Contents Location About the job Benefits Things you need to know Apply and further information Location Cardiff, Darlington, London, Salford About the job Job summary At DSIT were all about improving peoples lives by maximising the potential of science & technology. We accelerate innovation, investment and productivity through world-class science, research and development. We use technology for good by ensuring new and existing technologies are safely developed and deployed across the UK, with the benefits more widely shared. We are driving forward a modern digital government which gives citizens a more satisfying experience and their time back. We do all this to enable the Governments 5 national missions: kickstarting economic growth, making Britain a clean energy superpower, taking back our streets, breaking down barriers to opportunity and building an NHS fit for the future. Above all, we focus on improving peoples lives. Whether its researching new treatments for disease, developing better batteries, reducing burdens through better public services, keeping children safe online, and much more, outcomes for citizens are at the heart of what we do. Our Inclusive Environment We offer flexible working benefits, employee well-being support and a great pension. We are enormously proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We support candidates with adjustments throughout our recruitment process. Information about disability confidence and just some examples of the adjustments that you can request can be found in the reasonable adjustment section below. 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. Find Out More We regularly run events where you can find out more about the department and tips for the application and interview process. You can sign up for upcoming events here: https://forms.office.com/e/Jae3B4w7xm You can also follow our LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/dsitcareers/ Job description The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is seeking a talented, imaginative and motivated Press Officer to join a high performing and busy team, working on some of the most interesting and varied issues of the day. As part of this role, you will help shape stories to bring some of the government's most innovative announcements to life, including making online spaces safer so everyone can access the benefits of being online and ensuring the UK is reaping the benefits of artificial intelligence whilst protecting the public from potential harms and misuse. As an international leader in science, we show how our record levels of public investment in research and development is making a difference, or delivering our ambitions to blanket the country with the fastest and most reliable wireless coverage available to connect households and help businesses grow. The successful candidate will draft high-quality communications handling plans and products to tell the story of some of the Government's leading priorities, while also producing robust and precise statements in response to incoming media queries at pace. You will need to be able to combine creativity and proactivity with organisational skills to manage numerous different projects to tight deadlines, working with a number of policy officials, as well as enjoy pitching to journalists, bloggers and commentators. As such, the post holder will be expected to engage with national and international media (print, broadcast and digital), working closely with ministers, Special Advisers, policy teams and No10 Downing Street to deliver proactive and reactive communications. The successful candidate will be experienced in analysing detailed information and adept at translating it into accurate, engaging and easy-to-understand language aimed at a range of audiences. They will be able to use these skills to deliver creative communications handling and plans that encompass a range of channels including traditional and social media. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is looking for those who enjoy delivering interesting and diverse communications at pace to continue to enhance the reputation of the department and UK Government. This post is advertised at 37 hours per week. Person specification Key responsibilities Manage breaking stories and media approaches on behalf of the department and ministers, providing high quality, timely and accurate handling as well as a professional service to journalists. Develop expertise in DSIT policy areas and build strong relationships with officials in related areas. Identify and flag risks and issues within the press team. Provide media handling advice to senior policy officials, senior members of the communications team, Ministers and Special Advisers on a range of reactive and proactive activity. Produce high quality written work including proactive press releases, rebuttals, lines to take and social media posts in response to developing stories. Provide high quality and rapid monitoring of breaking media stories as well as events relevant to the Department. Create multi-channel media plans to ensure press handling reflect policy developments and the emerging news agenda and inform the wider communications strategy and the goals of DSIT and its ministers. Contribute creative ideas as a member of the wider Communications Directorate to communicate and promote DSIT's policies. Deliver strong evaluation of media strategies to inform future proactive and reactive media campaigns. Establish and maintain key relationships with journalists, keeping them across future announcements from the Department and regularly pitching ideas to them to ensure coverage. Participate in the out-of-hours duty rota responding to issues covering the full breadth of DSIT policies. Skills and experience Essential criteria Experience of working in a fast-paced media office, with highly effective media, rebuttal and crisis management skills. Excellent written and oral communications skills. Comfortable handling high-profile and sensitive media issues. Adhere to confidentiality and provide clear, trusted briefings to media and other partners. Strong organisational skills and the ability to prioritise and deliver multiple tasks to short deadlines. This is a busy office and the role will require you to handle several tasks at once so adaptability and organisation is essential. Sharp news sense and knowledge of the media landscape, particularly popular and emerging online and digital trends to ensure activities reflect policy developments and the emerging news agenda. Desirable criteria A proven record of working either in a media/press office environment, or working on issues surrounding tech and science. Experience of news management in PR or journalism. Experience of using social media and evaluating communications. As part of the News team, you will report to a Senior Communications Officer. Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Communicating and Influencing Delivering at Pace Seeing the Big Picture Technical skills We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process: Implementation: Press and Media Insight: Press and Media Impact: Press and Media Benefits Alongside your salary of £33,015, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology contributes £9,564 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including: A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours. Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribution of 28.97%. A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30. An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue. Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts. A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need. This role attracts a specialist Communications pay enhancement of £5,280 per annum. Office attendance The Department operates a discretionary hybrid working policy, which provides for a combination of working hours from your place of work and from your home in the UK. The current expectation for staff is to attend the office or non-home-based location for 40-60% of the time over the accounting period. 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. 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. Please use your personal statement (in no more than 500 words) to tell us why you are the best person for the job. Applications will be sifted on CV and personal statement. In the event of a large number of applicants, applications will be sifted on the CV. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview. The interview will consist of behaviour and technical-based questions, as well as a written exercise. Sift and interview dates to be confirmed Further Information Reasonable Adjustment We are proud to be a disability confident leader and we welcome applications from disabled candidates and candidates with long-term conditions. I nformation about the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) and some examples of adjustments that we offer to disabled candidates and candidates with long-term health conditions during our recruitment process can be found in our DSIT Candidate Guidance. A DSIT Plain Text Version of the guidance is also available. We encourage candidates to discuss their adjustment needs by emailing the job contact which can be found under the contact point for applicants' section. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out. New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band. A location-based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role become available within that period you may be offered this position. Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you. Any move to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology 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 https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk DSIT does not normally offer full home working (i.e., working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home). DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify. In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on you r 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. 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. Feedback 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 : Elly Bolton Email : elly.boltondsit.gov.uk Recruitment team Email : dsitresourcing.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk Further information Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commissions 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 you should contact in the first instance DSITrecruitment.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: Click here to visit Civil Service Commission/Complaints. Attachments DSIT T&Cs v1.2 Opens in new window (docx, 179kB) Share this page Print Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn GMail