JOB DESCRIPTION

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

BACKGROUND

The Northern Ireland Office supports the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in promoting the best interests of Northern Ireland. We make sure that Northern Ireland interests are represented within the UK Government and that UK government responsibilities are fully and effectively represented in Northern Ireland. We are the centre of expertise on Northern Ireland issues across Government.

The Northern Ireland Office employs around 170 staff, with offices in Belfast and London. As a small Department, we adopt a flexible project-based approach to ensure that we have the right people, with the right skills, in the right place to support the delivery of our key objectives.

Due to our structure and size, we are able to offer extensive exposure to Ministers and the opportunity to work on a far wider portfolio of policy and responsibilities than might be the case in a larger department. This creates an interesting and stimulating work environment.

Our key priorities are set out in our Operational Delivery plan and include:

• Supporting greater inclusion, tolerance and openness in Northern Ireland

• Contributing to a safer Northern Ireland, where terrorist and paramilitary groups are less able to cause harm to communities

• Ensuring that governance in Northern Ireland is responsive, transparent and able to deliver effective public service.

• Addressing the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland

For more information about what we do:

Visit:https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/northern-ireland-office https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice.

ABOUT THE ROLE:

The position of Private Secretary to the Permanent Secretary offers a great opportunity to operate at the heart of the Department in a fast-paced and demanding role working closely with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), the wider Private Office Group, senior officials across the department, and Ministers.

As Private Secretary, your role is to ensure the Permanent Secretary has the support and information they need, at the right time, to enable them to carry out their role as the head of the department and lead adviser to Ministers.

The Private Secretaries act as the primary link and channel of communication between the Permanent Secretary, the rest of the department, and the ministerial Private Office. In the Private Secretary role, you will ensure that the Permanent Secretary’s views are represented on areas of policy across the department as well as working very closely with policy colleagues to ensure the best possible advice to ministers. You will also have strategic oversight of the Permanent Secretary’s diary and stakeholder engagement, ensuring this reflects and adds value to departmental priorities.

You will build effective relationships across the department, including with senior officials, and will use your judgement to identify issues that need to be brought to the attention of the Permanent Secretary and the wider SLT, ultimately helping to ensure the best possible advice is presented to ministers.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The main responsibilities of the role include but are not limited to:

• Supporting the Chief of Staff, who leads the team, in the smooth and efficient running of the Permanent Secretary’s office and the wider Senior Leadership Team;

• Working with the Diary Secretary and policy teams to manage the Permanent Secretary’s diary, with responsibility for strategic forward planning;

• Supporting the Permanent Secretary at meetings, across the UK and Ireland, ensuring they are properly briefed by policy teams;

• Working closely with colleagues in the ministerial Private Office to understand Ministerial movements and priorities, effectively communicating these to the Permanent Secretary and SLT, as well as decisions and recommendations between Ministers and officials.

• Providing support and supervision to the Executive Support Team in their role as diary and administrative support to the SLT and wider department;

• Providing strategic advice and join up on the preparation of policy advice from across the Department, representing the Permanent Secretary’s and Ministers’ priorities, views and expectations;

• Management support of the Executive Support Team and deputising for the Chief of Staff as required.

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:

The post holder will need to demonstrate the following in their application and at interview:

• Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to understand different perspectives;

• Excellent organisational and prioritisation skills, with the ability to work effectively across a range of tasks and under pressure;

• The ability to think strategically and creatively, recognising where improvements can be made and implementing them;

• Proven experience of working effectively with senior officials;

• A strong ability to influence at all levels, and to work collaboratively to resolve difficult issues;

• Sound judgement and an ability to maximise opportunities and mitigate risks;

• Existing clearance at SC or above.

DESIRABLE CRITERIA:

• Previous experience of working in a Private Office role.

APPLICATION:

Please provide a work history and statement of suitability no longer than 500 words outlining how you meet the essential and desirable criteria. Both will be used in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

Your statement of suitability needs to set out evidence of how your experience meets the requirements set out above. Your layout is entirely your preference; you may choose narrative, bullets, etc. One narrative example may cover the requirements needed. You don’t have to explain the whole process, just what you have done and the skills and experience you have used. Share with us what makes you suited to this role and why. What you can do, the skills you have that are transferable and the life experience or passion you have that are linked to this role.

If you don’t have work-based examples then give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in.

Your work history will not be formally assessed so please put the main evidence of your skills into your personal statement. Your work history will be used to add context to your personal statement.

INTERVIEW

You will be assessed against the following behaviours at interview and will be asked to provide examples of how you have demonstrated these behaviours:

• Making Effective Decisions

• Communicating and Influencing

• Working Together

• 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?

More information on behaviours and success profiles can be found here.

All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit.

OFFER

Once all interviews have been completed, you will be notified of the outcome by email. Offers will be made in strict merit order to the highest scoring candidate first.

The successful candidate will be notified of a start date following successful pre-employment checks. Please note that the expected candidate is expected to take up post as soon as possible due to the nature of the role, and existing security clearance is therefore essential.

Additional information received after the closing date will not be considered. Failure to provide sufficient information in support of an application prior to the closing date will not be considered as grounds for an appeal if an applicant is not shortlisted for interview.

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 existing SC clearance.

Neither Detached Duty terms nor relocation costs will apply to this post.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.

Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Further Information:

Further information about the post may be obtained from Nikki Bodel via email to nikki.bodel@nio.gov.uk

All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit.

This job description should not be taken as constituting conditions of employment.

Please note that due to the high interest in NIO opportunities, feedback cannot be given if you are unsuccessful at the sift stage. Feedback is available on request if unsuccessful following the interview.

COMPLAINTS:

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles.

Please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@sscl.gse.gov.uk) in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages:

http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints/

https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/code/

Additional Information

Working Arrangements & Further Information

The NIO 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 NIO 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.

Flexible working hours

The NIO offers a flexible working system in many offices. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. NIO 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 NIO’s Flexible Working policy.

Benefits:

• Access to learning and development

• A working environment that supports a range of flexible working options to enhance your work life balance

• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity

• A Civil Service pension

• 25 days annual leave, increasing to 30 days after five years service.

• Public Holidays

• Season Ticket Advance

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.

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 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

• To Shared Service Connected Ltd (0845 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com);

• To Ministry of Justice Resourcing team (resourcing-management-office@justice.gov.uk);

• To the Civil Service Commission (details available here)

As a Disability Confident employer, we 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. We are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.

For more information on applying for a role as a candidate with a disability or long-term condition, please see our Disability Confident Scheme Frequently Asked Questions webpage.

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 SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

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.

Interview dates

Early August

Closing Date:

Thursday 31st July, 23:55 hours.

Contact information

If you require any assistance please call 0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com