40532 - Head of Police National Computer and Criminal Histories team, Data & Analytical Services Directorate
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
Overview
We have a permanent role to lead the Police National Computer and Criminal Histories team within the MoJ Data & Analytical Services Directorate at Grade 7b. The post is open to staff on level transfer and other eligible staff on promotion and you must be a member of the GSS, GSR or GORS to be eligible to apply.
The Successful candidate will be based at: 102 Petty France, MoJ Hubs and home. It is anticipated the post holder would need to work 2 days a week in 102 Petty France (covid allowing), due to the fixed location of the Police National Computer.
Interviews are likely to take place in February 2021 and will be held via MS Teams. We will keep a merit list for a year for those who successfully pass the interview board but who are not offered a post.
Background
Data and Analytical Services Directorate (DASD) sits at the heart of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) providing analytical support across a diverse and exciting agenda. We work in a dynamic and fast paced context and our skills are in heavy demand across the MoJ. We are a cross-disciplinary directorate with a supporting policy development and operational delivery with a mixture of generalist analysts and data users, social researchers, operational researchers, statisticians and economists.
Analysts have a crucial role to play in the achievement of the Ministry’s goals. We provide the evidence on which to make good policy choices, monitor and evaluate progress and demonstrate outcomes. There is a huge appetite within the Ministry for more and better analysis, which is driving us to recruit.
MoJ provides an exciting and dynamic environment for analysts with considerable opportunity to make a difference. DASD comprises around 300 staff who providing support, challenge and advice to policy and operational colleagues and Ministers right across MoJ and beyond. Analysts have a crucial role to play in the achievement of the Ministry's goals, and there is a huge appetite for more and better analysis and analysts.
Why work for the Ministry of Justice?
- Flexible working arrangements – including compressed hours, flexi-time, working for home or commuter hubs outside of London
- Regular job rotations to broaden experience – there are regular optional rotations for analysts of all levels to expand experience and opportunities
- Analysis is at the centre of the Department’s decision making – with the move to a ‘Data Driver Department’ and a Secretary of State keen for all decisions to be evidence driven, your analysis will be key in influencing decisions
- See the frontline and what your work is influencing – regular opportunities to visit prisons and probation providers to better understand the areas your analysis is affecting
- Range of new areas of work and software – with the move to a more ‘Data Driven Department’ there will be many new areas of analysis to develop and a better range of analytical software
Job Description
The role is leading the Police National Computer (PNC) and Criminal Histories team. This is a high profile and demanding role. The team manages and analyses the MoJ’s extract of the PNC. The postholder will work with internal and external stakeholders to agree secure PNC data shares and support a range of analyses to develop the evidence base on offending. They will also manage a team of analysts to deliver two statistical publications.
Key Responsibilities of the role
- The post holder will act as the guardian of the PNC data, ensuring that it is maintained at the required security level ('Secret'). Working with internal analysts and external academics they will agree the sharing of PNC data in a secure way, support stakeholders in developing data sharing agreements and in analysing the data effectively.
- The post holder will support the G6 in negotiating a new IT support contract for the PNC and transitioning to the new contract.
- They will have the opportunity to lead several major development projects. They will work to transition the PNC to a cloud environment, negotiating with IT and contract management colleagues and the police to agree a suitable solution. Working with policy, analytical and external colleagues, they will explore the expanded PNC dataset, to identify new and interesting analyses to drive policy and expand the evidence base. They will also lead the team to publish newly refined statistics on Knife Possession and Criminal Histories, provide briefing and ad hoc analysis on these topics, and develop new areas of analyses, such as on prolific offenders.
- Relationship-building is a key skill for this post. The postholder manages a contract for PNC security and liaises with the police to maintain our access rights. They are responsible for supporting, challenging and developing a team of 4 analysts (2 Band Bs, 1 Band C and 1 Band D), enabling them to work together to deliver a range of outputs - effective people management is therefore essential. The team also has strong links with policy colleagues and will continue to develop these further.
(To safeguard the PNC extract, the postholder will be required to become cleared to 'Secret' level - further details can be provided on request.)
The following experience and skills are desirable:
A good understanding of the Data Protection Acts and good IT skills is highly desirable.
Recruitment process
You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Managing a quality service
- Delivering at pace
Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade (Level 4 – Grade 6 and Grade 7 or equivalent):
Technical
1: You will be asked to provide examples of the following analytical requirements:
Applies quantitative analytical methods effectively to drive insights and evidence that influence decision making and add value:
- Identifies, gathers and brings a range of often large data sets together, identifying and resolving quality issues
- Uses appropriate methods and techniques to analyse the data to gain insight and evidence that solves problems or questions
- Presents findings and insights persuasively so customers engage and understand the evidence and use it to influence decisions
- Anticipates potential further uses of data wider than solving initial problem, and can raise awareness and engagement in value of quantitative approaches
2: Professional competency:
You should give evidence of how you meet the requirements of the relevant professional competency framework. Further information can be found within the links below:
Government Statistician Group (GSG):
Government Social Research Service (GSR):
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-government-social-research-competency-framework
Government Operational Research Service (GORs):
http://www.operational-research.gov.uk/recruitment/competencies/
Please note that a number of the analyst competencies may overlap with the MoJ competencies listed above. We therefore recommend that in providing written evidence for the analyst competency, candidates focus on the technical and methodology aspects of the competencies that are specific to the profession. We will use evidence presented for the MoJ competencies in assessing the wider skills candidates have.
Applicants Invited for Interview
You will be required to give a 5-minute presentation at interview. Details of this will be sent to those candidates who are invited for interview.
Professional memberships
Must be a member of GSR, GSS or GORS to be eligible to apply.
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
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.
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. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order
1- To Shared Service Connected Ltd (0845 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com);
2- To Ministry of Justice Resourcing (resourcing-services@justice.gov.uk);
3- To the Civil Service Commission (details available here)
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.
Grading Structure Review
The Ministry of Justice is currently undergoing a review of posts which are currently graded at Band A to realign our grading structure with the majority of the wider Civil Service.
Posts advertised at Band A may be graded at either Grade 6 or Grade 7 once the review has taken place.
01/02/2021, 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@gov.sscl.com Please quote the job reference - 40532.
For Further Information:
If you would like to discuss this advert in more detail, please feel free to contact:
liz.whiting@justice.gov.uk (07540 263147), or Chandni.Lakhani@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 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
Applies quantitative analytical methods effectively to drive insights and evidence that influence decision making and add value:
• Identifies, gathers and brings a range of often large data sets together, identifying and resolving quality issues
• Uses appropriate methods and techniques to analyse the data to gain insight and evidence that solves problems or questions
• Presents findings and insights persuasively so customers engage and understand the evidence and use it to influence decisions
• Anticipates potential further uses of data wider than solving initial problem, and can raise awareness and engagement in value of quantitative approaches - 250 word limit
Government Statistician Group (GSG):
https://gss.civilservice.gov.uk/policy-store/competency-framework-for-the-government-statistician-group-gsg/
Government Social Research Service (GSR):
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-government-social-research-competency-framework
Government Operational Research Service (GORs):
http://www.operational-research.gov.uk/recruitment/competencies/
Please note that a number of the analyst competencies may overlap with the MoJ competencies listed above. We therefore recommend that in providing written evidence for the analyst competency, candidates focus on the technical and methodology aspects of the competencies that are specific to the profession. We will use evidence presented for the MoJ competencies in assessing the wider skills candidates have. - 250 word limit
Interview stage assessments
Applies quantitative analytical methods effectively to drive insights and evidence that influence decision making and add value:
• Identifies, gathers and brings a range of often large data sets together, identifying and resolving quality issues
• Uses appropriate methods and techniques to analyse the data to gain insight and evidence that solves problems or questions
• Presents findings and insights persuasively so customers engage and understand the evidence and use it to influence decisions
• Anticipates potential further uses of data wider than solving initial problem, and can raise awareness and engagement in value of quantitative approaches
Government Statistician Group (GSG):
https://gss.civilservice.gov.uk/policy-store/competency-framework-for-the-government-statistician-group-gsg/
Government Social Research Service (GSR):
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-government-social-research-competency-framework
Government Operational Research Service (GORs):
http://www.operational-research.gov.uk/recruitment/competencies/
Please note that a number of the analyst competencies may overlap with the MoJ competencies listed above. We therefore recommend that in providing written evidence for the analyst competency, candidates focus on the technical and methodology aspects of the competencies that are specific to the profession. We will use evidence presented for the MoJ competencies in assessing the wider skills candidates have.
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.