Policy Manager

SEO

Office of the Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales

The Victims' Commissioner is an independent statutory office established to promote the interests of victims and witnesses, encourage good practice and keep under review the operation of the Victims' Code. The Office of the Victims' Commissioner works with government, criminal justice agencies, victim support organisations and stakeholders to improve victims' experiences and outcomes across England and Wales.

This campaign is to recruit a permanent SEO Policy Manager into the Office of the Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales which is open to current civil servants on level transfer and suitable candidates on promotion.

Candidates are reminded that to be eligible for this campaign; you must still be employed as a civil servant at the point of accepting the role. If you resign or your FTA contract ends before you are made and accept an offer, you will become ineligible and you will be withdrawn from the process.

Location:

Successful candidates will be based at 102 Petty France, London. We offer a hybrid working model, allowing for a balance between remote work and time spent in your base location (102 Petty France).

Ways of Working

At the MoJ we believe and promote alternative ways of working, these roles are available as:

• Full-time

• Flexible working patterns

We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and pride ourselves as being an employer of choice. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace, visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

Salary

Existing Civil Servants will have their salary calculated in accordance with the Department’s pay on transfer / pay on promotion rules.  

Introduction to the Office of the Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales

The role of the Victims’ Commissioner is to:

• Raise awareness of the common issues faced by victims and witnesses

• Monitor how criminal justice agencies and victim support agencies comply with the Victims’ Code and Witness Charter

• Use their independent voice to influence national policymaking and hold partner agencies to account

• Speak up about what works best for victims and witnesses, and especially the most vulnerable.

The Victims’ Commissioner occupies a key, independent position in the media and public debate where they are able to use their voice to hold criminal justice agencies and the government to account. Through work in the media, the Victims’ Commissioner is able to speak up for victims, highlight inequality of treatment and the needs of vulnerable victims, speak to the victim’s experience of the criminal justice system and advocate for change.

The Role

The Policy Manager will play a key role in supporting the Victims' Commissioner to influence policy and practice across the criminal justice system. The postholder will lead and contribute to policy projects, undertake high-quality analysis and briefings, develop evidence-based recommendations, and build effective relationships with stakeholders across government, criminal justice agencies and the voluntary sector.

The role requires strong analytical and critical thinking skills, sound judgement, excellent written and verbal communication, and a commitment to improving outcomes for victims of crime.

Key Responsibilities

Policy Development

• Lead the development of policy areas and delivery of projects aligned to the strategic priorities of the Victims' Commissioner.

• Monitor policy, legislative and operational developments affecting victims across the criminal justice system.

• Identify policy issues and opportunities for reform, drawing on victims’ experiences, available evidence, and close working with criminal justice agencies  

• Draft high-quality policy papers, briefings, consultation responses, reports and correspondence.

• Support the development of recommendations to Ministers, government departments and criminal justice agencies.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Build and maintain trusted working relationships with officials across government departments, including the Ministry of Justice and Home Office.

• Engage with criminal justice agencies, victim support organisations, academics and other stakeholders to understand victims experiences and develop policy.

• Organise and support stakeholder meetings, roundtables and engagement events.

• Accompany the Commissioner and represent the Office at external meetings and events as required.

Briefings and Communications

• Produce concise and accurate briefing materials for the Victims' Commissioner and senior colleagues.

• Contribute to speeches, presentations, parliamentary briefings and public reports.

• Respond to correspondence and requests for information from victims, stakeholders and government partners.

Project Delivery

• Manage policy projects from inception to completion, ensuring delivery to agreed timescales and quality standards.

• Monitor project risks, dependencies and milestones.

• Work collaboratively across the Office to support wider organisational objectives.

Research and Evidence

• Gather, assess and synthesise evidence from a range of sources.

• Work with internal and external partners to strengthen the evidence base underpinning policy positions.

• Translate complex information into clear, accessible advice and recommendations.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

Experience

• Experience of developing, analysing or implementing public policy, criminal justice policy, social policy or a related field.

• Experience working within the criminal justice sector, public sector, Parliament, regulator, inspectorate, commissioner or charity sector.

• Experience of producing high-quality written products, including reports, briefings or submissions.

• Experience of managing projects and delivering outcomes to deadlines.

• Experience of building effective working relationships with a range of stakeholders.

Skills

• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills with the ability to assess complex information and draw evidence-based conclusions.

• Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to write clearly and persuasively for different audiences.

• Strong verbal communication and influencing skills.

• Confidence to communicate clearly and effectively with stakeholders, including senior leaders.

• Ability to manage competing priorities and work independently.

• Good judgement and the ability to handle sensitive issues appropriately.

Knowledge

• Understanding the policy-making process and the role of government and public bodies.

• Understanding of trauma informed practice.

• Awareness of issues affecting victims of crime and the criminal justice system in England and Wales.

Additional Information

• If we receive applications from more suitable candidates than we have vacancies for at this time, we may hold suitable applicants on a reserve list for 12 months, and future vacancies requiring the same skills and experience could be offered to candidates on the reserve list without a new competition.

• Candidates applying from HMPPS should note that the Ministry of Justice does not have the same conditions of employment as HMPPS. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful.

• The MoJ is proud to be Level 3 Disability Confident. Disability Confident is the approach through which we offer guaranteed interviews for all people with disabilities meeting the minimum criteria for the advertised role as set out in the job description.

Application process

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

You must ensure that any evidence submitted as part of your application, including your CV, statement of suitability and behaviour examples, 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.

Experience

You will be asked to provide a CV during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

You will also be asked to upload a Statement of Suitability of no more than 1000 words stating what you would bring to the role, with reference to the Skills and Experience listed above.

Behaviours

During the application process you will be asked to provide an example of how you have met the following behaviours:

• Delivering at pace

• Making effective decisions

• Communicating and influencing

• Seeing the big picture

Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:

Success Profiles: Civil Service behaviours - GOV.UK

Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the Statement of Suitability and Lead Behaviour - Delivering at Pace. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing Experience, Behaviours and strengths.

Candidates invited to Interview

At interview you will be assessed against your experience and behaviours where you will be asked to provide examples of how you have demonstrated them. In addition, you will also be asked strength-based questions.

Behaviours:

The following Behaviours will be tested at interview:

• Seeing the big picture

• Making effective decisions

• Communicating and influencing

• Delivering at pace

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? Or

• STAR - What was the Situation? What were the Tasks? What Action did you take?  What were the Results of your actions?

Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:

Success Profiles: Civil Service behaviours - GOV.UK

Strengths:

It is difficult to prepare for strength type questions. However, you can think through your answers, focus on your achievements and aspects you enjoy and decide how these can be applied in the organisation and role. While strengths questions are shorter and we do not expect a full STAR response, the panel is interested in your first reaction to the question and information or reasoning to support this. Further information on Civil Service Strengths can be found via this link Success Profiles: Strengths - GOV.UK

You will be asked one experience question which you are not expected to prepare for. The question will be centred around your past experience and role requirements.

In addition, you will be required to give a presentation at the beginning of the interview. Details will be shared nearer the time.

Interviews are expected to take place September 2026.

Contact information  

Please do get in touch if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team.

max.lawson@victimscommissioner.org.uk