Contents Location About the job Benefits Things you need to know Apply and further information Location Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, Manchester, Nottingham, Swindon About the job Job summary The GPA is committed to representing the communities we serve by making Diversity, Equality and Inclusion part of everything we do. To ensure that we are always recruiting and retaining a diverse mix of talent, we are particularly inviting applications from candidates who are disabled, ethnically or gender diverse, and people who identify as being part of the LGBTQ community. The Government Property Agency is the largest property holder in government, with more than £2.1 billion in property assets and over 55% of the governments office estate. We are transforming the way the Civil Service works by creating great places to work, leading the largest commercial office programme in the UK, working towards halving carbon emissions from government offices, and achieving greater value for taxpayers. And we are looking for innovative, solutions-focused people to join our team. Representing the best covenant in the UK His Majestys Government we are leading transformational programmes such as the Government Hubs Programme, Whitehall Campus Programme and Net Zero Programme, as well as delivering modern, cost-effective real estate service solutions. Innovation and progress are at the heart of our behaviours. We foster a culture of lifelong learning, where curiosity and self-improvement are encouraged. And were dedicated to becoming a leading, inclusive employer both in the external market and throughout the Civil Service. Our strong emphasis on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) is not just about driving inclusion across our organisation, it is also about ensuring our services meet the needs of government departments and the civil servants who use our spaces. Join our dynamic and diverse team that leads with purpose, improving sustainability, nurturing social value, driving inclusivity and flexibility, and kickstarting economic growth. We are driven by purpose, and you can be part of it too: where you make a meaningful impact; where you influence; where your voice really matters; where you help to shape our future direction. Job description The Government Property Agency (GPA) Commercial Team sits within the Chief Operating Officers (COO) Group and is responsible for procurements and contracts delivered across GPA. The COO and Finance Commercial Team are at the heart of the commercial function GPA. We are driving transformational change that underpins and supports the GPA wide Commercial Teams. The GPA commercial activity is growing in confidence and maturity as it develops and strengthens its commercial remit. This team offers the opportunity to drive and make change often implementing processes and systems where they have not previously existed. You will need to be self-motivated, have an enquiring mind set and understand a range of commercial activity to apply that knowledge practically and pragmatically. You will need to be a team player and work with a range of stakeholders both internally and externally to drive change and innovation. The remit of the team is both transformative and operationally critical, providing support to a range of GPA teams including HR, Legal, Marketing & Comms, Strategic Performance and Corporate Security. This strategic position within the GPA Corporate environment provides opportunities to build close relationships with teams and gain insight to the strategic direction of GPA. The new Procurement Act 2023 creates many opportunities for the Government Property Agency to evaluate how we operate and provide new flexible procurement routes in the future. To build GPAs resilience and capitalise on the opportunity presented by the new act, the Commercial Policy team will have the scope and freedom to develop new commercial policies and ensure compliance with the act while also improving outcomes for GPA. Your role will be to develop and support a suite of commercial policy documents, enabling innovation and driving efficiencies for the GPA. This role will report to the Commercial Policy Lead. Key Responsibilities: Support to implement the Procurement Act 2023 and the broader Transforming Public Procurement initiative into all of GPA Commercial Policy, ensuring alignment with the Act and Cabinet Office guidance. Support the development of a Commercial Toolkit for use across GPA Commercial to drive best practice and consistency across GPA. This will require consultation with commercial colleagues, legal support, stakeholder groups and utilise Cabinet Office guidance to create a robust collection of guidance and templates for use across all stages of the procurement lifecycle and to cover the range of scenarios that may occur across different procurement routes. Support the development of Commercial Policy documents, in addition to those related to the Procurement Act, to enable GPA to have a clear collection of policies to refer to and drive consistency across GPA teams. Build commercial knowledge to develop understanding of commercial practices and procedures, attending training and upskilling sessions when appropriate. Support the team on procurements and contractual matters, as they arise, providing guidance and advice to colleagues. Support the team with governance and secretariat duties to enable commercial governance chambers to function effectively. Person specification You will be: Organised and methodical with an ability to collate a range of varied data to support decision making. A strong communicator, able to work with a range of audiences and provide information that is clear and concise to support GPA decision makers. Able to think creatively and innovatively about problems and explore solutions based on evidence and data to support the goals of GPA. Collaborative in your approach, encouraging challenge and discussion from stakeholders to drive effective solutions. Enthusiastic about driving value for money for the UK taxpayer and delivering transparent and fair procurement for the GPA. Able to handle a wide variety of tasks and take care in prioritising work and managing stakeholder expectations. A good written communicator, able to explain complex procedures and policies in clear language for a range of audiences applying consideration to accessibility and diversity. Experience & Technical Skills: Essential criteria: Clear communication skills Excellent people skills Organisational skills Desirable criteria: Data analysis skills Public Sector experience Governance & controls experience Commercial sector experience Qualifications and Accreditations Desirable criteria: CIPS Qualified or being willing to work towards achievement of CIPS Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Seeing the Big Picture Changing and Improving Communicating and Influencing Technical skills We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process: Customer Perspective Commercial Acumen Property Market Knowledge Innovation Benefits Alongside your salary of £35,175, Government Property Agency contributes £10,190 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 employer contribution of 28.97% Generous annual leave Things you need to know Selection process details This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills. We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the communities and wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and well-being and aim to create a sense of belonging in a workplace where everyone feels valued. 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 and the Civil Service D&I Strategy. 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 (RIS) to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy. 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). Sift The sift is due to take place between the 11th and 18th February 2025. As part of the application process, you will be asked to include a CV a nd a 500-word personal statement. The personal statement should then align with the person specification. Interview Interviews will be held virtually over Google Meet. The date and times will be confirmed if you are invited to interview. If you feel this will be a problem for you, please contact recruitmentgpa.gov.uk to discuss prior to submitting your application. At interview, applicants will be scored aga inst 3 behaviours - Seeing The Bigger Picture, Changing & Improving, and Communicating and Influencing. Interview questions will be a blend of Behaviour, Experience, and Technical (core skill) questions. Further Information A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Any move to GPA 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 o n 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. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. 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 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 gparecruitment.grscabinetoffice.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 youre deaf, a Language Service Professional. 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). 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 : Emily Lont Email : emily.lont1gpa.gov.uk Recruitment team Email : gparecruitment.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk Further information If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact HRgpa.gov.uk If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Click here to visit Civil Service Commission Attachments GPA Skills and Specialisms Opens in new window (pdf, 259kB) Share this page Print Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn GMail