Business and Casework Support Officer

The Privy Council is the mechanism through which agreement is reached on items of Government business which, for historical or other reasons, fall to Ministers as Privy Counsellors rather than as Departmental Ministers.

The Privy Council meets at least nine times a year (often more) in the presence of The King, who gives his personal approval to all Orders in Council. Meetings are presided over by the Lord President of the Council, who is the Ministerial Head of the Office. Each meeting is unique and the business can vary widely from month to month.

The Privy Council Office is the Secretariat to the Privy Council. It is responsible for delivering all aspects of Privy Council business, including arrangements for Privy Council meetings; managing casework relating to the Privy Council’s prerogative and statutory portfolio; and administrative formalities connected with all appointments of new Privy Counsellors; Ministerial appointments; Royal Charter matters; Royal Proclamations; the approval of Channel Islands legislation; and the appointment of High Sheriffs in England and Wales.

This is a unique opportunity to provide administrative support to a small team with working relationships across Government, the Royal Household and external partners., As a Business and Casework Support Officer, you will lead on the work of digitising the Privy Council Office’s paper records and assisting with the transfer of records to The National Archives; or the destruction of records that are no longer required. You will be required to provide administrative support with all other aspects of Privy Council work. This will include the organisation of regular Privy Council meetings, assisting with the nomination or appointment of High Sheriffs in England and Wales and management of the Privy Council Office enquiries mailbox, alongside continued records management support., The below responsibilities are the main objectives of the post, however in line with business needs, the responsibilities may change and evolve over time to meet the needs of the Office.

• Undertake a short-term project to ensure all the records of the Privy Council Office are digitised, including all our current and historic records.
• Maintaining files and other records required by the Office, including creating folders and managing the electronic filing system. This will include Charter cases, the appointment of High Sheriffs and the regular Privy Council meetings.
• Routine office management tasks, including answering routine emails; updating the Privy Council Office website and assisting with arrangements for internal and external meetings.
• Managing the Privy Council Office enquiries mailbox, replying to standard enquiries and allocating other correspondence to members of the team as appropriate.
• Admin support, as required, for other strands of work across the Privy Council Office portfolio, as directed by your line manager. This will include drafting correspondence, arranging business for Privy Council meetings and administrative support to Accession Council planning and preparation., If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes., Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service/Disclosure Scotland on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Please note that this role requires CTC clearance, which would normally need 3 year’s UK residency in the past 3 years. This is not an absolute requirement, but supplementary checks may be needed where individuals have not lived in the UK for that period. This may mean your security clearance (and therefore your appointment) will take longer or, in some cases, not be possible.

Please be aware the levels of national security clearance are changing which may impact on the level needed for this role by the time of appointment. All efforts will be made to keep candidates informed of any changes and what that will mean in terms of vetting criteria. For more information please See our vetting charter

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Any move to Cabinet Office from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

This role is full time only. Applicants who wish to work an alternative pattern are welcome to apply however your preferred working pattern may not be available and you should discuss this with the vacancy holder before applying.

Feedback Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check .

See our vetting charter . People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks., * 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)
• 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

The role requires a very high degree of accuracy and attention to detail. The postholder will also need to be able to prioritise a busy workload efficiently and build effective working relationships between the Privy Council Office and our stakeholders, which include the Royal Household, Parliament and other government departments., We are looking for a flexible, hard working individual with a keen eye for detail. Strong organisational skills are essential, as the post holder will have to balance and prioritise competing tasks on a daily basis, whilst ensuring the digitisation project will be completed on time. The successful candidate may also be engaging with stakeholders across Government and so excellent verbal and written communication skills are also essential., * Excellent IT skills, including a knowledge of Google Suite (including Google Drive) and Microsoft Office products .

• Experience of working independently and delivering work to a consistently high standard.
• Excellent attention to detail, confident proof-reading skills and the ability to multitask.
• Ability to build and maintain effective relationships with key stakeholders.
• Confident phone manner.

Desirable criteria

• Previous experience of records management work or experience in an administrative role.

Pulled from the full job description

• Childcare
• Annual leave
• Company pension, We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace, Alongside your salary of £31,642, Cabinet Office contributes £9,166 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides .
• Learning and development tailored to your role.
• An environment with flexible working options.
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity.
• A Civil Service Pension which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and employer contributions of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30.