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General Information

Salary
£61,201 - £69,338
Working Pattern
Full Time
Vacancy Approach
Cross Government
Location
London
Region
London
Closing Date
11-Jun-2025
Post Type
Permanent
Civil Service Grade
Grade 7
Number of jobs available
1
Reserve List
12 Months
Job ID
6299

Descriptions & requirements

Job description

Role Summary

The Private Secretary to the Master of the Rolls (MR) is a key leadership role within the Judicial Office. The office holder is an advocate for, and representative of, the MR both internally with other senior judiciary and their private offices and externally across a wide range of Whitehall departments. The successful candidate will have experience of influencing at senior levels across government and/or with the senior experts and understand the importance of the rule of law and preserving the independence of the judiciary from the executive. This is an exciting and varied role that provides unique opportunities to support the MR in the delivery of his strategic priorities. It is a demanding role that requires resilience but comes with the benefit of being at the heart civil justice.

The role of the Master of the Rolls and Head of Civil Justice

The Master of the Rolls was originally responsible for the safe-keeping of charters, patents and records of important court judgments written on parchment rolls. He still has responsibility for documents of national importance, being Chairman of the Advisory Council on Public Records and Chairman of the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts.

The Master of the Rolls, The Right Honourable Sir Geoffrey Vos, is by virtue of his office, a judge of the Court of Appeal and is the President of its Civil Division. He is responsible for the deployment and organisation of the work of the judges of the division as well as presiding in one of its courts.

The MR is supported in his capacity as head of civil justice by the Deputy Head of Civil Justice (DHCJ). A private office of nine staff, based at the Royal Courts of Justice and led by the Private Secretary, provide support to both judges. The private office provides legal, strategic policy and administrative support to the MR, DHCJ, Civil Justice Council, and the wider judiciary across a range of issues, working closely with other parts of the Judicial Office, and wider government, as appropriate.

The Civil Justice Council (CJC)

The Master of the Rolls, The Right Honourable Sir Geoffrey Vos is also Chairman of the Civil Justice Council.  The CJC is an Advisory Public Body which was established under the Civil Procedure Act 1997. The Council’s statutory duty is to review the civil justice system and make recommendations to the Lord Chancellor, the judiciary and the Civil Procedure Rule Committee on the development of the civil justice system to make it more accessible, fair and efficient. The office holder will provide high level policy support to the Council, and oversight of the CJC Secretariat team.

The Judicial Office

The Judicial Office is the organisation that supports the Lady Chief Justice (LCJ) in delivering her wide range of functions as the Head of the Judiciary. It is a unique branch of the civil service, reporting direct to the LCJ. The Judicial Office consists of approx. 500 staff working across five directorates. The post holder will be part of the private office directorate, working to the deputy director, Head of Judicial Private Offices. For more information about Judicial Office please see: About us – Judicial Office - Judicial Office Intranet

Main activities/responsibilities:

The MR will look to his Private Secretary for advice on handling the highest profile and most sensitive issues of the day; and for commissioning, where appropriate, high-quality advice from the wider Judicial Office to support him. The role requires the ability to work at pace and under pressure, to anticipate urgent and important issues, to adapt to rapidly changing events, and to be able to represent effectively the MR at the most senior levels of the judiciary and civil service.

The postholder will be required to provide high quality written and oral advice to the MR and senior judiciary (Senior Judiciary - Courts and Tribunals Judiciary), overall leadership and head of office responsibilities for the MR’s private office team, and represent the position of the MR confidently and effectively to senior officials within the JO and across Whitehall and operational partner agencies with counterparts in relevant private offices.

Person Specification

  • Excellent oral and written communication skills, including the ability to identify key issues and constructively challenge when dealing with senior officials, senior judiciary, and senior experts, and to provide high quality written briefings.
  • Strong organisational skills and diligence.
  • Experience of working at pace, under pressure, and of taking decisions in a high-profile environment.
  • Strong leadership skills, particularly leading through influencing.
  • Interest in the justice system, in particular civil justice.

Desirable Knowledge and Skills

  • Experience of working closely with the judiciary, and an interest in the workings of the courts and tribunals system more widely.
  • Experience of working with departments, or closely alongside, on the development of policy issues.

Private Secretary posts are unpredictable and can require working long hours, including at short notice, particularly as meetings often need to take place before or after court. The general expectation is that the PS will be in the office when the MR is in the Royal Courts of Justice. However, there is greater flexibility during vacation when there are opportunities to work from home.

Eligibility

The post is available to existing Grade 7’s on lateral transfer and to other candidates on promotion. This post is not suitable for job-share or reduced hours working.

Location

This post is primarily based in London, at the Royal Courts of Justice but does require some travel, accompanying the MR to events across England & Wales, and occasionally abroad. 

Length of Deployment

We are looking for the successful candidate to be in post from September 2025, ready for the start of the Legal Year on the 1st October 2025. This is a permanent post. 

How to apply

The application process will follow 3 stages.

  • Written application

Experience

You will be asked to provide a 1000-word CV setting out your suitability for the role through demonstrable experience, career history and achievements.

Behaviours

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

  • Delivering at Pace
  • Seeing the Big Picture
  • Communicating and Influencing 
  • Working Together

Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview.  Please note, feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview.

  • Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out in person at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on Monday 30th June 2025. 

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

There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well.  You can refer to the CS Strengths dictionary for more details.

  • Fireside chat with the MR

Candidates successful at interview will be invited to a fireside chat with the MR.  Feedback from the MR will inform the outcome of the campaign.  Fireside chats will take place in person at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on either the 21st, 24th or 28th July 2025.

If you wish to discuss the role before submitting an application, please contact Clare Farren (Clare.Farren@judiciary.uk) Deputy Director, Head of Judicial Private Offices.

Additional Information

Working Arrangements & Further Information

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity.

Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

For nationally advertised roles: All successful candidates will be appointed to the nearest viable office nearest to their home postcode and on its respective pay scale.  This will be at either a HQ building (subject to desk allocation, a Justice Collaboration Centre (JCC) or a Justice Satellite Office (JSO) – See Map. All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity). 

For current MoJ employees, your base location will need to be changed to the nearest viable office (to your home postcode), either at a HQ building, JCC or JSO within the National Office Network and moved its location’s respective pay scale (any legacy arrangements/locations will need to be amended).

Some of MoJ’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.

MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain their grade on lateral transfer.

All candidates who are currently in receipt of Mark Time / Pay Protection should ensure they are familiar with the new policy on permanent and temporary promotion which can be found on the employee intranet.

Flexible working hours 

The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. MoJ welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.

Benefits 

The MoJ offers a range of benefits:

Annual Leave

Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years’ service.

There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.

Pension 

The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.

Training 

The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Networks 

The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

Eligibility

Staff on fixed term appointments must have been recruited through fair and open competition.

Vacancies advertised “cross-government” are only open to all Civil Service employees and employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) who were appointed on merit following a fair and open competition; or were appointed to a permanent post through an exception in the Civil Service Commissioners' rules.

Support

  • A range of ‘Family Friendly’ policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
  • Access to flexible benefits such as voluntary benefits, retail vouchers and discounts on a range of goods and services.
  • For moves to or from another employer or moves across the Civil Service this can have implications on your eligibility to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for alternative government childcare support schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. More information can be found on www.www.GOV.UK or Childcare Choices. You can determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
  • Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
  • Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order

As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.

You will be able to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process within the application form. If you need additional help completing the application form, please contact the TBS Recruitment Enquiries Team.

For more information on applying for a role as a candidate with a disability or long-term condition, please watch our animated videos.

Diversity & Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

Redeployment Interview Scheme

Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ is committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are 'at risk of redundancy'.

MoJ is able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidates will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

Civil Service Nationality Rules

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules

Reserve list

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

Contact Information

MoJ:

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference

HMPPS

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Please quote the job reference - 6299

Application form stage assessments

Behaviours
Behaviours Application Form Question Word Limit
250
Delivering at Pace
Seeing the Big Picture
Communicating and Influencing
Working Together
Experience
We will assess your experience for this role via the following methods
CV or Work History
Evidence of Experience
CV or Work History

Interview stage assessments

Interview Dates
Expected 30th June
Behaviours
Delivering at Pace
Seeing the Big Picture
Communicating and Influencing
Working Together
Strengths
Strengths will be assessed but these are not shared in advance. To learn more about Strengths and how they are assessed please click here.

Other Assessments

Which assessment methods will be used?
Other 1
Other - Assessment Title 1
Fireside Chat
Use of Artificial Intelligence (Al)
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.
Level of security checks required
Counter Terrorism Check (CTC)