Background

The work of the team: 

Private Office and Parliament Directorate, P&L

The Parliament and Legislation (P&L) team manages the department's parliamentary business including all primary and secondary legislation, all parliamentary scrutiny of the department (written and oral parliamentary questions, select committee liaison, debates, statements and briefing for No.10 and the Leader of the House), and the strategic approach to the department’s interaction with Parliament as a stakeholder.  

The work is fast-paced and requires the ability to adapt to new information, constantly reprioritise and work closely with senior stakeholders and ministers. The team sits within the Private Office and Parliament (POP) Directorate. 

The Head of Legislation and work of the Legislation Team

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has a busy legislative programme which has a range of high-profile provisions. These deliver on key priorities for the Department, Lord Chancellor, and Prime Minister. As a team we provide Bill Management and Legislative Strategy functions. The Grade 6 role heads up this team. This is a pivotal job at the heart of one of the largest and most complex Government departments in Whitehall, with direct and constant access to the ministerial and senior team. This is an important leadership role and we are looking for an engaging, enthusiastic person to join our POP management team.

The postholder will need to flex across multiple Bills and strategic priorities. Within the team there are numerous live Bills in Parliament that are managed by Grade 7 Bill Manager’s and the Grade 6 postholder will in turn manage those individuals and have overall responsibility. Additionally, the team provides a legislative strategy function advising policy group on how to secure legislation to enact polices and leads on advising ministers on what legislation should be pursued and how best to ensure it is included in the programme. The postholder will have the opportunity to work on a variety of high-profile policy areas with teams across the department and Whitehall, including, PBL Secretariat, No10 Leg colleagues and Whips’ Offices.  

We pride ourselves on supporting each other, teams across POP, the wider department and across Whitehall to deliver MoJ’s busy legislative programme. Strong leadership and interpersonal skills are essential. Due to the nature of bill work and the sitting hours of Parliament, the postholder will be sometimes expected to work out of normal office hours.  

The Role

The job holder will have to undertake the following duties and responsibilities: 

• Ensure the department meets all its legislative obligations;

• Provide line management to the Legislation Team and provide corporate leadership to the wider Parliamentary and Legislation team and POP Directorate, creating a supportive and empowering environment for staff to operate;

• Deputise for the Deputy Director in their absence;

• Encourage the team to forge and maintain effective working relationships with Ministers’ offices, Special Advisor’s, press office, officials, other government department legislation Branches and, clerks and officials in both Houses of Parliament;

• Ensuring the department provide the strongest possible legislative and parliamentary handling advice on submissions to Ministers, building a network of contacts in Parliament and across government to achieve this.

• Build the capability of the department in responding to Parliamentary Business; and;

• Provide strategic advice on the handling of the bill throughout its passage to ministers and the centre inc. briefing the Secretary of State and other Ministers. 

• The postholder will be expected to speak with confidence to more senior colleagues and be willing to challenge assumptions.  

• The post holder will also need to actively engage with corporate activities and be a leader for the Directorate as a member of the Senior Management Team.

Skills and Experience

This role would suit an experienced, motivated, and organised Grade 6, or substantive and well-established Grade 7. This is a high profile and stretching role. Although not essential, it is desirable to have parliamentary or legislative experience. 

Essential

• Leadership - the candidate will lead the team as well as other stakeholders in the Department and beyond. The postholder will need to support and inspire staff to achieve their best and effectively manage change. The candidate will also have to show corporate leadership across the Directorate.  

• Calm under pressure and resilience - the post-holder will need to remain resilient and calm under pressure and cut through complex and time-sensitive issues to keep the delivery of work on track.

• Collaborating with Ministers, senior officials, and their Private Offices at pace - The post-holders will need to be able to collaborate with Ministers, senior officials, and their Private Offices to ensure Ministers are briefed effectively and have the support they need throughout the legislative process. They will be expected to build strong relationships with these key stakeholders. Sound judgement and a strong political antenna is necessary, with the ability to be creative and inventive in horizon-scanning and problem-solving.

• Written and oral communication - The post-holders will need to have excellent written communications skills and the ability to draft effectively under time pressures, they will have experience of working to deadlines and of briefing to a high standard. The post-holder will also need excellent people skills and have a strong ability to build relationships beyond you the immediate team to deliver through others. Further, the postholder will need to be able to effectively lead meetings, and brief seniors and Ministers, often at short notice and with confidence.

• Strong organisational skills and problem-solving - The post-holders will need excellent organisational skills and be able to keep several disparate elements on track for delivery supporting members from across the team. The postholder will also need to make balanced, effective decisions considering competing priorities and pressures, often with political ambiguity.

• Stakeholder management - The post involve extensive stakeholder engagement beyond the team and the ability to see several points of view and then form a view that supports the Government’s agenda to deliver for Ministers and the Department. The post-holders will need to build strong working relationships with a wide range of colleagues across the MoJ and beyond, including PBL Secretariat and Whips’ Offices. 

Desirable

• Knowledge of Parliamentary processes - it would be desirable for the post holder to have experience and knowledge of parliamentary processes. This could be through experience of working on legislation or with Parliament in general.  

Eligibility

This opportunity is open to existing civil servants from across government departments, agencies and arm’s length bodies. Applicants must have been appointed in line with Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles (i.e. through fair and open competition), have successfully completed their probationary period, and demonstrate satisfactory performance and attendance. Candidates must also have the agreement of their home line manager to apply and be released on loan if successful. This role is offered as a loan opportunity and is open to applicants at the same substantive grade, as well as those applying on promotion (for example, substantive Grade 7 applicants applying for a Grade 6 role), with any promotion applying on a temporary basis for the duration of the loan. Any appointment will be subject to the completion of the necessary pre-employment checks and agreement of terms between the home and host departments. Given the urgent need to fill the role applicants should expect to start asap. Please ensure that your line manager and deputy director have approved the release request should you be successful.

NSV Required

The role requires SC vetting level and to be eligible to apply for this role you should have been present in the UK continuously for the past 3 years.

If you do not hold the appropriate level of vetting, you may still apply but must meet the required criteria as you will be required to undergo vetting to attain the enhanced vetting requirement. If you are not cleared at the required NSV level, you will not be able to take up the role and the offer will be withdrawn.

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)

How to apply

Please complete the application form. You will need to provide the following information:

• CV, including work history

• Statement of Suitability - no more than 750 words, with consideration of the essential and desirable criteria above;

If successful at the sift stage, you will be invited to a formal interview where you will be tested on the following:

• Success Profiles Question 1 (Experience)

• Success Profiles Question 2 (Behaviour - Leadership).

• Success Profiles Question 3 (Behaviour - Making Effective Decisions)

• Success Profiles Question 4 (Behaviour - Communicating and Influencing)

• You will also be asked Strength questions.

You must ensure that any evidence submitted as part of your application, including your career history and statement of suitability, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note that plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own. 

As a Disability Confident employer, the MoJ offers an interview to any disabled applicant who indicates they would like to be considered for an interview as a disabled applicant and meets the minimum criteria required for the role.

You can indicate that you would like to be considered for an interview as a disabled candidate by completing the related section of the application form, should you be assessed as meeting the minimum criteria,

Applications will be anonymised before assessment.

If you have any queries about the role, or you wish to discuss the role prior to applying, please contact Annabella.Owen@justice.gov.uk

MoJ is committed to having inclusive and accessible recruitment. This includes by offering and implementing reasonable adjustments to enable disabled applicants to be considered for a job on an equal basis with non-disabled applicants. If you require reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process, you should contact: cpplrecruitment@justice.gov.uk

General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) 2018: The information provided by you in this application and the supporting documentation will be used to consider your suitability for the post. Following the exercise, the papers will be kept for one year or the period of the appointment, whichever is less and then reviewed and deleted if appropriate.