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Details

Reference number

387880

Salary

£71,370 - £77,813 This role is also entitled to a Private Office Allowance. A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Job grade

Grade 6

Contract type

Permanent

Business area

CO - Chief Operating Officer Office

Type of role

Communications / Marketing

Working pattern

Full-time

Number of jobs available

1

Contents

Location

About the job

Benefits

Things you need to know

Apply and further information

Location

Westminster

About the job

Job summary

The Speechwriter and Communications Lead is a critical position in the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster’s office, providing expert drafting and editorial skills to oversee all speeches, comment pieces and other named communication products from the most senior minister in the Cabinet Office.

This fast-paced and challenging role involves close engagement with Ministers, special advisers, and senior colleagues across the department and Whitehall.

You will report to the Principal Private Secretary and work closely with the Head of News and External Affairs, dividing your time between the Private Office and Communications teams. You will need to support the department’s wider communications strategy and integrate speeches and other named communications products to achieve our objectives and reach diverse target audiences.

Job description

Responsibilities & Duties

• Draft speeches, op-eds, parliamentary statements and other named communications products for the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, working with him and his advisers to articulate his priorities and communicate his messages in a clear and compelling way.

• Provide advice on communications strategy and other interventions. Integrate media and social media activity around speeches, identifying and applying appropriate tactics to boost this when appropriate.

• Adapt your writing to target different audiences and for different mediums of communication, and effectively assess the impact of communications on different audiences.
• Develop and maintain strong working relationships with Ministers, private offices, special advisers and senior officials to ensure a streamlined speechwriting and approval process.
• Work closely with policy colleagues from the Cabinet Office, partner organisations and other government departments to help communicate priorities and source compelling facts, evidence and examples for use in speeches.
• Work effectively with the wider communications team, so that speechwriting plans are joined up with wider communications strategies.

Person specification

Person specification - essential criteria

We are looking for someone who:

• Is comfortable setting the direction of their work and taking initiative.
• Can quickly get to grips with complex issues, understanding policies and data and explaining them simply and credibly.
• Is confident in building relationships with senior ministers, special advisers and officials.
• Will work collaboratively and flexibly with ministerial private offices, communications teams and policy colleagues.
• Can identify interesting ‘stories’ and work with policy officials to communicate them to the public.
• Is organised and can independently manage a forward look programme of work, working quickly and calmly across what can be a complex and unpredictable workload with often tight deadlines.
• Has strong political awareness and sound judgement, with a sophisticated understanding of the media and news landscape and how to communicate effectively within that.

Technical skills

• Speechwriting and/or experience of writing op-eds and other named communications products on behalf of senior leaders, in the public or private sector.
• Copy editing, particularly for public facing communications products.
• Overseeing the compiling and editing of longer documents such as reports and strategy documents.

Additional information:

A minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace. Although requirements to attend other locations for official business will also count towards this level of attendance.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £71,370, Cabinet Office contributes £20,675 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.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Application process
In order to apply for this role, please submit a CV and a personal statement of 750 words setting out why you want this role and how you meet the person specification.

Selection process
If you are successful at the sift stage, you will be asked to complete a written task as well as an interview that will assess the following behaviours:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Bigger Picture
• Delivering at Pace

Expected timeline (subject to change)
Expected sift date – w/c 10 February
Expected interview date/s – w/c 17 February
Interview location - Your interview will either be conducted face to face or by video. You will be notified of the location if you are selected for interview.

Reasonable Adjustment

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.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact Government Recruitment Service via cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Further information

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'contact point for applicants' section.

Please note that this role requires SC clearance, which would normally need 5 years’ UK residency in the past 5 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 note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

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. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk.

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

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

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

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting

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

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 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 security check (opens in a new window).

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

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• 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) (opens in a new window)
• 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

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative. The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window). Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

Name : Harriet Gordon Email : harriet.gordon1@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

Email : cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and wish to make a complaint, then in the first instance you should contact Government Recruitment Service by email at : cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission at info@csc.gov.uk. For further information on the Recruitment Principles and bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission, please visit their website at: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk.