Full time Security Communications Officer at HM Revenue and Customs
Job Description
Job summary
At HMRC we are committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues; an inclusive and respectful environment that reflects the diversity of the society we serve.
We want to maximise the potential of everyone who chooses to work for us and we offer a range of flexible working patterns and support to make a fulfilling career at HMRC accessible to you.
Diverse perspectives and experiences are critical to our success and we welcome applications from all people from all backgrounds with the experience and skills needed to perform this role.
See what it’s like to work at HMRC: find out more about us or ask our colleagues a question. Questions relating to an individual application must be emailed as detailed later in this advert.
The ComSec team have a critical role in HMRC’s communication security. The team manages the Top-Secret Communications, Rosa and Cryptographic services in line with national accreditation requirements.
They are high profile team roles and the post holders will have regular contact with staff at all grades.
The roles will be key in managing the day to day running of the services and locations to ensure that only appropriately cleared and trained staff access the enclaves.
The posts are part of the wider ComSec team and will be based in the locations above and will manage a number of satellite locations.
See what it’s like to work at HMRC: “https://hmrc-jobs.career-inspiration.com/app/home”, find out more about us or ask our colleagues a question.
Job description
For Top-Secret Communications, Key Responsibilities will include:
- To ensure that those who have access to sensitive assets and material comply with Cabinet Office policy and procedures.
- Supporting the requirements of the authorities and supporting projects and business as usual
activities.
- Carrying out the Top-Secret Communications application process, including conducting Top-Secret
Communications induction briefings.
- Supporting the annual Top-Secret Communications equipment muster; Completing the annual Top Secret Communications staff review.
- Identifying gaps and weaknesses in compliance to policy and implementing improvements.
- Providing input to Top-Secret Communications-related incident management.
- Providing advice and guidance regarding the Top-Secret Communications service to users.
For Rosa Key Responsibilities will be:
- Ensure the physical environment is compliant with Rosa security requirements & physical security infrastructure maintained.
- Report any failures in equipment.
- Regular inspection of tamper proof seals on Rosa kit.
- Complete and submit quarterly audits on kit.
- Deal with on-site security incidents.
- Complete and maintain site security documentation.
- Be responsible for access and entry for network equipment room/ restricted areas.
For Crypto Key responsibilities will be:
- Support primary Crypto Custodian & end users in the co-ordination of activities for the application of Crypto across the Organisation.
- Assist with the management and assurance activities the ComSec team will conduct across the relevant locations, including the locations mentioned above plus the satellite locations.
Note: This is not an exclusive list, and the post-holder will be required to perform any additional duties
reasonably expected of them within the scope of the grade and within the limits of their skills, competence and training.
Travel and overnight stays are rare, but generally are connected to training courses or visiting our other site.
Please note the posts are to split across the locations listed and subject to the following maximum roles per location:
Nottingham: 1
Telford: 1
Glasgow: 1
Person specification
- Willing to undergo DV Clearance.
- Strong communication skills (written and verbal) with the ability to communicate effectively across a broad range of internal/external people.
- Experience in working in Office 365 and SharePoint.
- Be willing to regularly travel to other locations.
- Be willing to work out of hours when required.
Desirable Criteria:
- Experience of working in the Top-Secret Communications environment.
- Experience of working in the Crypto environment
- Experience of working in the Rosa environment.
Behaviours
We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Communicating and Influencing
- Managing a Quality Service
Technical skills
We’ll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- This will be tailored between the person’s CV and the desirable/essential experience.
Benefits
- 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 27%
From 1 September 2021 (when annual leave changes agreed as part of HMRC’s reform deal are introduced), full-time employees have a starting paid annual leave allowance of 25 days per year, pro rata, which will increase by one day for each year’s qualifying service up to a maximum of 30 days.
If you’re transferring over from an Other Government Department (OGD), we will take account of your previous qualifying service, provided there is no break in your service between you working for your previous department and taking up service with HMRC.
If you’re transferring over from a recognised Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), you will have your previous qualifying service recognised from 1 March 2011, provided it is continuous with your service with HMRC.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-for-hmrc-information-for-applicants/terms-and-conditions-in-hmrc
Team members that are moving offices as a result of the Locations Programme will be entitled to a Moves Adjustment Payment for three years where they incur additional costs. This is calculated based on the difference between the costs of travelling to and from the new and old office, over a weekly period. You will get more detail on this as part of targeted locations move communications.
Find more about HMRC benefits in ‘Your little extras and big benefits handbook’ for further information or visit Thinking of joining the Civil Service.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV stating your Career History, Qualifications, Skills and Previous Experience; and a Personal Statement of no more than 750 words outlining your suitability to the role based on the job specification and essential criteria as stated above. Please note that your application may be rejected if you exceed the word count as specified.
Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
An initial sift based on your CV and Personal Statement. Whilst this a Cyber vacancy, relevant engineering experience will be considered. may be held if a large number of applications are received.
An interview will be held, but there will be no specific requirements, e.g. presentation. The Interview will assess/include Strength based questions, Behaviours: Communicating and Influencing, and Managing a Quality Service; Experience, and Technical questions (This will be tailored between the person’s CV and the Desirable/Essential Experience).
Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.
All Criminal Record Checks applications are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.
Please take extra care to tick the correct boxes in the eligibility sections of your application form. We understand mistakes sometimes happen but if you contact us later than two working days (Monday-Friday) before the vacancy closes, we will not be able to reopen your application for you. The inbox to contact is: [email protected] – Use subject line to insert appropriate wording e.g. Please re-open my application – 272276 & vacancy closing date 20th March 2023.
Security Update
If you are successful and transferring from another Government Department, we will carry out a check of your identity, nationality, and immigration status (including the right to work in the UK) and a criminal record check before confirming your appointment.
Successful candidates must pass a Disclosure and Barring Security Check. Please note that HMRC have an exemption under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, which enables us to make enquiries about both unspent and spent convictions.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service /Disclosure Scotland 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 [email protected] 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 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.
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 Developed Vetting (DV) 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 DV is 10 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.
HMRC transformation
HM Revenue and Customs is currently going through an exciting ten-year transformation programme to create a tax authority fit for the future. As part of this, we are committed to providing high-quality jobs and giving employees a great place to work, whichever location you work from.
HM Revenue and Customs has made significant progress with its plans to locate in 14 large, modern, flexible offices, equipped with high-speed digital infrastructure supporting improved customer service and compliance activity. These collaborative workspaces will enable smarter working and great training and development facilities, allowing for the sharing of expertise, local training, promotion, and provide great ongoing career development opportunities.
These offices will be located in central locations in the following towns and cities close to accessible transport links: Glasgow, Edinburgh, Belfast, Newcastle, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Nottingham, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Croydon, Portsmouth and Stratford.
In addition, there will also be a small number of specialist sites where the work cannot be done anywhere else, in Gartcosh (near Glasgow), Telford, Ipswich, Worthing and Dover, as well as our headquarters in central London. What’s more, our Welsh language service has people located in Porthmadog, as well as Cardiff.
We are letting you know about our future plans because if you are recruited into an office that is not one of these locations, you will be expected, subject to HM Revenue and Customs applicable policies, to move to one of these locations in the future. In some cases, this will be via one of our nine transitional sites.
For more information please contact the vacancy holder.
Terms and Conditions
We really hope you decide to apply for this role. If you’re successful you need to know that in February 2021 members of recognised trade unions (ARC and PCS) voted to approve a pay and contract reform offer. This means that HMRC will adopt new terms and conditions for all colleagues as part of a multi-year pay deal and contract offer, the pay deal period is 01 June 2020 – 31st May 2023 and terms and conditions changes take place from the 01 June 2021 onwards. These terms will apply to colleagues who already work in HMRC and if you join us, it will apply to you too. We’ve put together a summary of the key changes that will be made and you can find this attached to the Job Advert.
Pay
If you are currently working for an OGD and would like to consider the impact on your pay when joining HMRC, please see the attached document “Pay on Transfer from OGD” for further information. (Please note the attached document could also be called “Combined T&C and OGD Pay English”)
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
Further Information
Customer facing roles in HMRC require the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English and/or Welsh where required. Where this is an essential requirement this will be tested as part of the selection process.
A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.
Any move to HMRC 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 here.
HMRC welcomes applications from those who need to work a more flexible arrangement and will agree to requests where possible, taking into account our operational and customer service needs. We can’t guarantee that we can meet all requests to work flexibly, as agreement will be subject to business ability to accommodate, and any request to work a more flexible arrangement should be made prior to your acceptance of the provisional offer.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the ‘Contact point for applicants’ section.
Important information for existing HMRC contractual homeworkers:
This role may be suitable for existing HMRC employees who are contractual homeworkers. Occasional attendance to the office will be required where there is a business need, so please take into account the advertised office locations for this role when submitting an application and only select locations from the ‘location preferences’ section that you are able to travel to.
Reasonable adjustment
We want to make sure no one is put at a disadvantage during our recruitment process because of a disability, condition or impairment. To assist you with this, we will reduce or remove any barriers where possible and provide additional support where appropriate. Please see our Disability Matters: How we can support you during our selection process booklet for more details.
If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:
- Contact Government Recruitment Service via [email protected] 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.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
Nationality requirements
Working for the Civil Service
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).
Apply and further information
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
Recruitment team :
Further information
Location :Nottingham
Closing Date :20th March 2023.
HOW TO APPLY
Click Here to Submit your CV and Application on Company Website