Freedom of Information Support Officer

Join our Legal Services and be part of the Freedom of Information Team as our Support Officer!

About the role

Within the Legal Services and Freedom of Information Team, you will work alongside our experienced Freedom of Information Officer (FOI) to ensure that Freedom of Information Act and Environmental Information Regulation (EIR) requests are managed in a professional manner which upholds the University’s reputation and in line with legal requirements. Working with the FOI Officer, you'll act as the University’s operational point of contact to provide support for the core functions of Freedom of Information, including:

• logging and acknowledging requests for information
• notifying colleagues about requests, collecting and organising information to assist with University responses
• working with University colleagues to obtain and advise on information and respond to queries
• collecting information for the University’s Publication Schedule

This is a busy and varied role involving daily communication with teams across the University to obtain information required to respond to requests within the statutory timescales. You will also have direct contact with members of the public as well as staff, and must be a confident communicator with a keen focus on delivering excellent customer service.

About you

You will:

• have excellent organisational skills, be able to demonstrate good use of initiative, and have the ability to multi-task and prioritise in supporting the University’s compliance with FOI/EIR
• work well independently but also as part of the wider Legal Services and Freedom of Information Team
• be motivated to expand your knowledge of the FOI/EIR legislation and requirements with support from the University (with external training provided as appropriate) and guidance from the Freedom of Information Officer
• thrive in a collaborative environment and be able to build strong working relationships across academic departments and professional services
• have strong organisational and analytical skills with the ability to assess complex information
• be detail-oriented to apply accurate redactions to sensitive information
• have the ability to manage competing priorities and work to strict deadlines

The ideal candidate will also be an advocate for continuous improvement, committed to helping build a culture of transparency and compliance through training and awareness.

Further information

This is a part-time role, working 21.9 hours per week (0.6 fte). As well as considering candidates with previous experience, this is also an exciting opportunity to develop into the role if you have no previous experience working as a Freedom of Information Officer.

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Delia Bean, FOI Officer or Joanna Madeley, Head of Legal Services. However, please note that Joanna will not be available from 3 -7 August.

We consider ourselves to be a university where difference is celebrated, respected and encouraged. We have an excellent international reputation with staff from over 60 different nations and have made a positive commitment towards gender equity and intersectionality, receiving a Silver Athena SWAN award. We truly believe that diversity of experience, perspectives, and backgrounds will lead to a better environment for our employees and students, and encourage applications from all genders, backgrounds, and communities, particularly from underrepresented groups, and value the positive impact that will have on the university. We are committed to maintaining a safe and secure environment for our students, staff, and community by reinforcing our Safer Recruitment commitment.

We're very proud to be a signatory of the Armed Forces Covenant, an accredited Disability Confident Leader, an autism friendly university, committed to building disability confidence and supporting disabled staff.

What we can offer you

We're continually expanding our benefits package to better support you and enhance your experience with us, and the below is just an example of some of the many great benefits we offer:

• Generous annual leave allowance with an additional 5 discretionary days so that you can enjoy a positive work-life balance
• Generous employer contributory pension schemes
• Cycle to work scheme
• Electric vehicle salary sacrifice scheme
• Staff discount at Team Bath gym
• Staff benefits, including discounted postgraduate tuition and language courses, alongside a wide range of personal and professional development opportunities such as apprenticeships, LinkedIn Learning, and more
• Local discounts, including free entry to the Holburne Museum in Bath
• A family-friendly workplace
• An excellent reward package that recognises the talents of our diverse workforce
• Relocation allowance

Find out more about our benefits on our website and watch the video to hear from our staff about what makes the University of Bath a great place to work, as well as following us on X and LinkedIn.

Be Well at Bath

We're committed to creating a health-supporting working environment where everyone can thrive and be at their best. We offer a range of resources to enable you to do that from your first day here, including:

• Staff support groups and networks
• A network of Staff Wellbeing Champions
• A suite of tools, resources and frameworks that enable you to be at your best and thrive

Find out more about being at your best at Bath on our website.

Right to Work in the UK: We do not assess immigration or right to work status until the offer stage. Being invited to interview does not guarantee you are eligible for visa sponsorship, and all offers are conditional on meeting right to work requirements. Further information is available on our application support webpage.

Anonymous shortlisting: We are constantly seeking to reduce the unconscious bias that enters any assessment process, with the goal of creating an inclusive and equal assessment process. To support this, personal details such as your name may be removed from application forms at the initial shortlisting stage.