About the job

Summary

• At DLUHC the work we do influences the lives of everyone, whether it’s through the homes we live in, our local councils, or the communities we are all a part of. With so much of our work at the top of the political agenda, this is an exciting time to be joining our department.

• The Government aims to make the UK the most resilient nation, better able to adapt to uncertainty, proactively tackle risks, and withstand adversity, both today and in the future.

• DLUHC, through the Resilience and Recovery Directorate has a powerful role to play. We want to see strong local communities, with valuable links between central and local tiers, that are prepared and resilient and can effectively respond to and recover from emergencies. Effective preparedness, emergency responses and rapid recovery supports the Government’s and DLUHC’s strategic priority of Levelling Up.

• Staff within the Local Engagement and Response Team are at the forefront of this work, engaging with local partners to create empowered and resilient places, where local leaders can make informed decisions which benefit their communities – and can implement those decisions effectively.

• The division works closely with local responders (the police, the fire and rescue service, local authorities and others), the Civil Contingencies Secretariat in the Cabinet Office and other government departments. We also work closely with other divisions in DLUHC on cross cutting issues.

• This unique position enables us to effectively ensure that local knowledge can influence the national debate – so Ministers in policy departments, or at the COBR table, understand what support places need, and local leaders understand the national context in which they operate.

• Our staff are based nationwide, close to the communities we serve. Our resilience advisers for the East of England are mainly based in our offices in London and Cambridge.

• Candidates will be expected to demonstrate that they can meet the need to attend meetings in the Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) that they will be primarily working with in that region.

Job description

The G7 Resilience Adviser’s (RA) work closely with LRF partners and cross-government colleagues to provide advice, support and challenge. They establish effective two-way information flows between the local and national tiers, to enable Category 1 and 2 responders to meet their duties under the Civil Contingencies Act and prepare for, respond to and recover from civil emergencies of all types.

This will include –

• Relationship Management - Each RA will be the lead for typically one or two LRFs (depending on risk and complexity) and support on one or two LRFs to provide a strategic link and cover when the lead RA is unavailable.

• Strong local relationships – The RA will build and maintain effective relationships with local and regional partners, including the LRF Chair and Co-ordinator, and at a senior level with colleagues from all Category 1 & 2 organisations. The RA will also build effective working relationships with appropriate Local Authority colleagues.

• Represent Government in local meetings – The RA will attend senior and strategic stakeholder meetings to support local planning, response and recovery, including offering advice on the wider picture, encouraging cross-boundary working and sharing good practice. More than just attending meetings, the RA will look to help shape and support local planning to improve the countries resilience to a wide variety of disruptive challenges.

• Planning and risk management – The RA will support LRFs as they plan for disruptive challenges which might affect their area. The RA is expected to develop expertise on emergency planning and response and use it to advise LRF partners in the fulfilment of their statutory duties.

• Local knowledge used to shape national resilience objectives - The RA will think about the wider implications for LRFs of evolving risks, including considering regional strategic relationships, using knowledge of the local areas to shape the national policy development debate within Whitehall.

• Promotion of Local Resilience Forums and Enhanced Collaboration and Co-operation – The RA will be an effective and powerful advocate for LRFs across England, proactively working with Local Engagement and Response Management colleagues and others across government to improve and support local action, helping LRFs benefit from the experience of others across the country.

• Emergency response - The RA will carry out the role of Government Liaison Officer to local Strategic Coordinating Groups during emergency response, and Recovery Liaison Officer during recovery, maintaining effective two-way information flows to inform local and national decision-making. The RA may also be asked to carry out other roles in DLUHC’s Operations Centre, to support the Government’s response.

• Capabilities – The RA will be expected to lead cross cutting work to improve DLUHCs understanding of and preparedness for a range of disruptive challenges. They will lead work to understand and scope these issues and develop products and outputs which improve LRF understanding and preparedness for these challenges.

• The RA has a leadership role including as a task or line manager, role model, by contributing to team meetings, and forums, leading ad-hoc projects and looking for opportunities to be active in the corporate life of DLUHC. RAs are responsible for undertaking and supporting development activities and seeking opportunities for their professional development.

• It is important to note that when applying for this role, operational requirements will determine the need for shift working and duty cover which includes working after 2000hrs and at weekends. This is not an ongoing requirement but there will be occasions when you will be required to act as a part of the DLUHC duty team and may be asked to help in the operations team during a major emergency. You should reflect on whether you will be able to work unsociable hours/shift cover and consider this carefully before submitting your application to ensure you fully understand what is expected of this role and the working environment. Additional hours working and duty cover would be remunerated in line with DLUHC Pay Policy.

• DLUHC supports hybrid working, however due to the nature of this role there is likely to be a degree of travel required (although this will always be in line with the latest Covid guidance). There will be an expectation that you will work directly with partners across the East of England and therefore the successful candidate must be able to commute for occasional meetings to counties across the region including Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.

Responsibilities

Essential skills and experience:

• Excellent oral and written briefing skills.

• Ability to work effectively with a range of partners at national, regional and local level at all levels of seniority.

• A self-starter who is able to provide solutions to problems as they arise and led on projects and programmes.

• Ability to prioritise work effectively and respond to changing demands.

• Ability to see the big picture and identify key strategic trends and the ‘so what’.

• The ability to communicate detailed information succinctly, clearly and with insight.

• Ability to demonstrate inclusive leadership and engage a team to deliver improved outcomes and seek new ways of working

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role

•An environment with flexible working options

• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity

• A Civil Service pension