27804 - Communications Manager - Office of the Victims Commissioner

£36,254 - £46,888 pro rata
1
12 Months
London
London
CLIVE HOUSE LONDON, SW1H 9EX
SEO
B
Fixed Term , Secondment
For a period of up to 2 years
Part Time
Communications / Marketing

Job Purpose

Developing and implementing an independent, confident, clear and honest communication strategy for the Victims’ Commissioner and her team, which raises the profile of the role across the criminal justice system, including victims of crime, voluntary groups, third sector organisations and Police and Crime Commissioners.

Proactively support the Victims’ Commissioner in engaging with the media to increase public awareness of victim related issues and to make victims aware of her role and responsibilities.

Editor of VC Newsletter so that it becomes an effective tool for publicising the work of the VC across the criminal justice system.

Devise and implement an effective social media and on-line strategy, and including taking the lead for the OVC on the ongoing development of the website.

Background

The role of the Independent Victims’ Commissioner as set out in the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 is to:

  • Promote the interests of victims and witnesses;
  • Encourage good practice in the treatment of victims and witnesses; and to
  • Keep under review the operation of the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime (The Victims’ Code).

The Victims’ Commissioner is also required to:

  • Make an annual report on the performance of their functions to the Justice Secretary, the Attorney General and the Home Secretary;
  • Give advice to a Minister of the Crown or to the Treasury when required to do so.

The Office of the Victims’ Commissioner (OVC) is an Arms-Length Body; the sponsoring department is the Ministry of Justice.

The Victims’ Commissioner, Dame Vera Baird QC has just started her first three year term of office.

The OVC has seven staff: CEO, Head of Policy and stakeholders, Head of Analysis and Review, a Research Officer, a Communications Manager, a Correspondence Manager and a Diary/Office Manager.

The OVC undertakes a series of reviews into the delivery of victim services; it liaises with all agencies who have a responsibility for supporting victims under the Victims’ Code; it engages with victims, victim service practitioners, voluntary groups, policy makers and service providers; it raises issues of concern in respect of victims and champions the needs of victims.

Details of the work of the Victims’ Commissioner and her office can be found on her website: www.victimscommissioner.org.uk

Person Specification

The Communications Manager must:

  • Have the ability to promote the work of the VC through the media, having developed a clear understanding of the strategic priorities of the Commissioner and an awareness of victim related issues.
  • Be able to make effective decisions, often under pressure.
  • Have excellent organisation skills to ensure work is delivered accurately and to tight deadlines
  • Have excellent writing skills, including grammar and punctuation, as a significant proportion of your time will be spent proofing and writing advice to senior managers, lines to take and official press releases
  • Be innovative and proactive and open to new ideas to improve our work and comfortable with change.
  • Be a team player who motivates, engages and supports others
  • Be skilled in evaluating past campaigns and how to develop future tactics.

Job Description

  • Develop media practice and strategies
  • Instigates and oversees all VC media and press activity.
  • Seek opportunities to promote the activities of the Victims’ Commissioner in the media.
  • Advise colleagues on the best practice for media and press handling, and provide a point of escalation
  • Establish and maintain effective relationships with relevant journalists and press officers in other organisations
  • Liaise with colleagues in the OVC, including the Commissioner, CEO and Head of Policy and Head of Analysis and Review to understand and determine their communications requirements; supporting the Victims’ Commissioner at interviews and events.
  • Use information to draft communications; tailoring messages for specific audiences and ensuring channels are identified, developed and used effectively.
  • Explore options for developing the Commissioner’s profile on social media and develop plan and that will underpin this area of work
  • Lead on the continuous development of the Commissioner’s website, to make sure it supports and promotes the full range of activities undertaken by the Commissioner and is easy to victims to access and use as a source of information and support.
  • Occasionally accompany and support the Victims’ Commissioner on visits across the country, whenever required.
  • Edit the Victim’s Commissioner’s newsletter

Core Competencies

Insight - Collaborating and partnering

  • Demonstrate an interest in others and develop a range of contacts outside own team to help get the job done.

Ideas – Leading and Communicating

  • Express ideas effectively, both orally and in writing, and with sensitivity and respect for others.

Impact – Leading a Quality Service

  • Identify common problems or weaknesses in policy or procedures that affect service and escalate these.

Implementation – Leading and Communicating

  • Write clearly in plain, simple language and check work for spelling and grammar, learning from previous inaccuracies.
  • Express ideas effectively, both orally and in writing, and with sensitivity and respect for others.

Desirable Skills

Press and Media

  • Maintain an awareness of the news agenda and emerging news events.
  • Demonstrate a practical understanding of how print, broadcast and digital media work, including the media cycle, circulation and deadlines.
  • Work up ideas for stories and case studies that support communication and business/policy objectives.
  • Develop and nurture excellent relationships with journalists
  • Demonstrate techniques and strategies for handling journalists.
  • Respond quickly to media requests and agree points of escalation.
  • Draft quality press releases and lines to take and issue within agreed protocols.

Digital Media

  • Gather and analyse evidence to understand user needs and appetite for digital products.
  • Demonstrate a good understanding of accessibility and usability issues.
  • Create content that meets accessibility requirements.
  • Support the delivery of online events including, live chats, broadcasts, blogs and Tweets

Experience of running media campaigns is also desirable

The job holder must be able to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence in English or (when specified in Wales) Welsh.

Working Arrangements & Further Information

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.

Flexible working hours

The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices.

Benefits

The MoJ offers a range of benefits:

Annual Leave

Generous allowances for paid holiday starting at 25 days per year, and rising as your service increases. 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.

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 any moves across the Civil Service may have implications on your ability to carry on claiming childcare vouchers
  • Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
  • Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.

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.

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.

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity.

There is a guaranteed interview scheme (GIS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Interview dates: To be arranged.

26/07/2019, 23:55 hours.

If you require any assistance please call 0845 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@sscl.gse.gov.uk Please quote the job reference - 27804.
Please note the successful applicant will need to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Security Check for this post.

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.

Candidate Information

You may be required to provide statements describing your skills and experience relevant to each of the selection criteria. We recommend that you structure any examples as Situation, Task, Action and Result. For more information about the recruitment process 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

In the event of a large number of applications, we reserve the right to undertake the following processes:


  • An automated online test where a benchmark must be passed to progress;
  • A sift on the lead selection criteria. If this happens, the lead criteria will be the first one listed in the advert.

During the selection process, you may be asked to undertake an additional assessment (such as written test). If this is applicable you will be notified of this when you are invited to interview.



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
Collaborating and Partnering
Leading and Communicating
Managing a Quality Service

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.


Application form stage assessments

Interview stage assessments

There is 1 interview stage for this vacancy.

A Great Place to Work for Veterans

The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces.
For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit : https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans

Redeployment Interview Scheme

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

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

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

· UK nationals

· nationals of the Republic of Ireland

· nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK

· nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families

· nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)

· individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020

· Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

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

This Vacancy is closed to applications.