Ministry of Justice

 Communications Manager

SEO

Office of the Independent Public Advocate

The new Office of the Independent Public Advocate (IPA) is recruiting permanently for a Senior Executive Officer (SEO) Communications Manager.

Location:

We offer a hybrid working model, allowing balance between remote work and time spent at the IPA’s base location (10 South Colonnade). The postholder will also be expected to travel at short notice in the event of a major incident. This will include travel to the location of the incident which could be anywhere in England and Wales.

You will be expected to attend 10 South Colonnade 2 days a week.  This hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend their base location more frequently.

Ways of Working

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

·        Full-time, part-time or the option to job share

• Flexible working patterns
• Flexible working arrangements between base locations, MoJ Hubs and home.

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.

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. 

Security Clearance

This role requires National Security Vetting given the access to sensitive information afforded by the job role.  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)

In addition, there is a minimum UK residency requirement set by the Cabinet Office which is dependent on the security level required for the role.

This role requires Security Check (SC) clearance and to be eligible to apply for this role you should have been present in the UK continuously for the last 5 years.

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

The Work of the Independent Public Advocate

The Independent Public Advocate (IPA) is a new independent Statutory Office, established through the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, to support victims of major incidents in England and Wales.

The aftermath of a major incident can be extremely difficult for victims, both the bereaved and injured. During what is already a traumatic and difficult time, victims may have to take part in complex state processes such as inquests and inquiries and interact with multiple parties and public authorities. They may need extra support to navigate this period, to understand their role in the processes, and what support that can access and expect. The IPA will address this by signposting victims to support services and helping them better understand and participate in the processes that follow a major incident. The IPA will also be an important conduit between victims and public authorities.

The IPA will be headed up by the Standing Advocate, and additional advocates may be appointed depending on the nature and scale of the incident. The Secretariat team will support the Advocate(s) in their vital work. Working within a small but agile team, you will report to the Head of Secretariat and alongside a Higher Executive Officer (HEO) Support Officer.  

The IPA has statutory duties and obligations.

These will include:

• Producing reports which will be published and laid before Parliament.
• Advising the Government about the appropriate review mechanism following a major incident and what the scope should be.

A key part of your role as Communications Manager will be to assist the Standing Advocate in discharging these duties.

IPA Secretariat – Communications Manager

Are you looking for a unique and meaningful role in a brand-new team? This is an exciting opportunity to be at the heart of a high-profile and sensitive area with significant Parliamentary and public interest, supporting bereaved families and those affected by major incidents.

As Communications Manager, you’ll play a key role in shaping and delivering a communications strategy to build the profile of the IPA, ensuring clear, effective engagement with victims, the public, and key organisations.

The IPA is a permanent office, but in the aftermath of a disaster, it may need to scale up quickly. You will help prepare for this, ensuring the right communications structures and relationships are in place to provide timely, meaningful support. This is a rare chance to shape a brand-new role, influence how the IPA operates, and contribute to an important objective.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead the communications for the new office of the IPA.  As this is a new office, a large part of your role in the initial stages will be to shape how the communications strategy for the IPA will work and define what its core deliverables are, with direction from the Standing Advocate. As such some of the responsibilities set out below may change and evolve and will be shaped by you and the Standing Advocate. If you have the relevant experience as listed below and want to use your skills to make a real impact, we’d love to hear from you.  

The key responsibilities for this role include:

Strategic Leadership and Development

• Lead the creation and implementation of the IPA's first communications strategy, working closely with the Head of Secretariat and Standing Advocate to establish this vital new public body
• Shape and establish the IPA's distinctive voice and identity across all communications channels, ensuring consistency and building trust with stakeholders and the public
• Drive forward innovative approaches to stakeholder engagement and relationship building, particularly with victims' groups and advocacy organizations

Digital and Channel Management

• Take ownership of the IPA's digital presence through strategic content creation and channel management
• Build and maintain an accessible, user-focused website that serves as a trusted resource for victims and stakeholders
• Develop engaging social media content that builds the IPA's profile while maintaining appropriate sensitivity

Crisis Communications and Media Relations

• Design and maintain a robust crisis communications framework ready for rapid deployment during major incidents
• Act as a key media spokesperson, handling sensitive press queries with confidence and compassion
• Develop and nurture relationships with key journalists to ensure accurate and responsible coverage of the IPA's work

Stakeholder Communications and Engagement

• Lead on sensitive and empathetic communications with victims and bereaved families, providing clear information during complex processes
• Monitor and analyse developments in the victims' sector to inform communications strategy and approach
• Build and maintain strong relationships across government, particularly with the Ministry of Justice press office

The role offers a unique opportunity to:

• Shape the communications approach of a new public body from the ground up
• Make a real difference to victims and bereaved families during their most challenging times
• Build expertise in both strategic communications and crisis response
• Work at the intersection of public policy, justice, and stakeholder engagement

Skills and Experience

Essential:

• Proactively establishing, managing and developing relationships with a range of diverse stakeholders.
• Building and delivering an effective communications strategy.
• Working as part of team building awareness for an organisation or brand.

Desirable:

• Working with victims or vulnerable people using a trauma informed approach.
• Writing press releases or providing briefings for press statements.
• Experience establishing a new organisation or team.
• Experience of crisis communications.
• Building a social media profile.

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. Your CV should not be more than two pages long.

You will also be asked to upload a Statement of Suitability of no more than 750 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 (see Annex A for more information):

• Communicating and Influencing (Lead behaviour)
• Seeing the Big Picture

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

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the Statement of Suitability. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both Civil Service behaviours and GCS Technical behaviours.

Candidates invited to Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely.

During the panel interview, you will be asked behaviour-based questions to explore in detail what you are capable of, what you enjoy, and your motivations relevant to the job role.

Ahead of the interview, successful candidates will be asked to complete a practical exercise that they can talk through in the interview.

The behaviours that will be assessed at interview are:

Civil Service Behaviours:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Managing a Quality Service

GCS Technical Behaviours:

• Insight
• Implementation
• Impact       

You can refer to the CS Strengths dictionary for more details:  Success Profiles - Civil Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)

and refer to the GCS Technical Skills framework:

https://gcs.civilservice.gov.uk/publications/competency-framework/

Interviews are expected to take place April 2025.

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.

Lily.Smart@justice.gov.uk or Gurkirit.Bhatia@justice.gov.uk

Annex A - The STAR method

Using the STAR method can help you give examples of relevant experience that you have. It allows you to set the scene, show what you did, and how you did it, and explain the overall outcome.

Situation - Describe the situation you found yourself in. You must describe a specific event or situation. Be sure to give enough detail for the job holder to understand.

·        Where are you?

·        Who was there with you?

·        What had happened?

Task - The job holder will want to understand what you tried to achieve from the situation you found yourself in.

·         What was the task that you had to complete and why?

·         What did you have to achieve?

Actions - What did you do? The job holder will be looking for information on what you did, how you did it and why. Keep the focus on you. What specific steps did you take and what was your contribution? Remember to include how you did it, and the behaviours you used. Try to use “I” rather than “we” to explain your actions that lead to the result. Be careful not to take credit for something that you did not do.

Results - Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behaviour. Quote specific facts and figures. Explain how the outcome benefitted the organisation or your area. Make the outcomes easily understandable.

·        What results did the actions produce?

·        What did you achieve through your actions and did you meet your goals?

·        Was it a successful outcome? If not, what did you learn from the experience?

Keep the situation and task parts brief. Concentrate on the action and the result. If the result was not entirely successful describe what you learned from this and what you would do differently next time. Make sure you focus on your strengths.