75570 - Senior Policy Adviser, Offender Health and Substance Misuse Policy within Youth Justice and Offender Policy Directorate (up to 5 posts available)
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.
Job description
The Offender Health and Substance Misuse policy teams, which sit within the Youth Justice and Offender Policy Directorate in the Ministry of Justice, are recruiting for up to 5 SEO Senior Policy Advisers. This campaign is open to current civil servants on level transfer and on promotion.
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 Covid-19)
In order for Policy Group to meet its evolving business needs all Policy Group staff are expected to attend their base location (102 Petty France or 5 Wellington Place Leeds) at least 2 days a week. This hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend their base location more frequently.
Ways of Working
At the MoJ we believe and promote alternative ways of working, this role is 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
Existing Civil Servants will have their salary calculated in accordance with the Department’s pay on transfer / pay on promotion rules.
About us
About the Youth Justice and Offender Policy Directorate
The Offender Health and Substance Misuse teams sit within the Youth Justice and Offender Health Policy Directorate. We have responsibility for issues relating to some of the most vulnerable offenders in the criminal justice system – children and young people, female offenders, and those who have needs relating to mental health, neurodiversity and drug and alcohol misuse. Our response, both for offenders in the community and within prison, is critical to improving rehabilitation and reducing the chances of reoffending.
As a Directorate, we make a real difference: our policy has a tangible impact on the services provided for people who come into contact with the criminal justice system, whether that’s at court, in custody or in the community. This is a big part of why we’re so engaged in the work we do. Our 2022 People Survey results found that 93% of us are interested in our work and 87% of us are confident that we work together to find ways to improve the services we provide, both of which are above the civil service benchmark.
Offender Health and Substance Misuse teams
People in the Criminal Justice System tend to experience poorer physical and mental health than the general population. Nearly half of those in prison and over a third of offenders in the community have an identified substance misuse need. 52% of prisoners were reported as having poor mental health in 2020/21, and the average life expectancy for people in prison was 56 in 2022.
We are committed to changing this by reducing health inequalities and ensuring vulnerable offenders can access the support they need as swiftly as possible. We are responsible for developing and designing improvements to the way the criminal justice system treats and responds to vulnerable defendants and offenders, including those with severe mental health needs, neurodivergent needs, and substance misuse needs. Our work covers the entire offender journey – from early intervention and directing offenders in the community to treatment, to identifying treatment needs in prison, facilitating engagement in treatment, and then supporting continuity of care for prison leavers on release. Ultimately, we want to reduce reoffending and harm among those with health and substance misuse needs.
We champion a whole system approach to healthcare provision, and understand that we cannot achieve our aims alone. We work closely with health and justice stakeholders to improve the evidence base, develop targeted policy interventions, and drive forward key legislative reforms to improve pathways for care and treatment, including the draft Mental Health Bill which was published in June 2022.
Our team is friendly, supportive, and high-performing, and includes colleagues based in London, Leeds, and Liverpool. We are looking for several talented new team members to help drive these efforts further. These are stretching roles that involve tricky, complex, and important issues. Our team ensures that defendants and offenders can access timely and effective care and treatment, and upholds the rights and safeguards available to them, whilst also ensuring that public protection is upheld at all times.
In this role, you will be responsible for driving improvements to access to care and treatment across the entire criminal justice system. You will be part of a high-profile programme of policy development, change and delivery in partnership with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS), and His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). In some roles, you may also be responsible for setting the direction for and managing a small team.
Our priorities include:
Offender health
- Modernising the Mental Health Act to ensure offenders can access the right care, in the right setting at the right time – in June 2022, the Government published the draft Mental Health Bill, which includes several key reforms for patients with acute mental health needs, detained within the criminal justice system. The Bill recently underwent Pre-Legislative Scrutiny, and we are leading on developing the department’s response in partnership with the Department of Health and Social Care to ensure these vital legislative reforms are ready for introduction.
- Increasing the take up of Community Sentence Treatment Requirements (CSTRs) – we have policy oversight for the expansion of CSTRs which seek to divert vulnerable offenders into treatment in the community, where appropriate, to tackle the root cause of offending behaviour.
- Improving outcomes for neurodivergent people in the criminal justice system – evidence suggests at least half of the prison population has some form of neurodivergence. In 2021, the Justice Inspectorate’s Review into Neurodiversity in the Criminal Justice System found several areas where improvement was needed, including: screening, the collection and sharing of data, and staff training. We are responsible for driving a programme of work across health, justice, and policing agencies to address this through the delivery of the Neurodiversity Action Plan.
- Strengthening partnerships – success is dependent on strong working relationships with, and between, health and justice agencies. We have responsibility for embedding a new Health Partnership Agreement to ensure the right arrangements are provided for offenders in prison and on probation.
Substance misuse
- Our focus is on delivering the commitments set out in the ambitious, 10-year cross-Government Drug Strategy, From Harm to Hope, and in the Prison Strategy White Paper. This includes:
- Substance misuse in prisons– we lead the development of policy on motivating and supporting prisoners to engage in substance misuse treatment, ensuring the prison regime and environment supports recovery, and assessing our performance in tackling substance misuse. This involves working closely with other policy teams including prison security, HMPPS, and health partners.
- Substance misuse in the community – this team leads on the development of policy on tackling offenders’ substance misuse in the community, working with community sentencing teams, the Probation Service and health partners to ensure continuity of care and that we reduce reoffending driven by substance misuse.
The Roles
As a Senior Policy Adviser in the Substance Misuse and Offender Health Policy teams, you will have a range of responsibilities:
- You will develop a detailed knowledge and ownership of your policy areas, identifying, developing and driving delivery of evidence-based options, policies or decisions which achieve strategic objectives or priorities.
- You will work at pace with a strong degree of independence on a variety of high-profile issues, including drafting briefings and developing advice for Ministers and senior leaders, responding to parliamentary or public correspondence and reporting on progress against delivery milestones. You will be experienced at forward planning and delegating tasks appropriately to other colleagues and will be required to input to short-term problem-solving on urgent issues.
- You will work closely, and often at speed, with senior officials and Ministers, as well as press and private offices and legal counsel on the high-profile issues of substance misuse and offender mental health. You will also build and maintain relationships with finance and analytical colleagues, other government departments, operational partners at a local level, and a wide range of high-profile stakeholders to bring about lasting change.
- You will take a lead role in governance boards and contribute appropriately to other relevant working groups or governance boards to represent the needs of offenders with substance misuse and mental health needs.
- You will be a team-player, supporting colleagues and team members and bringing the best out of people to achieve the delivery of key outcomes.
- You should also be adaptable, as the nature of the role and its priorities may change over time. Team members are expected to work flexibly across the team and the wider unit or directorate, to support priorities as needed.
- You will be part of a collaborative, friendly Directorate with people from a wide range of different backgrounds. We put a real focus on learning, training, flexibility and future career development. We are using technology and tools (such as Microsoft Teams, OneDrive) to provide a modern and forward-looking working environment. We encourage a culture of change and innovation and adopt smarter ways of working to provide flexibility.
- You will also be expected to contribute to one of our directorate corporate workstreams e.g. smarter working, wellbeing and inclusion, personal development etc.
- The role may involve some line management responsibilities.
Skills and Experience
Essential Criteria:
- Ability to set or support strategic direction in a fast-paced and complex policy environment across a wide range of stakeholders, both internal and external.
- Politically astute, with experience of influencing and managing stakeholders at different levels with both credibility and effectiveness. This includes an ability to brief senior leaders and decision makers - verbally and in writing - on complex and high-profile policies.
- Ability to support the delivery of complex policy and programmes of work, with experience of wider considerations such as governance, planning, risks and issues management, finances and resources.
- Confidence in working independently to develop and use an appropriate evidence base to inform policy development and delivery.
- Knowledge and familiarity with basic project management approaches.
Desirable Criteria:
- Experience of working in the criminal justice field or related services.
- Experience of working in a policy environment
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.
We would also like a short (500 words) Statement of Suitability explaining your reason for wanting the role, and why you feel you would succeed in it.
Behaviours
Please provide examples of how you have met each one of the behaviours listed below (see Annex A for more information):
- Communicating and Influencing
Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade (SEO):
We will sift on the statement of suitability and the lead behaviour of Communicating and Influencing. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both behaviours and strengths. The following additional behaviours will be assessed only at interview:
Candidates invited to Interview
Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely.
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, 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)
In addition to the Behaviour(s) listed in the application form, you will be asked by the interview panel to provide examples of how you meet the additional behaviours listed below.
- Making Effective Decisions
- Delivering at Pace
- Seeing the Big Picture
Interviews are expected to take place mid-July.
At interview stage, if candidates do not score high enough to be appointed to a Band B role, but have passed the minimal requirements, they could be offered a Policy role at the more junior level of Band C.
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.
Contact information
Please do get in touch with Lauren Withall (Lauren.Withall@justice.gov.uk) or Hannah Smallshaw (hannah.smallshaw@justice.gov.uk ) if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team.
Working Arrangements & Further Information
The MoJ 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 MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). 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.
For nationally advertised roles, the successful candidate(s) will be appointed to a MoJ office location, which may include their nearest Justice Collaboration Centre or Justice Satellite Office. This will be discussed and agreed on the completion of pre-employment checks.
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
Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years’ service.
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.
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.
Eligibility
Staff on fixed term appointments must have been recruited through fair and open competition.
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)
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ 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. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.
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.
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.
19/06/2023, 23:55 hours.
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 Please quote the job reference - 75570.
Contact information
Please do get in touch with Lauren Withall (Lauren.Withall@justice.gov.uk) or Hannah Smallshaw (hannah.smallshaw@justice.gov.uk ) if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team.
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 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.
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
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.