Vacancy -- Private Office Administrative Support

Working for the Civil Service

The Welsh Government's recruitment processes are underpinned by the principle of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles.

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

Vacancy Details

Office of the First Minister
Cabinet Division
Team Support - £22,150 - £25,620
£22,150
Full time (applications are welcome from people who work part time, as part of a job share or who work full time)
Permanent
Cardiff
24th April 2023 onwards

Purpose of Post:

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join multiple Ministerial Offices to provide administrative support in all aspects of their work.

Cabinet Division plays a pivotal role in the heart of the Welsh Government.  Its purpose is to ensure the delivery of an efficient and effective service to Ministers.  These posts form part of Ministerial Private Office teams which will give successful candidates the opportunity to learn and develop key administrative skills in a unique environment.  

Key tasks:

  • Organising both internal and external meetings and engagements
  • Ensure that meetings/engagements are recorded accurately in the Ministerial diary
  • Commissioning, printing and dispatch of papers as required  
  • Arranging travel and hospitality
  • Greeting both internal and external visitors
  • Recording all incoming items of correspondence in the electronic database
  • Allocating correspondence received for draft response, and arranging replies for the Minister within allocated deadlines
  • Commissioning amendments to draft responses, as requested by the Minister
  • Preparing returned replies for the Minister’s clearance

You will be expected to provide support for colleagues as and when required.

Development opportunities:

These posts provide an excellent opportunity to work closely with Ministers and to gain a wide knowledge of how the Welsh Government operates.  They also provide the post holder with an excellent overview of the Welsh Government and its wide range of functions and responsibilities.

Closing Date:

16/04/2023, 16:00

Eligibility

Posts recruited to as part of this recruitment campaign are broadly open to UK nationals, those with right to remain and work in the UK and those that meet the Civil Service Nationality Rules only. Check your eligibility here:

Prior to appointment, all successful applicants will be required to produce original, acceptable documents as part of the pre-employment checks. If it becomes apparent at a later stage in the process that you aren’t eligible to apply, your application will be withdrawn, or offer retracted.

Equality and Diversity

The Welsh Government is committed to providing services which embrace diversity and which promote equality of opportunity. This is underpinned by the Equality Act 2010 and will be adhered to at each stage of the recruitment process. Our goal is to ensure that these commitments are also embedded in our day-to-day working practices with all our customers, colleagues and partners.

We are committed to being an anti-racist organisation and increasing diversity in the Welsh Government by removing barriers and supporting all our staff to reach their potential. We are committed to recruiting Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people and disabled people who are currently under-represented in Welsh Government.

We welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, marriage and civil partnership (both same sex and opposite sex), impairment or health condition, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, gender identity or gender expression.

We are a Stonewall Diversity Champion and a Disability Confident Level 3 (Leader) organisation. Key to supporting this work and providing peer support are five Board sponsored Staff Networks (Disability Awareness and Support (DAAS); Minority Ethnic Support Network (MESN); Mind Matters (Mental health and well-being); PRISM (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex +) and Women Together.

Disability Confident

A Great Place to Work for Veterans

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.

Welsh Language Requirements

The Welsh Government is a bilingual organisation and Welsh language skills are considered an asset to the organisation. We encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills in the workplace. 

The following list of language requirements represents an objective assessment by the line manager on behalf of the Welsh Government of the Welsh language skills required to undertake the duties of this particular post.

Desirable
Can read some basic words and phrases with understanding
Can hold a basic conversation in Welsh
Can understand parts of a basic conversation
Can write basic messages on everyday topics

Social Partnership

In Welsh Government, the relationship between the employer and trade unions is based on social partnership. We believe our goals can best be achieved by management and trade unions working together.

Our 3 recognised trade unions are:
•         PCS
•         Prospect
•         FDA

This relationship is underpinned by a partnership agreement. This sets out how our unions work with Welsh Government on issues such as:
•         pay
•         terms and conditions
•         policies and procedures
•         organisational change.

Our Welsh Government trade union colleagues work together to give their members a real say in the workplace. They make sure that the interests of their members are promoted and protected. They also help reduce inequalities and improve terms and conditions.

The Welsh Government has an excellent track record of working in partnership with its trade unions. We encourage staff to get involved. We support you to join a recognised trade union, to ensure your voice is heard in the workplace. and to learn more about trade unions and partnership working.

Competency behaviours required for the role

Leading and Communicating – Act in a fair and respectful way when dealing with others.
Collaborating and Partnering – Proactively contribute to the work of the whole team.
Managing a Quality Service – Act to prevent problems, reporting issues if necessary.
Delivering at Pace – Work in an organised manner using own knowledge and expertise to deliver on time and to standard.

Job specific criteria

Excellent communication skills both written and verbal.
The ability to work both on your own initiative, and as part of a small team.
Excellent organisational skills particularly when working under pressure.

Assessment Process

You will be asked to complete an online application form and provide 250 words against each of the criteria outlined on the advert. Your application will then be sifted and each of your 250 word statements will be scored. If you pass the sift, you will be invited to an interview based on the job specifics and competencies outlined on the advertisement.

Where more than one candidate has the same total score, their ability in relation to the following essential criteria will be used to determine merit order: excellent organisational skills particularly when working under pressure.

Other Information

  • Unless stated otherwise in ‘actual starting salary’, all candidates will start at the minimum of the pay scale being appointed to (this includes existing civil servants).This is not negotiable.
  • Unless stated otherwise in ‘type of opportunity’, this recruitment advert is not open on a Loan or Secondment basis.
  • For more information on the eligibility criteria and terms and conditions for Loan and Secondment positions in Welsh Government, please see external recruitment candidate guidance.
  • Unless stated otherwise in ‘Location of Post’ the role/s recruited to via this campaign can only be worked in the UK, not overseas.
ExternalRecruitment@gov.wales

How to apply

All applications for this vacancy should be made online via the Welsh Government's online application system.  If you have an impairment which would prevent you from applying on-line, please e-mail SharedServiceHelpdesk@gov.wales request an application pack in an alternative format, or to request a reasonable adjustment related to an impairment in order to submit your application.

To apply, you'll need to have an account on our online application system.  Click the 'Apply' button below, and you'll be asked to 'Log in' if you already have an account, or 'Register' if you don't yet have an account.  Registration takes just a few minutes to complete.  You'll need an e-mail address to be able to register.  Once you've registered for an account and logged in, you'll be taken to the online application form, which you'll need to fully complete and submit before the deadline on the closing date.  

If you’d like to apply for this vacancy in Welsh, please use the ‘Newid Iaith / Change Language’ link at the top of this page, to take you to the Welsh version of this advert, from which you can apply in Welsh.

For further information regarding the Welsh Government recruitment process, please see the Recruitment Guidance for External Candidates (link).

When evidencing your suitability for the post, it is recommended that you refer to the Civil Service Competency Framework (link)

Grievance and Complaints

Anyone who believes they have been treated unfairly, or has a grievance or complaint, about how the process was conducted should either write to the Head of Resourcing, Welsh Government, Cathays Park 2, Cardiff CF10 3NQ or email SharedServiceHelpdesk@gov.wales.  If you are unhappy with the outcome of the complaint raised with the Welsh Government and feel that the principles of appointment on merit through fair and open competition have not been met you have the right to pursue your grievance with the Civil Service Commission.

This vacancy is closed to applications.