Policy Advisor: Local and Regional Growth (Ref: 22722)

Job summary

Job description

Wales Office

Job Description for Policy Advisor: Local and Regional Growth

Job Title - Policy Advisor: Local and Regional Growth

Pay Grade - HEO

Salary - £35,335 - £37,847

Location - Ty William Morgan, Cardiff, CF10 1EP

Contract - Up to 12 Month Fixed Term Contract or Loan with possibility of extension or permanency.

Clearance - CTC (See Additional Information)

About the Wales Office

The Wales Office is the face of the UK Government in Wales and the voice of Wales in Westminster. We support the Secretary of State for Wales and his Ministerial team in representing Wales at the heart of Government. We work in partnership with other Government Departments and other stakeholders to deliver a stronger Wales within a strong United Kingdom.

This is an important time to be involved in regional growth in Wales, as the United Kingdom union is more of a priority than ever to this Government and the need for Whitehall departments to understand how to work with the devolved administrations in the context of legislative change has never been greater.

Our departmental values are Commitment, Collaboration and Quality. These shape how we operate in a challenging, demanding, and fast paced environment which requires flexibility, transparency, and professionalism.

The Wales Office has two sites, one in Cardiff and one in Whitehall. The successful candidate will be based in Cardiff, but travel between sites and elsewhere may be required, in order to build relations with policy colleagues and stakeholders.

About the team

The Local and Regional Growth team oversees governance, assurance and performance monitoring of a range of UK Government investment programmes in Wales. This includes the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal, Swansea Bay City Deal, North Wales Growth Deal and Mid Wales Growth Deal, as well as the Local Growth Fund and Pride in Place Programme. These investments are supporting economic growth, regeneration and opportunity across Wales, and the team works closely with local authorities, delivery partners, Welsh Government and UK Government departments to ensure they deliver their intended outcomes. The team also provides Ministers with policy advice, assurance on programme delivery, value for money and the impact of UK Government investment across Wales.

These programmes are at different levels of maturity so provide an excellent opportunity for the successful candidate to follow these workstreams through from concept to delivery.

Purpose of the Role

The role is a core position within the Local and Regional Growth team. The post holder will play an integral role in supporting the governance, assurance and delivery of UK Government investment programmes across Wales, whilst progressing the Secretary of State's priorities. You will be expected to build effective relationships across Whitehall and with external stakeholders to support programme delivery and maximise the impact of UK Government investment. You will work at pace to often challenging deadlines, drawing together information from a range of sources and presenting it clearly for Ministers and senior officials. The role will also support the development of approaches to monitor programme performance, track outputs and outcomes, and improve the evidence base used to assess the impact of UK Government investment in Wales.

Key Responsibilities

The team undertakes strategic policy, governance, and assurance work, working with other parts of Government and a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, to support the Office in delivering on the Secretary of State’s priorities.

This role will involve:

• Briefing the Secretary of State or Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in advance of important meetings with external stakeholders.
• Replying to written correspondence from Parliamentarians, external groups, or members of the public, for example.
• Supporting the Secretary of State and Ministers to prepare for Parliamentary engagements, including Welsh Orals sessions in the House of Commons and Committee appearances.
• Collaborating with Whitehall departments and external stakeholders across the Regional Growth Deals within Wales.
• Communicating and managing relationships with Local Authorities, Welsh Government and other UK Government Departments.
• Supporting governance and assurance arrangements for the Local Growth Fund and Pride in Place Programme.
• Monitoring programme delivery and performance across a portfolio of UK Government-funded investments in Wales.
• Developing and maintaining systems, processes and reporting tools to track programme outputs, outcomes and wider economic impacts.
• Analysing programme and performance data to identify trends, risks and opportunities, and presenting findings clearly to Ministers and senior officials.
• Supporting the collection, validation and reporting of investment data, including metrics such as expenditure, jobs created, private sector investment leveraged and other agreed programme outputs.

This list is not intended to be exhaustive, and it is likely that duties may be altered from time to time in the light of changing circumstances and after consultation with the postholder.

Person Specification

You will be an experienced policy official and effective at briefing others. You will be well organised and able to deliver at pace. You will be capable of learning new policy areas quickly. You will have well-honed interpersonal skills to establish rapport with stakeholders quickly and have the confidence to provide challenge to colleagues where appropriate.

Please evidence how closely you match the essential criteria in your Statement of Suitability:

Essential:

• Given the need to cover a complex, challenging and wide policy portfolio you will need to show experience of working in an environment where a multi-tasking approach and the need for prioritisation has been required.
• Demonstrable experience of giving effective policy advice to senior stakeholders through both oral and written briefing and correspondence.
• Clear evidence of experience of working in a time pressured environment.
• Excellent written and oral business communication skills.
• Experience of using data and evidence to monitor performance, measure outcomes and support policy or programme delivery.

Desirable:

• Experience of developing reporting processes, dashboards or data tracking systems.
• Experience of analysing and interpreting quantitative data to assess programme performance and impact.
• Written and verbal Welsh language skills are highly desirable, but not essential.

Recruitment Process

This campaign will be undertaken using the Civil Service Success Profile framework. You will need to provide evidence in your application to cover the following behaviours:

• Communicating and Influencing (Lead Behaviour) (Application & Interview)
• Delivering at Pace (Application & Interview)
• Working Together (Interview Only)
• Managing a Quality Service (Interview Only)

In the event of a high volume of applicants, we will sift only on the lead behaviour to create a shortlist for interview.

Strengths may also be tested at interview, but these are not shared in advance.

Additional