JOB DESCRIPTION

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
MoJ is the largest government department, employing over 90,000 people with a budget of approximately £10 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services across the UK - including at 500 courts and tribunals, and 133 prisons in England and Wales.

Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Public Bodies Directorate
The Public Bodies and Public Appointments Directorate sits at the heart of the Ministry of Justice, leading sponsorship and governance relationships and making appointments across one of the largest and most complex public bodies portfolios in Government. Our bodies deliver critical public-facing services spanning prisons, probation, youth justice, legal services, family justice, parole, criminal case review and wider constitutional and oversight functions. 

This is a high-profile and exciting time to join the Directorate. Reform and strengthening of public bodies sponsorship and public appointments processes is a priority for Ministers and senior departmental leadership, with a strong focus on improving delivery, governance, diversity of representation and public confidence across the justice system. 

The Directorate offers a unique opportunity to influence real-world outcomes by supporting excellent leadership, governance and accountability across some of the justice system's most important institutions. 

We are a collaborative, supportive and high-performing team that works closely together to solve problems, navigate complexity and drive continuous improvement. We value creativity, sound judgement and strong relationships, and are proud to contribute to a justice system that serves the public effectively and fairly. 

About the Role

This role sits at the heart of the department’s Public Bodies Review programme, supporting the design and delivery of reviews across a diverse and high-profile public bodies landscape.

You will support the development and maintenance of the review pipeline, helping to gather evidence and insight across the public bodies landscape to inform prioritisation and sequencing. You will also contribute to evaluating previous reviews, supporting analysis of their effectiveness and tracking the implementation and impact of recommendations to support continuous improvement.

You will play an important role in delivering individual reviews, including coordinating evidence gathering, engaging stakeholders, analysing governance and organisational information, and supporting the development of clear, evidence-based findings and recommendations. The role offers scope to take ownership of discrete elements of reviews and contribute to improving how reviews are designed and delivered across the department.

Working closely with sponsorship teams, Public Bodies, and corporate functions, you will build effective relationships and help ensure reviews are proportionate, well-informed, and aligned with departmental priorities.

Main Activities / Responsibilities

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

• Support the planning, coordination, and delivery of Public Bodies Reviews across a portfolio of ALBs.

• Coordinate evidence gathering and stakeholder engagement activity, working with Public Bodies, sponsorship teams, and corporate functions to inform review findings and recommendations.

• Analyse organisational, governance, performance, and risk information to support the development of evidence-based conclusions and recommendations.

• Support the drafting of review outputs, briefings, reporting, and presentations for senior colleagues and governance forums.

• Monitor and track the implementation of review recommendations, maintaining oversight tools and supporting assessment of delivery and impact.

• Build and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders across the department and Public Bodies to support effective review delivery.

• Contribute to continuous improvement in the department’s approach to Public Bodies Reviews, including sharing lessons learned and supporting the development of review processes and tools.

Management of Resources

• This role does not currently include direct line management responsibility.

Essential Criteria

• Experience of building effective relationships and influencing senior stakeholders, including Boards, senior executives, or corporate functions.

• Experience of providing governance, assurance, or performance oversight within a complex organisational environment.

• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to assess qualitative and quantitative evidence, draw balanced conclusions, and support the development of evidence-based recommendations.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience of working with Public Bodies.

• Experience of supporting or coordinating complex projects, programmes, reviews, or assurance activity involving multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.

• Knowledge of Cabinet Office Sponsorship Code, Managing Public Money, and public appointments processes.

• Experience of analysing large amounts of qualitative and quantitative data to generate insights.

• Experience of contributing to senior governance forums or committees.

Please note that whilst we don’t assess or score ‘desirable’ criteria, we may consider evidence provided that demonstrates meeting the desirable elements of the role, only after essential criteria is assessed and where there is a need to differentiate between closely scored candidates. 

Application process

You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.

Application stage

CV- please provide an anonymised copy

Statement of Suitability - Candidates should use their statement of suitability to demonstrate how they meet the essential criteria, providing clear examples of building effective relationships and influencing senior stakeholders, applying strong analytical skills, and supporting reviews, governance, assurance, or improvement activity within complex environments. Applicants should evidence strategic thinking, effective stakeholder engagement and influencing skills, and the ability to manage competing priorities while delivering high-quality outcomes.

Behaviour - Please provide examples of how you have met the Behaviour - Seeing the Big Picture (Lead Behaviour)

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be undertaken using Statement of Suitability.

Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Interview stage

Interviews will be held virtually via MS Teams.

All applicants that progress to interview will be assessed on Behaviours below:

• Seeing The Big Picture (Lead Behaviour)

• Working Together

• Delivering at Pace

• Communicating and Influencing

You will also be asked Strength based questions.

If you wish to find out more about the role, please contact Tosca.Tizzano2@justice.gov.uk