Policy Advisor

at  Ministry of Justice

Salary
The national salary range is £34,140 - £37,105, London salary range is £38,661 - £42,019 Your salary will be dependent on your base location
Number of jobs available
4
Detail of reserve list
12 Months
Region
London, Yorkshire and the Humber
City/Town
Leeds , London
Building/Site

HEO

Post Type
Permanent
Working Pattern
Full Time, Part Time, Part Time/Job Share, Flexible Working
Role Type
Policy, Project Delivery, Strategy
Will the successful applicant have line manager responsibilities?
No
Job description
The Priority Projects Team in the Strategy, Priorities and Innovation Directorate (SPI) is recruiting permanently for up to four HEO Policy Advisers. This campaign is open to current civil servants on level transfer and suitable candidates on promotion.

THE WORK OF THE PRIORITY PROJECTS TEAM

The Priority Projects Team (PPT) is a high-profile, friendly, and supportive team working at the heart of the MoJ’s strategy function. We act as an in-house consultancy, working across the MoJ’s agenda, helping the department to deliver its highest priorities alongside policy, functions and operational teams. We do this by delivering defined projects to the highest standards.
Each project is unique, fast-paced and exciting. Members of PPT typically work in small project teams lasting from a few weeks up to several months. We work closely with policy, functional and operational experts across the organisation. Occasionally, PPT members may work embedded in another team to undertake a specific piece of work. Recently our portfolio has included: working on election preparations and supporting policy teams to respond to emerging priorities of the new Government; cross-cutting strategic projects with OGDs on topics such as prevention; responding to the prison capacity crisis; and addressing miscarriages of justice.
Policy Adviser in the Priority Projects Team - the role
Policy Advisers play a central role in supporting our project-based policy work. We are looking for motivated, resilient, and adaptable individuals who are eager to learn and expand their skillset. The role will give you the opportunity to work with lots of stakeholders across MoJ, as well as other government departments and may involve engagement with the Ministerial team and private offices.
We are a friendly team, and you will have a comprehensive induction, with many training opportunities to enable your personal development. We are committed to providing you with a positive team culture where you can thrive. People are our most valuable resource and through flexible working, our commitment to learning and development, and mentoring, we ensure our directorate is a positive environment to work in.
We are also committed to creating an inclusive workplace that values diversity and helps us to be our best by reflecting different ideas, perspectives, and backgrounds. The team is made up of a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences; some are new to the Civil Service having come from the private or third sector, others have worked in different parts of MoJ and in other central government departments. We want to maintain the diversity of background and experience, and therefore particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented in the organisation.

INTERVIEW

Successful applicants will be invited to an interview. During the interview, we will be assessing you against the behaviours and strengths outlined in the Civil Service Success Profiles framework.
The interview process will focus on the behaviors aligned to the requirements outlined in this job description: working together, delivering at pace, communicating and influencing as well as strength-based questions. 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: Success Profiles - Civil Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)
Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely. Interview dates will be confirmed with successful candidates.
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.

If you do not meet the above requirements, you may still be considered if, for example:

• You’ve been serving overseas with HM Forces or in some other official capacity as a representative of HM Government
• You were studying abroad
• You were living overseas with parent

ROLE DESCRIPTION AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The responsibilities of a policy adviser may encompass the various parts of both policy, strategy and project development, implementation and evaluation. As a policy adviser, you will:

• Support the delivery of a range of projects within the team, covering priority areas across the department.
• Work collaboratively with other policy professionals, analysts, lawyers, functional and operational colleagues to understand complex issues quickly, and develop robust and evidence-based solutions. This may include working with both quantitative and qualitative data to develop a strong evidence base.
• Establish collaborative relationships with key stakeholders from across the MoJ and wider government to understand complex issues quickly, and ensure that links are made with the relevant policy and operational teams.
• Support the development of high-quality written and oral briefings for senior officials and Ministers, distilling complex ideas into clear and concise advice.

Typical daily tasks may include:

• Desk based research
• Drafting products that support the delivery of your project, including (but not limited to) slide packs, submissions to ministers, briefings for senior officials and ministers, and responses to parliamentary questions
• Working with or analysing data
• Arranging and facilitating engagement with internal and external stakeholders
• Monitoring and reporting progress of tasks against overall timelines

Alongside your core role, you will have the opportunity to get involved in corporate projects across the wider team and directorate. This could include focusing on wellbeing, diversity & inclusion, mentoring and recruitment. These corporate responsibilities underpin how we work as a team and contribute to the MoJ as a whole and we encourage everyone to take on a corporate role. In return, you will have access to many training opportunities on a range of topics, for example: leadership and coaching, effective submission writing, stakeholder engagement and partnership working.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE ROLE, PLEASE CONTACT:

Holly Fitzgerald Thompson (holly.fitzgerald-thompson@justice.gov.uk)
To apply for roles in MOJ you will need to confirm your employment history for at least 3 years prior to the date of application so that pre-employment checks (BPSS) can be undertaken. If you have spent significant time abroad (a total of 6 months in the past 3 years) you would be required to give a reasonable account of the reasons why.
For some roles you will be required to successfully complete National Security Vetting at Counter Terrorism (CTC), Security Clearance (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV) level as a condition of appointment. To meet CTC/SC/DV requirements you will normally need to have been resident in the UK for at least 3/5/10 years prior to the date of application (The level of checks that are required are stated in the advert).

If you do not meet the above requirements, you may still be considered if, for example:

• You’ve been serving overseas with HM Forces or in some other official capacity as a representative of HM Government
• You were studying abroad
• You were living overseas with parents

In such cases you will need to be able to provide referee cover for the period(s) of residence overseas. The duration of overseas residence and the country of abode will also be taken into account.
Success Profiles
Success Profiles will enable a fairer and more inclusive method of recruitment by enabling us to assess the range of experiences, abilities, strengths, behaviours and technical/professional skills required for different roles. This flexible approach to recruitment focuses more on finding the right candidate for the specific role. To find out more about Success Profiles to support your application please click here for further guidance.
if you feel that your application has not been treated in line with the Civil Service Recruitment Principles, please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com) in the first instance
We have provided detail of the assessment stages and areas being assessed to help you prepare for completing your application form, and to advise of what will be assessed following this, if you successfully pass the application stage.

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