Role title:

Executive Assistant to the Directors of Training

0.5 FTE to cover a period of maternity leave

Team/Directorate:

Strategy, Governance and Change team/Judicial College

Overview of the Judicial Office

This is standardised wording and cannot be amended.

The Judicial Office (JO) reports to, and is accountable, to the Lady Chief Justice (LCJ). It was established in 2006 to provide support to the LCJ and to the wider judiciary in upholding the rule of law and in delivering justice impartially, speedily and efficiently, following the Constitutional Reform Act 2005.

In addition, we support, and are accountable to, the Senior President of Tribunals, whose responsibilities extend to Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The JO is an interesting and unique place to work. Everything we do is in support of upholding the independence and impartiality of the judiciary. We work closely with HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS), the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and others across Government as well as with the legal professions.

We are an Arm’s Length Body sponsored by the Ministry of Justice. This creates an interesting and complex environment in which to work where we agree our priorities with the senior judiciary and receive our funding to deliver them from the Ministry of Justice. The Judicial Office has been through a period of significant growth resulting from an expansion of our remit and responsibilities.

See JO staff talk about working here: https://design102.wistia.com/medias/uhgtmbtnlv

Overview of the team

The Judicial College provides training courses and guidance for 24,000 judicial office holders on behalf of the Lady Chief Justice, Senior President of Tribunals and Chief Coroner. Its vision is to be a world leader in judicial education. This is an exciting time to join the College as it continues to deliver, develop and enhance the training programme at a time of change across the justice system.

The successful candidate will join the Governance and Policy team which sits within the Strategy, Governance and Change team - a central, cross-cutting team that operates within the Judicial College to develop policy, support governance, and drive delivery of strategic priorities.

Hybrid Working Requirement

This is standardised wording and cannot be amended.

This position is eligible for hybrid working (current minimum requirement for time spent at base location is 60%, which is subject to business requirements).

Summary of the role

The Judicial College is recruiting for an Executive Assistant to the Directors of Training, who are three leadership judges. The role is in the Governance and Policy team which sits within the Strategy, Governance and Change team.

The Strategy, Governance and Change team operates across three main sites, and this role may be based at any of the following locations: Leeds, London or Loughborough.

The role is 0.5 FTE (18 hours per working week). Specific hours and days will be agreed with the successful candidate.

The role is to cover a period of maternity leave.

The role is open on loan terms.

Responsibilities,

Activities & Duties:

The post-holder will:

• Establish, manage and maintain relationships with key strategic stakeholders including the Directors of Training (DoTs), members of the judiciary, the senior leadership team, private offices, judicial clerks and team leaders in order to effectively manage the diaries of the Directors of Training.

• Support all aspects of diary management for the DoTs, including resolving competing demands and ensuring strategic prioritisation of time to ensure smooth operations. This includes sharing the leave and sitting days with the diaries of the Senior Leadership Team, completing regular updates to the Judicial Executive Board forward look diary in accordance with set deadlines and updating DoT diaries with course data as required.

• Attend regular meetings with the DoTs to ascertain scheduling commitments, as well as attending and participating in team and department meetings.

• Liaise with the Support Managers on the scheduling commitments of the DoTs, alerting them where appropriate to information support needs such as briefings and reports.

• Set up meetings as needed (including room booking/ensuring appropriate digital arrangements are in place/printing documentation).

• Manage and triage multiple inboxes, prioritising and coordinating responses as required.

• Arrange travel and accommodation for national and international engagements for members of the judiciary and senior leadership team balancing efficiency, cost-effectiveness and operational requirements.

• Any other tasks required commensurate to the role including ad-hoc administrative support.

Essential Knowledge, Experience and Skills

• Ability to quickly build relationships with diverse stakeholders at all levels

• Clear and effective communicator, both verbally and in writing

• Excellent organisational skills and responsivity, with the ability to understand and prioritise competing requirements

• Proficiency with office software, in particular inbox and calendar management

• Strong attention to detail

Desirable Knowledge, Experience and Skills

N/A

Behaviours (for Recruitment/Success Profiles):

• Working Together

• Communicating and Influencing

• Managing a Quality Service

Assessment process at application

This vacancy is using Success Profiles.

To apply for this vacancy, applicants will need to submit the following: 

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you provide employment history that relates to the essential criteria, and that any gaps in employment history within the last 3 years are explained. The CV should not exceed more than 2 x A4 pages and you should insert your CV into the "Job History" section on the Civil Service Jobs application form.

• A Statement of Suitability (max 250 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role in reference to the essential requirements highlighted.

For the shortlist, we will select applicants demonstrating the best fit for the role by considering the evidence provided in your application.

In the event of a large number of applicants, an initial sift will be conducted on the lead behaviour: Working Together. Those who are successful in the initial sift will then be scored on all elements of the application.

Assessment process at interview

During the panel interview, candidates will be asked behaviour-based questions (using the three behaviours listed below) to assess your skills, experience and capabilities.

The behaviours to be tested at interview are:

• Working Together

• Communicating and Influencing

• Managing a Quality Service

Candidates will also be asked strength-based questions to explore what you enjoy and your motivations relevant to the job role.

In addition, candidates will be required to complete a virtual in-person in-tray exercise via MS Teams to assess their decision-making, time management and organisational skills. Further details will be provided at interview.

Interviews will be held remotely, via MS Teams.

Interview dates will be confirmed with candidates in due course.

Security clearance required:

Select one of the below.

(this will be determined by the location)

• DBS

• CTC

• SC

• DV

Please note:

Central Government policy dictates that applicants for National Security Clearance must be a resident in the UK for these minimum periods:

• CTC - 3 years

• SC - 5 years

• DV - 10 years

CTC