Scotland Office: HEO, Constitutional Policy:
About the job
Constitutional Policy Higher Executive Officer, Constitutional Policy Division, Scotland Office
(UKG)
This is an exciting opportunity to play a leading role in supporting Ministers to deliver
for Scotland and support its devolution settlement. Working across a range of
constitutional policy areas this role would suit an enthusiastic individual who has
experience in a policy environment or equivalent and is keen to contribute to a
dynamic, fast-paced environment.
The role may be based in our London or Edinburgh offices.
Overview:
The Scotland Office is a UK Government department that supports the Secretary of State for
Scotland in promoting the best interests of Scotland within a stronger United Kingdom. It
ensures Scottish interests are fully and effectively represented at the heart of the UK
government, and the UK government’s responsibilities are fully and effectively represented in
Scotland.
The Constitutional Policy Division is a friendly, welcoming division that plays a key role in
this. We support and advise Ministers on matters relating to devolution and the constitution -
working across the UK Government and with the Scottish Government - to make devolution
work and ensure delivery of UK Government policy in Scotland, including via the UKG
primary legislative programme, a programme of Secondary Legislation under the Scotland
Act 1998 and leading departmental work on inter-Governmental Relations.
This is an exciting opportunity to deliver on Government and Ministerial priorities in a period
when devolution is front and centre of Government policy making. The successful applicant
will lead on specific policy priorities in a team and division that has a wide remit including the
effective operation of the devolution settlement and elements of the UKG primary legislation
programme. There will also be frequent opportunities to deliver at pace on emerging
Ministerial priorities, often engaging on high profile policy areas.
We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce
that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of
choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where
everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.
The Scotland Office is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community - a place
where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit. We offer a range of family friendly,
inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, people engagement forums,
facilities and services to support people from different backgrounds have a rewarding career.
Job overview and role specification:
This stretching and rewarding role offers the opportunity to be part of an established team to
support the development and delivery of key government policies in respect of Scotland.
There will also be opportunities to work collaboratively across the wider division and
department on a range of policy areas, often delivering at pace to support Ministerial;
priorities and Parliamentary activity. The successful candidate will also work with colleagues
to support corporate activities across the three teams that comprise the Constitutional Policy
Division, in areas such as information and risk management and corporate reporting.
This post provides an excellent opportunity to develop policy-making and strategic
coordination skills in a supportive and innovative environment. The successful candidate will
need to be assertive and confident in their ability to manage a range of work strands,
manage their activities according to evolving priorities and work collaboratively with
colleagues at all levels. The successful candidate will possess strong communication skills,
sound judgement, and hold an interest in devolution and public policy.
In return, this role offers the opportunity to be part of a busy, tight-knit team and gain
valuable core experience of departmental working at the centre of government and with
colleagues across the UK and Scottish Governments. The requirements of the role may
evolve to business needs and personal development. We are recruiting using the Ministry of
Justice’s terms and conditions.
Role responsibilities:
Key responsibilities and duties will include but are not limited to:
● Advising Ministers, special advisors and senior officials on constitutional policy issues
related to the Scotland Act 1998 and the devolution settlement.
● Delivering on ministerial commitments and priorities in relation to devolution and the
constitution.
● Building and maintaining effective working relationships with key teams and divisions
across the Scotland Office, across UKG and Scottish Government to influence key
policies, projects and workstreams.
● Working across UK Government departments whose work has policy implications in
Scotland, ensuring effective SO input to cross UK Government policy work.
● Drafting correspondence, responding to Freedom of Information requests, Oral
Questions, debates in Parliament, and Parliamentary Questions.
● With colleagues, leading corporate activities for the division in areas such as
information management and risk.
● Dealing with sensitive content; the successful candidate will need to be able to
handle matters with discretion and awareness of security guidelines, as well as data
protection functions for the office.
SKILLS:
Essential:
● Excellent policy skills, including the ability to analyse and use evidence to draft
advice and briefing to Ministers or Senior Managers.
● Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to distil complex
technical and policy information at pace into key messages either to Ministers or
Senior Managers.
● The ability to build strong collaborative working relationships with colleagues across
multiple teams to deliver objectives.
● Ability to prioritise and respond at pace to a variety of demands.
● Possess excellent organisational skills and ability to progress multiple projects
simultaneously.
● Have excellent IT skills and enthusiasm to develop AI capability.
● Be able to maintain productivity under pressure and shift priorities quickly and
effectively.
Desirable:
● Knowledge of and interest in Scottish politics, devolution and the constitutional
structures of the United Kingdom.
● Experience working in policy development or in policy delivery.
● Have project or portfolio management experience.
ROLE LOCATION:
The successful candidate can be based in either London (Dover House) or Edinburgh
(Queen Elizabeth House). Occasional travel will be required between both locations, for
which travel expenses will be provided in line with Civil Service protocols.
LEVEL OF SECURITY CLEARANCE: CTC
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed.
The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (CTC) (opens in a new window).