Senior Policy Adviser, Ministerial Council on Deaths in Custody within the Prison Policy Directorate (Ref: 80654)

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.

The Prison Policy Directorate is recruiting permanently for a SEO Senior Policy Adviser. This campaign is being run externally and so is open to all who consider themselves suitable for the roles and meet the eligibility criteria in the wider advert within Civil Service Jobs.

Location:

Successful candidates will have the option to be based at one of the following locations:

• 102 Petty France, London
• 5 Wellington Place, Leeds (occasional travel between Leeds and London may be required post)

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

New entrants to the Civil Service will be expected to join on the minimum of the pay range. 

If you are already a civil servant and are successful in an external recruitment competition for a role with us, your starting pay will be the better of:

• promotion terms or transfer terms, as appropriate; or
• pay on appointment arrangements (minimum of pay range)

 Job Description overview

This is an exciting and unusual opportunity to work across government to prevent deaths – both self-inflicted and natural – in all forms of state custody, from prisons to secure health settings, policy custody and immigration detention.

The Ministerial Council on Deaths in Custody brings together Ministers, senior officials, experts and practitioners to allow for better learning and sharing of lessons across custodial agencies. Its shared purpose is to bring about a continuing and sustained reduction in the number and rate of deaths in all forms of state custody in England and Wales. The three tiers of the Ministerial Council are the Ministerial Board on Deaths in Custody (MBDC), the Independent Advisory Panel on Deaths in Custody (IAPDC), and the Practitioner and Stakeholder Group (PSG), which provides expertise and input into the Council’s work.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)

MOJ is one of the largest government departments, employing around 70,000 people (including those in the Probation Service), with a budget of approximately £9 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

What we do

The MBDC meets twice a year, with relevant groups meeting between, and is co-chaired by the Minister of State for Justice, the Minister of State for Crime, Policing, and Fire, and the Minister for Mental Health and Women’s Health Strategy. It includes senior leaders from operational and policy functions, scrutiny bodies, the Chief Coroner, and charities. It sets priorities for departments and agencies to make policy and operational changes to prevent deaths and holds them to account through a shared workplan.

The IAPDC is an advisory non-departmental public body sponsored by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), Home Office, and Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). The role of the IAPDC is to provide independent advice and expertise on the prevention of deaths in custody to Ministers, senior operational leads, and to the Ministerial Board. It is chaired by Lynn Emslie, and has five other public appointees, including Pauline McCabe OBE, Raj Desai, and Dr Jake Hard. For more information about the IAPDC visit www.iapondeathsincustody.org.

The team is jointly funded and co-sponsored by MoJ, the Home Office, and DHSC. The team is hosted by MoJ and sits in the Scrutiny, Performance, and Engagement division with the Prison Policy directorate.

Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

The role

As Senior Policy Advisor, the postholder will be responsible for leading the research and policy work of the Board and the IAPDC. This is a unique role which combines providing advice to Ministers and senior officials with support for an expert advisory body that is independent of Government, working collaboratively across three departments and four agencies (prisons, policing, immigration detention centres, and secure health settings).

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work with leading sector experts and senior leaders to carry forward work to prevent state custody deaths. They must have excellent influencing, collaboration and networking skills, and be a high-quality researcher and drafter, capable of bringing together complex information from multiple evidence sources to reach clear conclusions.

Main Activities / Responsibilities

The job holder will be required to undertake the following duties and responsibilities:

• Work in collaboration across MoJ, the Home Office, and DHSC to implement the priorities of the Ministerial Board, supporting policy and operational priorities across departments and agencies to prevent deaths in custody.
• Lead on supporting the IAPDC to develop research and evidence to inform advice to Ministers and departments on how to prevent deaths in custody. This will involve leading on the drafting of advice for ministers and senior officials, research reports and briefings, select committee evidence, and ministerial correspondence. An example of a recent IAPDC project includes working with a wide range of strategic stakeholders to highlight best practice to prevent self-inflicted deaths within custody as part of DHSC’s work to produce the new updated Suicide Prevention Strategy, resulting in the IAPDC’s recently published report. Another example is the Panel’s its ongoing work with the Home Office, Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, and other key stakeholders to implement recommendations from its 2022 report into police custody deaths.
• Oversee the communications output and stakeholder engagement of the IAPDC, and manage the panel’s outreach to the public, press, and Parliament in order to achieve strategic visibility for its work to prevent deaths. It will also include overseeing the management and growth of the Practitioner and Stakeholder Group and its impact.
• Wider activity to support the work of the Ministerial Council, including through the delivery of high-quality written materials for the Ministerial Board and support of the development of the secretariat team.

Management of Resources

Scope for line management.

Skills and Experience

Essential criteria

In your application, you will need to demonstrate how you meet the following Civil Service behaviours:

• Seeing the big picture: Develop and maintain an understanding of economic, social, political, environmental and technological developments to ensure activity is relevant. Ensure plans and activities in your area of work reflect wider strategic priorities and communicate effectively with senior leaders to influence future strategies. Adopt a government-wide perspective to ensure alignment of activity and policy. Bring together views, perspectives and diverse needs of stakeholders to gain a broader understanding of the issues surrounding policies and activities.
• Working together: Actively build and maintain a network of colleagues and contacts to achieve progress on shared objectives. Challenge assumptions while being willing to compromise if beneficial to progress. Build strong interpersonal relationships and show genuine care for colleagues. Ensure consideration and support for the wellbeing of yourself and individuals throughout the team. Understand the varying needs of the team to ensure they are supported, and their experiences are utilised. Create an inclusive working environment where all opinions and challenges are taken into account and bullying, harassment and discrimination are unacceptable. Remain available and approachable to all colleagues and be receptive to new ideas.
• Delivering at pace: Ensure everyone clearly understands and owns their roles, responsibilities and business priorities. Give honest, motivating and enthusiastic messages about priorities, objectives and expectations to get the best out of people. Comply with legal, regulatory and security requirements in service delivery. Set out clear processes and standards for managing performance at all levels. Ensure delivery of timely quality outcomes, through providing the right resources to do the job, reviewing and adjusting performance expectations and rewarding success. Maintain own levels of performance in challenging circumstances and encourage others to do the same.
• Making effective decisions: Understand own level of responsibility and empower others to make decisions where appropriate. Analyse and use a range of relevant, credible information from internal and external sources to support decisions. Invite challenge and where appropriate involve others in decision making. Display confidence when making difficult decisions, even if they prove to be unpopular. Consult with others to ensure the potential impacts on end users have been considered. Present strong recommendations in a timely manner outlining the consideration of other options, costs, benefits and risk.
• Communicating and influencing: Communicate in a straightforward, honest and engaging manner, choosing appropriate styles to maximise understanding and impact. Encourage the use of different communication methods, including digital resources and highlight the benefits, including ensuring cost effectiveness. Ensure communication has a clear purpose and takes into account people’s individual needs. Share information as appropriate and check understanding. Show positivity and enthusiasm towards work, encouraging others to do the same. Ensure that important messages are communicated with colleagues and stakeholders respectfully, taking into consideration the diversity of interests.

Desirable criteria

In addition to demonstrating that you meet the above civil service behaviours, it is desirable that candidates also meet the following additional criteria:

• Knowledge or experience of policy or operational processes for keeping people safe in custodial settings such as prisons, police custody, immigration detention or secure health settings.
• Knowledge or experience of human rights law and wider frameworks to protect lives.
• Experience and expertise influencing and managing relationships with Parliamentarians, press, civil society and the charity sector, and other strategic stakeholders.

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.

Experience

You will be asked to provide a Work History during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

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. 

Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade (Band B or equivalent):https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both behaviours and strengths.

Candidates invited to Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely.

Behaviours

At interview you will be asked by the interview panel to provide examples of how you meet the behaviours listed below.

• Seeing the big picture
• Working together
• Delivering at pace
• Making effective decisions
• Communicating and influencing

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, although 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)

Interviews are expected to take place in December 2023.

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 – contact Sam Johnston Hawke at sam.Johnston-Hawke@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.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

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

• 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 with an average employer contribution of 27%
• Annual Leave
• Public Holidays
• Season Ticket Advance

For more information about the recruitment process, benefits and allowances and answers to general queries, please click the below link which will direct you to our Candidate Information Page.

Link: https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

Job contact :

• Name : SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team
• Email : Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com
• Telephone : 0845 241 5359

Recruitment team

• Email : Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com