Contents Location About the job Benefits Things you need to know Apply and further information Location Birmingham About the job Job summary 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. 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. Job description In this post you will be providing business management and senior executive support to the Chief Operating Officer. This is an exciting opportunity to develop a career in GPA, working as part of an inclusive and forward thinking team. The overall responsibility of the job holder is to ensure that the Directors Private Office is managed effectively and efficiently and to support the Director and Senior Leadership Team. The role also provides the opportunity to work on numerous work streams cutting across the GPA. Key responsibilities: Professional business management support for the Directorate including managing the flow of work through the Directors office and diary management, maintaining business plans, reviewing and prioritising incoming correspondence and actioning tasks and requests. Anticipating future business needs to enable the COO and their Senior Leadership Team to operate effectively and efficiently, analysing business issues/problems and either implementing or recommending solutions. Co-ordinating Directorate-wide responses to feed into larger corporate returns and processes, ensuring commissioned material is received on time and is of acceptable quality. Identifying data requirements, sources and gaps, minimising the direct impact on teams. Developing and overseeing the calendar of Directorate business and engagement meetings, organising logistics and ensuring materials are commissioned, produced and provided to support meetings/events, that accurate notes are kept and actions are tracked. Providing professional, timely and effective day to day management of the diary; ensuring that it meets the required standard; identifying issues as they arise and ensuring they are efficiently dealt with; make sure that the Director is appropriately briefed and prepared for meetings/events in advance. Line managing, supporting and developing a small team to provide administration support to the directorates Deputy Directors and cross-COO activities. Overseeing the team budget, managing purchase orders and maintaining accurate records Building and maintaining effective working relationships across the GPA Directorates, wider Civil Service and senior stakeholders. Dealing with staff at all levels will require excellent interpersonal skills, a polite firmness, and an ability to react quickly to a changing environment, often thinking on your feet. The post holder may be required to undertake additional responsibilities as expected in relation to the role and grade. Person specification Experience and technical skills Experience of senior Executive support, including strong business management with the ability to lead on meetings organisation, directorate planning and team organisation Ability to quickly develop a sound knowledge and understanding of business priorities, ways of working and information management Ability to work independently, quickly and efficiently in a fast paced environment, often to tight deadlines Good communication skills both orally and in writing Ability to work confidently and effectively with staff at all levels, including senior executives Experience of leading teams, able to guide and support staff Ability to embrace change and be receptive to fresh ideas, taking a proactive approach to improvement. Essential criteria: Experience of business management Communication Skills Diary Management Organisation and Planning skills Competent across Google and/or Microsoft office suites Desirable criteria: Team leadership Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Working Together Communicating and Influencing Leadership Delivering at Pace 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, Strengths, 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 week commencing 24th February 2025. As part of the application process, you will be asked to include a CV and a 500 word personal statement. The personal statement should then align with the person specification. Interview GPA policy is for interviews to be held face to face, with virtual interviews only by absolute exception. The date and location 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 against 4 behaviours - Working Together, Communicating and Influencing, Leadership and Delivering at Pace. Interview questions will be a blend of Behaviour, Experience, Strength and Technical (core skill) questions. A conversation between the candidate and the Chief Operating Officer may be undertaken following the initial interview. Further Information A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Any move to GRS 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 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.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 youre deaf, a Language Service Professional. 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. 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. For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting 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 Please note: in addition to the standard pre-employment checks for appointment into the Civil Service, all candidates must also obtain National Security Vetting at Counter Terrorist Check (CTC) clearance level for this vacancy. You will normally need to meet the minimum UK residency period as determined by the level of vetting being undertaken, which for CTC is 3 years UK residency prior to your vetting application. If you have any questions about this residency requirement, please speak to the vacancy holder for this post. 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 (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 : Helen Lazarus Email : Helen.Lazarus1gpa.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 Gmail Facebook LinkedIn