We are recruiting Senior Press Officers to be part of our supportive and high-performing press team. As part of the Press Office, you will be responding to breaking news stories and planning proactive press activity. You will need to be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment, engaging with journalists and reacting quickly and confidently to developing issues and breaking news. You will need excellent news judgment, the ability to be able to think strategically, strong interpersonal skills and an aptitude for digesting complex information quickly which you are then able to explain in plain English. Ideally, you will have a good understanding of the political landscape, the workings of Whitehall, Parliamentary procedure, devolution and propriety. You will lead and develop a small team, championing them both across the department and the Governments communications profession. You will be working in a supportive team and tasked with delivering communications objectives that form a critical part of this Governments priorities. Successful candidates can expect to be involved in a range of the following : Handling interview requests. Developing and managing proactive and reactive press. Offering handling advice and potential oversight of a small team. Oversee a small team to provide a timely, accurate and professional service to journalists. This role is also part of an out of hours duty rota. Some travel may be required for business purposes. Travel costs will be re-imbursed in these cases. Person specification Essential Criteria Excellent judgment and understanding of how the news cycle works. Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment and reacting quickly and confidently to breaking issues. Excellent writing skills including, identifying media opportunities and planning stories. Leadership and line management qualities and experience suitable for managing a small team of press officers. Knowledge of media channels, including the role of digital media. Experience of briefing and advising senior officials, executives or VIPs. Comfortable managing and prioritising competing demands, often at a fast pace. Willingness to be a self-starter and set and maintain high working standards. Please note If there are a high number of applications received, an initial sift may be undertaken based on the first four essential criteria listed above. Candidates who pass the initial sift may progress to a full sift or may go straight to interview. Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Leadership Communicating and Influencing Delivering at Pace Technical skills We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process: Insight ideas Implementation Impact Benefits Alongside your salary of 54,050, Department for Work and Pensions contributes 15,658 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 with an average employer contribution of 28.97%. 185hrs (25 days) annual leave allowance in year one. This may vary for existing civil servants based on their number of years service. Things you need to know Selection process details This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills. Written application As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and Personal Statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form. Youll need to complete a CV and Personal Statement when you apply. Your CV should set out your career history with key responsibilities and achievements. Your Personal Statement (max 1000 words) should explain how your personal skills and qualities make you a suitable candidate for this role. Your CV and Personal Statement will both be assessed against the essential criteria. Interview A blended interview lasting around 45 minutes to 1 hour will test a mix of behaviours, technical skills and strengths. It may help to use the WHO or STAR model to explain: What the task/ work was, How you approached the task/work/situation and what the Outcomes were, what did you achieve? Or What was the Situation ? What were the Tasks ? What Action did you take? What were the Results of your actions? Please see below for more details on the selection process. Written Application The written sift will be conducted using evidence from your CV and Personal Statement and will be assessed against the Key Criteria within the advert. Please note If there are a high number of applications received, an initial sift may be undertaken based on the first four essential criteria listed on slide 6 of the Candidate Information Pack. Candidates who pass the initial sift may progress to a full sift or may go straight to interview. 2. Interview Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend an interview. This will be a video interview. The interview panel will be a minimum of two people. The interview will assess: A. Well assess candidates against the following Civil Service Behaviours at SEO level: Leadership. Communicating and Influencing. Delivering at Pace. B. For this professional communications role, youll also be tested against the following Government Communications Service (GCS) technical ski lls at SIO level: Insight. Ideas. Implementation. Impact. C. Youll also be assessed against two Civil Service Strengths relevant to the role. These arent defined by grade. D .Shortlisted candidates will be asked to carry out a short assessment at the start of the interview, this will be assessed against the GCS technical skills Ideas and Implementation. You will not need to prepare in advance for this. Selection will be by a written sift, followed by a virtual interview (video). You will be assessed against experience, behaviours, strengths and Government Communications Service (GCS) technical skills. Well assess both what candidates are good at, as well as what they enjoy, to help us measure candidates behaviours, strengths and their potential. The assessment process comprises of a written application and for shortlisted candidates, short scenario-based exercise and interview. Sift and Interview Dates Our anticipated timetable - which may be subject to change - is as follows: Shortlisting will take place commencing 29th December 2024. Interviews will commence From 30th December2024. Interviews will be held via Microsoft Teams. Further details will be provided if you are successful and shortlisted. To apply for this post please follow the instructions in this candidate pack or the job advert on Civil Service Jobs. Please submit your application no later than 23:55 29th December 2024. If youre an existing Civil Servant and want to know more about transferring to another Department, refer to your current departments guidance on transfers within the Civil Service. Candidates should not resign from their current job until all appropriate checks have been successfully completed. If you have questions about the role, DWP or the application process, please contact Jeremy.galedwp.gov.uk Further Information Find out more about Working for DWP A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made. Any move to DWP 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 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.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. 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 applicants 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. Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing. The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action. 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. Reasonable Adjustment At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce. We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia. If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: Contact Government Recruitment Service via DWPrecruitment.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. Complete the Reasonable Adjustments 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 youre deaf, a Language Service Professional. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment. Security Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. 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) .