Housing Policy Division - Team Leader Roles Leeds, England
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Location
About the job
Job summary
DWP works on some of the most important and exciting policies in government.
We are proud of our work and want to offer you the opportunity to get involved in our ambitious agenda to improve outcomes for millions of citizens in the UK; throughout their lives, in the workplace, and in retirement.
Being a Senior Leader (G6) in Policy Group means working with and delivering through others, building strong and effective relationships across your team and the wider department, with other government departments and across a wider stakeholder community.
We are committed to investing in our people and offer a range of training and qualifications, coaching and mentoring opportunities. Leading a team you will need to be flexible and confident in using different types of information, communicating in different ways to suit the audience, and understanding people’s varied perspectives.
Job description
The Housing, Fraud and Error Directorate (HFED) is part of DWP’s Policy Group that provides policy leadership and advice. We work closely with all parts of the department – from analytical colleagues to operations and finance – as well as across Government to drive forward our policy development and make a real difference.
Housing
Background:
Housing Policy Division is responsible for the maintenance and development of policy for Housing Benefit, housing support within Universal Credit and support for homeowners. This accounts for almost £30 billion of Government spending per year.
The Division has an exciting and challenging brief and is responsible for providing advice to Ministers on housing welfare policy. Its remit is unique in that it supports people who are both in and out of work and it supports both working and pensioner age groups.
The team develop, design and implement new policy initiatives seeking to ensure good value for money for taxpayers and outcomes for citizens.
The broad work of the Division includes:
- Strategic reforms to help increase the value for money of housing support expenditure
- Developing long term holistic solutions to housing challenges, this includes affordability in the private rented sector
- Supporting cross government initiatives to end rough sleeping and reduce homelessness
- Seeking solutions to the strategic questions on the future of housing support for pensioners, people in temporary accommodation and supported housing for vulnerable people.
- Maintenance and review of existing housing policies such as Local Housing Allowance, Discretionary Housing Payments, Supported Housing, Temporary accommodation and Support for Mortgage Interest.
There are three G6 roles within the team:
Housing Strategy Team Leader
This team ensure a strategic approach to housing policy including coordinating briefing for Minisiters, managing stakeholder engagement, responding to Cross Government consultations and working with other parts of the department and Government on areas of national policy. The team lead the fiscal planning for housing working closely with Ministers, The Executive Team and colleagues in finance.
Housing Reform Team Leader
This team are responsible for the reform of Supported Housing which is a complex and cross Government challenge. Working closely with DLUHC and DHSC, the team leader will work to ensure that welfare expenditure provides good value for money as well as better outcomes for those living in Supported Housing. The team are also responsible for longer term strategic challenges such as devising an appropriate long term policy solution for claimant groups on legacy Housing Benefit.
Housing Options and Innovation Team Leader
This team develop innovative options to ‘place based’ housing policy challenges. The team work across the division to consider where DWP can get better value for money from housing expenditure including better outcomes for citizens.
Responsibilities:
All of the team’s work involves cross-Departmental and cross-Government collaboration and as a team leader, the roles demand ensuring these collaborative relationships thrive. This includes working with Ministers, the Executive Team, stakeholders and with analysts.
The post-holders will play a leading role within the Division’s Management Team and will contribute constructively to the overall running of the Division, supporting other teams and the Deputy Director as needed. They will also be part of the Housing Fraud and Error Directorate Senior Management team.
You will be given an opportunity at interview to express any strong preferences for roles, and whilst we will do our best to take this into account, we cannot make any guarantees that if successful that will be the role you will be offered. We do anticipate creating a reserve list from this exercise that could be used across the wider Policy Group.
We particularly welcome people from ethnic minority backgrounds applying as they are under-represented groups in DWP; and applications from people able to work from our Leeds and Sheffield hubs.
Person specification
Experience Key Criteria:
- Team working: The ability to build strong working relationships at all levels and work collaboratively with a range of stakeholders – influence others, engage colleagues and confidently challenge in a professional manner.
- Deliver results: The ability to lead pieces of work, set own priorities in conjunction with the Team Leader and have good organisational skills. The work is often faced-paced and requires a flexible and adaptable approach to respond to changing ministerial priorities and external interests.
- Communication: Good written and oral communicator, whose skills include the ability to choose appropriate styles to maximise understanding and impact and deliver a range of written briefs and reports to senior stakeholders and ministers.
- Grasping complexity: The ability to fit your work into the wider context of the department’s aims and objectives and interpret and use data from a range of sources to support recommendations and decisions.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Delivering at Pace
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Communicating and Influencing
Benefits
- An employer pension contribution of up to 27%
- Generous annual leave entitlement of 25 days for new entrants rising up to 30 days, (based on your working pattern)
- Family friendly flexible working arrangements, such as hybrid working, job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours
- Learning and development tailored to your role this could include industry recognised qualifications, coaching and mentoring
- An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join staff networks including: Women’s Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more
- Professional development, coaching, mentoring and career progression opportunities.
- Time off volunteering and charitable giving
- Discounts and savings on shopping, fun days out and more
- Interest-free loans to buy a bike or a season ticket.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
Stage 1 – Application
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV (this will not be marked) and a 1000 word personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Your personal statement (max 1000 words) needs to set out evidence of how your experience meets all the Experience Key Criteria set out in the Person Specification. You are advised to take advantage of the full word count.
We are not looking at how much time you have spent in a job, but rather how you have performed. Your examples must show demonstrable evidence of what you did, how you did it, and what outcome was achieved. This should include the impact of your approach and evidence of your ability to take forward different approaches in different circumstances.
The standards detailed in the Experience Key Criteria are the minimum expectations for the role and only candidates with the strongest evidence will be invited to interview.
The evidence you provide in your application must relate to your own experiences. If evidence of plagiarism is found your application will be withdrawn.
Stage 2 – Sift and Interview
Candidates who pass the sift will be progressed to assessment/interview.
The interview will consist of a mix of behaviour and strength-based questions. The guidance on Success Profiles explains these selection tools. The Behaviours being assessed are detailed in the job advert. Because of the nature of Strength-Based questions you will not be told which Strengths are being assessed.
The Behaviours you will be questioned on are:
- Leadership
- Delivering At Pace
- Seeing The Big Picture
- Communicating & Influencing
We aim to complete the sift stage of this recruitment campaign and notify outcomes to candidates in March 2023. Successful candidates will be invited for interview in April 2023.
Please note that interviews will be conducted via video link using MS Teams. Full details will be provided for those applicants invited to book an interview.
We aim to release interview results in May 2023.
These sift and interview dates are to be confirmed.
Locations
When applying for these roles, you will be required to state in preference order which of the three Policy Group Hub locations you can work from. Please be aware these roles can only be worked in the UK and not overseas and your office base must be one of the three Policy Group Hubs:
- Quarry House, Leeds, LS2 7UA
- Caxton House, 1-11 Tothill St, London, SW1H 9NA
- King’s Court, Hanover Way, Sheffield, S3 7UF
The Department is committed to promoting flexible ways of working, whilst enabling the business to operate at maximum efficiency and will expect colleagues to work from a blend of locations, including some time working at home, as required.
Certain job roles may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.
The corporate hub location will be the designated place of work and any remote or home working arrangement does not constitute a change to your designated place of work or contractual Terms and Conditions.
Further Information
Find out more about Working for DWP
A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made.
Any move to DWP 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 at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
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 [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.
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing.
Reasonable Adjustment
At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce.
We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia.
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 “Reasonable Adjustments” 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.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with settled or pre-settled status or who apply for either status by the deadline of the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals working in the Civil Service
- relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals who have built up the right to work in the Civil Service
- certain family members of the relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals
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).
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Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
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Further information
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission. Click here to visit the Civil Service Commission.
