JOB SUMMARY

The Chief Officer plays a crucial role in overseeing the civil administration of the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) and is responsible to the Administrator for the delivery of high-quality civil administration of the SBAs. The SBAs are the only overseas territory administered and funded by the MOD. The Chief Officer is responsible for ensuring their good governance and for the continued effective use of the military bases located there; for the development and maintenance of on-island relationships, including with the Republic of Cyprus, local communities, and with the British High Commission in Nicosia; for protecting the interests of those resident or working in the SBAs through the provision of sound administrative, legislative and policing and other frameworks; and for the administration of the SBA Courts (including support to a Resident Judge seconded from the UK).
The Chief Officer leads a team of 16 UK Based Civilians (UKBCs) and some 360 locally engaged civilians (LECs) including police, customs & immigration and a wide range of other specialist areas. The Chief Officer is ‘double hatted’ as the Command Secretary British Forces Cyprus (BFC) responsible to the Commander British Forces (who is also the Administrator). As Command Secretary, the post-holder provides strategic direction and leadership to a team of 13 UKBCs and some 30 LECs and is responsible for: providing policy and secretariat advice to the Commander British Forces Cyprus; for business support and budget management of a BFC/SBAA annual budget of some £210M; the delivery of local civilian HR (strategic, policy, processes, transactional, and industrial relations) for some 1400 LEC workforce; and internal and external communications.

THE SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATE MUST BE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS AGAINST THE FOLLOWING ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:

• Extensive stakeholder management experience with the ability to engage with a diverse set of stakeholders to reach consensus.
• Strong and inspiring leadership skill with experience managing large geographically dispersed teams.
• Confident communicating and influencing at a strategic political and international level.
• Experience of implementing policies and strategies, using an evidence-based approach to evaluate a full range of options comprehending their impacts and delivering the right solution.
• Experienced at working in ambiguity with the ability to make effective decisions under pressure.
• Ability to lead a dynamic reform agenda in line with strategic direction from government.
• Candidates will require a full driving licence.

NATIONALITY REQUIREMENTS

Open to UK nationals only.

TYPE OF ROLE

Operational Delivery
Policy
Project Delivery
Senior leadership
Strategy

THE CURRENT RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ROLE INCLUDE:

• Leading the SBAA Administration to deliver the full range of statutory and other civil functions that underpin the sovereignty of the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) as a British Overseas Territory, including prioritising and commissioning legislation, policing and security, customs and immigration, management and function of the courts, the prison, fiscal processes, environmental protection, regulatory responsibilities, civil resilience and local administration including close oversight of the new ‘local plan’ and business licencing.
• As the Command Secretary British Forces Cyprus (BFC) lead the team and ensure the provision of policy and secretariat advice to the Commander British Forces Cyprus; for business support and budget management of a BFC/SBAA annual budget of some £210M; the delivery of local civilian HR processes.
• Building on an existing programme of modernisation across the breadth of the SBAA including infrastructure, digital, processes and skills, maintaining and building on support from relevant agencies in the UK. This includes prison reform, a new police IT system, the introduction of probation and modernised ‘place-making’ services.
• Ensuring the SBAs offer UK Defence maximum freedom of manoeuvre now and in the future, partnering with the British High Commission and liaising with the UK MOD to ensure military operations comply with SBAA requirements and SBAA equities are protected in bilateral and international fora.
• Establishing and maintaining strong and effective working relationships with the RoC government, Cypriot community leaders and other key senior stakeholders on island. Deliver positive outcomes for the communities and promote a positive reputation for the SBAA/BFC and the MOD to enable the effective and uninterrupted operation of the UK’s military bases and strategic assets.
• Lead a comprehensive risk management process to identify, mitigate and monitor the risk inherent in the complex relationships across BFC/SBAA, as well as wider continuous improvement of BFC/SBAA processes in line with best practise.

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online application process accessed via the advertisement listed for this role. This should be completed no later than 23:55 Sunday 29 June 2025 and will involve providing the two documents outlined below via the Civil Service Jobs portal:

• A CV (no more than 2 pages) setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
• A Personal Statement (no more than 2 pages) explaining how your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role