Customer Liaison Officer in Didcot

The United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is a system leader for health security; taking action internationally to strengthen global health security, providing trusted advice to government and the public and reducing inequalities in the way different communities experience and are impacted by infectious disease, environmental hazards, and other threats to health. UKHSA’s remit, as an agency with a global-to-local reach, is to protect the health of the nation from infectious diseases and other external threats to health.

As the nation’s expert national health security agency UKHSA will:

• Prevent: anticipate threats to health and help build the nation’s readiness, defences and health security
• Detect: use cutting edge environmental and biological surveillance to proactively detect and monitor infectious diseases and threats to health
• Analyse: use world-class science and data analytics to assess and continually monitor threats to health, identifying how best to control and mitigate the risks
• Respond: take rapid, collaborative and effective actions nationally and locally to mitigate threats to health when they materialise
• Lead: lead strong and sustainable global, national, regional and local partnerships designed to save lives, protect the nation from public health threats and reduce inequalities.

The Personal Dosimetry Service (PDS) is a commercial service, approved by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), and accredited to ISO/IEC 17025. PDS serves over 5,500 employers working with ionising radiations in the industrial, research and medical sectors, by assessing the radiation doses to their employees. This is carried out by means of passive personal dosemeters, which are worn by the employee for a period then returned to PDS for processing and reporting. The service also helps build experience which informs UKHSA’s advice to government and users of radiation and makes a significant contribution towards RCCE’s annual income.

The PDS is a group of around 35 staff, plus 10 bank staff, who issue and assess doses from dosemeters to over 80,000 workers in the UK and overseas. This post will work as part of a small team which is responsible for dealing with customer queries, processing orders, forwarding contracts, invoicing for all PDS services provided (over 5,500 customers) and maintaining an excellent level of customer care. The post holder will work with the team to invoice PDS customers.

The post holder will be responsible for PDS customer & public interactions, reviewing all documentation, providing advice on our services, and liaising directly with stakeholders internally & externally to provide PDS routine & emergency dosimetry services. The postholder must ensure an efficient & smooth service for our 5500+ customers & provide calm & timely information in the event of an emergency incident. This will involve planning & prioritising the routine & emergency response roles as well as managing documentation to ensure business continuity. This includes overseeing the meeting of the deadlines & targets for routine & emergency requests. The post holder will liaise with PDS Lab functions, Logistics Office & others to maintain a reliable routine & emergency response capability by liaising with colleagues & suppliers. The postholder will work closely with the Technical Development Manager & operations team as well as the Customer Services team to ensure effective communication to PDS stakeholders at all times. The post holder will have line management responsibility for allocating resources, prioritising work, staff development & training within the Customer Services team, as well as maintaining office documentation for ISO17025 accreditation. As well as general management & systems development, duties will include the involvement in the preparation of emergency response documentation (policies & procedures), awareness of new legislation / regulations.

We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce. UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.

The post holder will be required to manage a team which is responsible for the first point of contact and Customer Service function to over 5,500 commercial customers plus helping to cover the emergency response capability of issuing TLD’s in a public response. PDS also has an emergency response function for population monitoring in the event of a radiation incident. The Customer Services Liaison Officer will help PDS in its response to an incident, liaising with the other PDS teams, RCE Emergency Response group and members of the public to provide TLD’s to the public for monitoring public exposure. This will require excellent planning, communication and rapid response to an evolving situation. There will also be a requirement for immediate interaction with the response team, as well as longer programme of monitoring of the public to feed into government response to the situation.

Line management of the Customer Services Supervisor and CS team. The main responsibilities will include:

• Managing resources (staff and documentation) to ensure effective communications as well as meeting deadlines
• Taking decisions on work planning and task allocation
• Adjusting these in the light of changing circumstances
• Negotiating with colleagues to inform these decisions
• Feeding data back to line management for business
• Liaising with the CS team to ensure smooth issue and customer satisfaction
• Covering for junior staff in routine tasks
• Attend services meetings
• Responding to and resolving customer queries and liaising with customers by phone, letter, email or in person; providing interpretation of results and advice on personal dosimetry
• Ensuring excellent communication within own team, the rest of PDS (including participation in management meetings) and with customers
• Forward planning for work and supplies for the laboratories, based on expected demand
• Ensuring the teams deliver an excellent level of customer service that meets the relevant quality standards; reliable, prompt, courteous and clearly communicated
• Reviewing and developing office procedures (Manuals & Standard Operating Procedures) for input into quality documents for PDS’s approval by the UK Health & Safety Executive (HSE) as a Dosimetry Service as well as accreditation as a Testing Laboratory under the ISO17025;2017 standard
• Attending appropriate conferences and meetings, both internal and external to UKHSA
• Pro-active liaison with customers and other stakeholders in any emergency, to ensure best quality of service is maintained; this will include customer meetings, conferences and public meetings, as well as possible interaction with UKHSA comms
• Planning, preparedness and practice of emergency response activities to ensure continued capability
• Dealing with problems, e.g. in changes to requirements, software errors, IT failures, supplier failures, by prompt liaison with external and internal colleagues
• Training of staff where necessary
• Dealing with difficult members of the public and other stakeholders and providing advice to clients and colleagues.

Essential Criteria:

• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent qualification) in a relevant business subject; or equivalent experience in a similar customer facing role
• Experience working in, & managing a small team, including line-management responsibilities; training, coaching, & motivating staff
• Experience of following standard quality procedures, particularly ISO17025 to maintain accreditation for the Laboratory including carrying out audits
• Experience of working in a customer-oriented, commercial environment to include direct contact with customers & knowledge of good customer care
• Experience of working directly with customers/stakeholders in a technical environment; giving advice & service details
• Ability to understand technical systems & logic, using analytical skills to question, investigate & resolve technical problems
• Excellent organisational & prioritising skills; handling a busy workload, planning & meeting deadlines
• Ability to communicate effectively & to form good working relationships with colleagues, suppliers, & customers
• Ability to react quickly to changing work plans to cope with peak demand periods & PDS emergency response capability

This vacancy will be assessed using a competency-based framework which will assess your qualifications, knowledge and experience and / or skills and abilities outlined in the essential criteria.

Stage 1: Application & Sift

You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the nine (9) listed essential criteria, and this will be in the form of:

• an application form (‘Employer/ Activity history’ section on the application)
• a 1200 word supporting statement

This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.

You will receive a joint score for your application form and statement. (The application form is the kind of information you would put into your C.V –please be advised you will not be able to upload your CV. Please complete the application form in as much detail as possible). Please do not email us your CV.

Healthjobs UK has a word limit of 1500, but your supporting statement must be no more than 1200 words. We will not consider any words over 1200 words. Longlisting: In the event of a large number of applications we will longlist into 3 piles of:

• Meets all essential criteria
• Meets some essential criteria
• Meets no essential criteria

Only those meeting all essential criteria will be taken through to shortlisting.

Shortlisting: In the event of a large number of applications we will shortlist on:

• Ability to communicate effectively and to form good working relationships with colleagues, suppliers, and customers
• Excellent organisational and prioritising skills; handling a busy workload, planning and meeting deadlines
• Experience working in, and of managing a small team, including line-management responsibilities; training, coaching, and motivating staff

Desirable criteria may be used in the event of a large number of applications / large amount of successful candidates. If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview and assessment. Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Stage 2: Interview

You will be invited to a face to face interview. If face to face interviews are planned, in exceptional circumstances, we may be able to offer a remote interview. Knowledge, experience, skills and abilities will be tested at interview. You will be required to prepare a 5 minute presentation as part of the interview. The subject of this will be: "This role includes a requirement for Planning, preparedness and practice of emergency response activities to ensure continued capability. Please give a presentation on your ideas and plans for this requirement within a Personal Dosimetry Service" Interviews will be held week commencing 25th May 2026. Please note, these dates are subject to change.

Location: This role is office based at our Scientific Campus in Chilton, Didcot. Please note that hybrid working is not available with this role.

Eligibility criteria: Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants).

Security clearance level requirement: Successful candidates must pass a basic Disclosure and Barring Security check before they can be appointed. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Counter-Terrorist Check clearance.

Salary information: If you are successful at interview, and are moving from another government department, NHS, or Local Authority, the relevant starting salary principles for level transfers or promotions will apply. Otherwise, roles are offered at the pay scale minimum for the grade, but in exceptional circumstances there may be flexibility if you are able to demonstrate you are already in receipt of an existing, higher salary.

Benefits of working at UKHSA include:

• Generous annual leave: -26 days for the first 5 years of continuous service -28 days after 5 years of continuous service -32 days after 10 years of continuous service -Plus public holidays and one privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Access to a generous Defined Benefit pension scheme with employer contributions.
• Access to a cycle-to-work salary sacrifice scheme, season ticket advances and payroll giving.
• Access to a retail discounts and cashback site.
• We also promote flexible working patterns (part-time, job-share, condensed hours).

UKHSA views flexible working as essential in enabling us to recruit and retain talented people, ensuring that they are able to enjoy a long-lasting career with us. All employees have the right to apply for flexible working and there are a range of options available including working from home, compressed hours and job sharing.

Disability Confident Scheme: The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria at sift to ensure these candidates are invited to interview.

Reasonable Adjustments: The Civil Service is committed to making sure that our selection methods are fair to everyone. To help you during the recruitment process, we will take into account any reasonable adjustments that could help you.

International Police Check: If you have spent more than 6 months abroad over the last 3 years you may need an International Police Check.

Future location: UKHSA is investing in a new state-of-the-art National Biosecurity Centre in Harlow, Essex, which will eventually bring together teams currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale and Porton Down.