2135 - Official Solicitor and Public Trustee - Healthcare and Welfare Lawyer (Fixed Term Contract)

General Information

• Salary: The national salary is £56,532 - £64,048, London salary range is £61,201 - £69,338. Your salary will be dependent on your base location.
• Working Pattern: Full Time, Part Time, Part Time/Job Share, Flexible Working
• Location: Belfast, London
• Region: London, Northern Ireland
• Closing Date: 30-Jan-2025
• Post Type: Loan
• Civil Service Grade: Grade 7
• Number of jobs available: 3

ABOUT THE ROLE:

These are stretching Grade 7 roles working as team leads in the Transformation, Constitution, and Rights Group within the Northern Ireland Office. The team is responsible for delivering some of the NIO’s highest priorities and most complex and interesting policy areas, including: transformation of public services, elections, human rights, identity and cultural issues, and supporting devolution. The roles offer significant autonomy and the post-holder should be comfortable leading across a range of policy areas and managing diverse stakeholders, across Government departments, the Northern Ireland Civil Service and external stakeholders in NI civil society. The successful candidates will have the opportunity to work on a wider portfolio of responsibilities than might be the case in a larger department, with considerable exposure to Ministers and senior officials. The successful candidates will be expected to manage a high-performing team to deliver Ministerial and UK Government priorities for Northern Ireland. We are looking for self-starters, with an eye for detail and the ability to grasp technical issues, good political nous, and the ability to anticipate and handle issues at an early stage. You will be a strong leader, able to see the big picture, and think strategically and operate in uncertain circumstances.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The main responsibilities of the role include but are not limited to:

• Leading on a defined policy portfolio within the Transformation, Constitution and Rights space to support the NI devolution settlement.
• Navigating a politically high-profile range of issues to deliver high-quality advice to senior officials and Ministers on a broad range of issues, helping to drive forward the government’s priorities.
• Building and managing relationships with UK government departments, NI Civil Service and external stakeholders in Northern Irish civil society to influence policy.
• Line management of a small team.

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:

• Strong policy-making skills, with an eye for detail;
• Proven ability to develop and maintain networks with senior stakeholders across a range of sectors to deliver objectives;
• Strategic thinking skills and evidence of working on complex policy and or legal issues in uncertain and highly political circumstances;
• Experience of influencing, and working effectively with, Senior Officials, collaborating across the NIO and other Government Departments to resolve difficult issues;
• Excellent communication skills and experience of drafting high-quality, accurate written briefing to tight deadlines, and of providing effective oral briefing to Ministers/senior officials;
• Sound judgement, with the ability to think strategically and creatively and an ability to resolve or escalate complex issues as appropriate;
• Excellent organisational and prioritisation skills, with the ability to work effectively across a range of tasks and under pressure.

DESIRABLE CRITERIA:

• An understanding of the NI political landscape and devolution settlement.

APPLICATION

We will assess the following Civil Service Behaviours at sift: Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace.

EXPERIENCE:

Please provide a CV and statement of suitability no longer than 1000 words outlining how you meet the essential and desirable criteria. Both will be used in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role. Your statement of suitability needs to set out evidence of how your experience meets the requirements set out above. Your layout is entirely your preference; you may choose narrative, bullets, etc. One narrative example may cover the requirements needed. You don’t have to explain the whole process, just what you have done and the skills and experience you have used. Share with us what makes you suited to this role and why. What you can do, the skills you have that are transferable and the life experience or passion you have that are linked to this role. If you don’t have work-based examples then give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in. You will also be asked to complete a CV with details of your education, professional qualifications, previous skills and full employment history. Your CV will not be formally assessed so please put the main evidence of your skills into your personal statement. Your CV will be used to add context to your personal statement.

Please note that in the event of a large number of applications being received we may run the initial sift on the lead Behaviour Communicating and Influencing.

INTERVIEW:

You will be assessed against the same two behaviours for the application stage, plus two further behaviours at the interview stage. You will be asked to provide examples of how you have demonstrated the four behaviours listed below: Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace, Making Effective Decisions, Working Together. It may help to use one or more examples of a piece of work you have completed or a situation you have been in and use the WHO or STAR model to explain: WHO- What it was? How you approached the work/situation? What the Outcomes were, what did you achieve? Or STAR- What was the Situation? What were the Tasks? What Action did you take? What were the Results of your actions?

OFFER:

Once all interviews have been completed, you will be notified of the outcome by email. Offers will be made in strict merit order to the highest scoring candidate first. The successful candidate will be notified of a start date following successful security checks. Additional information received after the closing date will not be considered. Failure to provide sufficient information in support of an application prior to the closing date will not be considered as grounds for an appeal if an applicant is not shortlisted for interview.

SECURITY CLEARANCE:

This role requires National Security Vetting given the access to sensitive information afforded by the job role. You can find more information by reviewing the information held in the following links: United Kingdom Security Vetting: Applicant - GOV.UK ( The vetting charter - GOV.UK ( In addition, it is a minimum UK residency requirement set by the Cabinet Office which is dependent on the security level required for the role. This role requires SC and to be eligible to apply for this role you should have been present in the UK continuously for the past 5 years. Neither Detached Duty terms nor relocation costs will apply to this post.

Further Information:

Further information about the post may be obtained from Eleanor Hayden via email. All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit. This job description should not be taken as constituting conditions of employment. Please note that due to the high interest in NIO opportunities, feedback cannot be given if you are unsuccessful at the sift stage. Feedback is available on request if unsuccessful following the interview.