Administration Officer (Apprenticeship)
Department for Business and Trade
Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 9th February 2025
Details
Reference number
Salary
Job grade
Contract type
Apprenticeship
Business area
Type of role
Operational Delivery
Other
Working pattern
Number of jobs available
Contents
Location
About the job
Job summary
About OPSS
Do you care about the safety of products and want to protect people and places? Can we use your skills, knowledge and experience to enable UK business to thrive? If the answer is yes, then we would like to hear from you!
We are the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), part of the Department for Business & Trade (Previously the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy). We are here for the purpose of making regulation work to deliver real world impact. Regulation is a powerful Government tool to address market failures, influence behaviour and promote positive action. Crafted and delivered well, regulation can be an enabler of growth, innovation and efficiency.
Since early 2018 we have been building a positive and creative team that enjoys a position of influence and respect within an organisation that continues to grow, most recently with the addition of construction products regulation planned.
Our primary purpose is to protect people and places from product-related harm, ensuring consumers and businesses can buy and sell products with confidence.
Further information can be found on our website here
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. We embrace diversity and promote equality of opportunity. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. There is a guaranteed interview scheme (DCS) for people with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
We are Inclusive
We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible and recognise how important inclusivity is to achieve the best outcomes. We hope to attract applications from all underrepresented groups.
Job description
About the Team
The Operational Support Unit (OSU) is the ‘front door’ to the office, and we are a high-demand front-line team. We deliver outstanding customer service to both our internal and external customer base, providing reassurance and building confidence through our response to enquiries and everyday engagement with colleagues.
We work diligently to support other functional teams across OPSS, undertaking administrative duties to support our regulatory obligations and delivering our purpose.
We are also responsible for developing, implementing, and supporting processes to underpin multi-functional activities.
Person specification
The successful candidate will be expected to undertake a Business Administrator Apprenticeship (Level 3).
The Business Administrator apprenticeship is a minimum of 12 months and should typically be completed within 18 months. The apprenticeship provides a highly transferable set of knowledge, skills and behaviours, which can be gained working across an organisation and its processes. The apprenticeship is a firm grounding in organisational operations and functional processes, as well as the wider working environment.
The apprenticeship will typically take between 12 and 18 months to complete. If you have not already achieved Level 2 English and Maths, you must do so before taking the end-point assessment.
You can apply for an apprenticeship while you’re still at school but you’ll need to be 16 or over by the end of the summer holidays to start the apprenticeship. Please note if successful you must be 16 or over to undergo the relevant security checks.
Key Responsibilities:
You will support the team across several work-streams, ensuring adherence to service standards, key performance indicators and associated Service Standards (SS).
You will work in conjunction with your colleagues to:
- Support the undertaking and processing of all work-streams that the team deliver on behalf of OPSS.
- Respond to, triage or resolve all enquiries received to OPSS via email inboxes, letters and telephone calls.
- Record all enquiries onto the Electronic Case Management system (ECM).
- Follow procedures for the handling of evidence received for testing and be willing to undertake a forklift truck licence course to support this task.
- There will be some requirement to handle large items (such as white goods) where appropriate to support with evidence handling.
- Be willing to attend other required courses such as Manual Handling, Red Snapper (Evidence Handling) and telephony training.
- Undertake all administration tasks associated with work-streams.
- Ensure all work is completed within Service Standards escalating issues if required.
- Develop knowledge of key work-streams to enable you to become a subject matter expert to support colleagues.
- In conjunction with your daily role there is a requirement to work towards completion of the Business Administrator Level 3 apprenticeship.
- Chairing and management of the administration of Team Meetings.
- Leading on own development in line with the OSU Skills and Development Matrix.
- Providing support to Major Incidents across OPSS in a reactive manner.
- Undertaking general office support duties such as post, collation of statistics and a small amount of IT related technical support.
Skills & Experience:
- Have the ability to listen and understand needs through open, structured and productive conversations.
- Have experience of working within a reactive environment and crafting, implementing and developing processes with proven benefits to optimise efficiency whilst reducing risk and where possible, cost.
- Be resilient, inventive, maintaining calm.
- Bring out the best in your colleagues through confident and inclusive interaction with a desire to maintain morale across OPSS.
- Have a willingness to undertake any training which may be vital to keep up to date with the requirements of the role.
- Experience working in a customer service environment where you have maintained positive working relationships at all levels.
- Remain hardworking and positive to the wider team, taking care to challenge in an appropriate manner and forum so as not to cause disengagement throughout the team.
Locations
Please note that this role is open to candidates working in either our Birmingham or Teddington office. When you are required to give a preference, Twickenham will appear rather than Teddington, so please be aware that you should choose this option if you wish to be based in Teddington.
Our AI Usage Guidelines
We welcome the use of AI tools during your application process, as they can assist you in crafting your CV and personal statement. However, it is crucial that all submitted information is factually accurate and genuinely represents your own ideas and experiences.
Your application may be rejected, and you could face disciplinary measures if plagiarism is detected. Plagiarism includes presenting others’ ideas and experiences, or content generated by artificial intelligence (AI), as your own.
The information in your CV and personal statement will be verified during both the sift stage and your interview.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Managing a Quality Service
- Working Together
- Delivering at Pace
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 employer contribution of 28.97%
We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.
Please refer to the attached candidate pack for further information on our benefits.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
Interviews for this vacancy will be conducted virtually. We will, however, consider in-person interviews by exception.
Please ensure that you check your emails regularly as all updates from us will be sent to you this way.
To apply for this post, you will be asked to complete the following as part of the online application:
- A Personal Statement of up to 500 words, explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role in reference to the essential criteria.
The sift will be conducted on the Personal Statement.
Candidates who pass the sift will be progressed to an assessment/interview.
It is likely that the sift will take place 1-2 weeks after the closing date and interviews 3-5 weeks after the closing date though this is subject to change.
Reasonable Adjustments
We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. This includes making reasonable adjustments to our process. In order to request an adjustment:
Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section on the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process.
Alternatively contact the Government Recruitment Service at DBTrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
Candidate Support
You may want to join a virtual Candidate Support Session. These sessions include helpful tips and advice on the recruitment process, from application to interview.
Please see attached Candidate Pack for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department.
Further Information
Who can start an apprenticeship
To start an apprenticeship, you’ll need to be:
- 16 or over
- living in England
- not in full-time education
You can apply for an apprenticeship while you’re still at school but you’ll need to be 16 or over by the end of the summer holidays to start the apprenticeship. Please note if successful you must be 16 or over to undergo the relevant security checks.
- A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Reserve Lists will be for each location and appointments made in merit order based on location preferences.
- Any move to the Department for Business and Trade from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments.
- The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.
- 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. Any applicant who has 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.
- Terms and Conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.
- Please note – the successful candidate will be expected to remain in post for a minimum of 18 months before being released for another role.
- This role may be considered as a secondment opportunity. Please reach out to the hiring manager listed at the bottom of this advert to discuss.
- Candidates that do not quite meet the standard for this role may be offered a position at a lower grade.
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.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.
Feedback
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
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).
Diversity and Inclusion
Apply and further information
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
- Name : Jas Chahal
- Email : OPSS.Recruitment@businessandtrade.gov.uk
Recruitment team
- Email : dbtrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Further information
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact DBT by email: Resourcing@businessandtrade.gov.uk.
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.
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
