What was the Situation? What were the Tasks? What Action did you take?  What were the Results of your actions? 

All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit.

Offer

Once all interviews have been completed, you will be notified of the outcome by email. Offers will be made in strict merit order to the highest scoring candidate first.

The successful candidate will be notified of a start date following successful security checks.

Additional information received after the closing date will not be considered.  Failure to provide sufficient information in support of an application prior to the closing date will not be considered as grounds for an appeal if an applicant is not shortlisted for interview. 

Security Clearance:

This role requires CTC vetting given the access to sensitive information afforded by the job role.  You can find more information by reviewing the information held in the following links:

United Kingdom Security Vetting: Applicant - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The vetting charter - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

In addition, there is a minimum UK residency requirement set by the Cabinet Office which is dependent on the security level required for the role.

Neither Detached Duty terms nor relocation costs will apply to this post.

Artificial Intelligence

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.

Further Information:

Further information about the post may be obtained from Una Williamson via email to una@paradescommission.org

All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit.

This job description should not be taken as constituting conditions of employment.

Please note that due to the high interest in NIO opportunities, feedback cannot be given if you are unsuccessful at the sift stage. Feedback is available on request if unsuccessful following the interview.

Complaints:

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.  Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles.

Please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@sscl.gse.gov.uk) in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages:

http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints/

https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/code/

Reserve Lists:

In the event that the advertised post following interview, identifies more appointable applicants than available posts, we may hold applicant details on a merit/reserve list for a period of 12 months from which further future appointments can be made. Candidates placed on a reserve list will be informed of this. Those candidates who do not wish to remain on the reserve list should contact

MoJ-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com to be removed from the reserve list.

Interview dates 

Date(s) TBC 

Closing Date: 

Monday 9^th March 2026 , 23:55 hours.