Paralegal for Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry London, England
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About the job
Benefits
Things you need to know
Apply and further information
Location
About the job
Job summary
Job description
Background
In 1999, Post Office Limited (POL) transitioned its branch network to electronic point of sale systems, implementing Horizon software and hardware into their post office branches. Subpostmasters and subpostmistresses (postmasters) over the lifecycle of Horizon experienced discrepancies and shortfalls in their branch transaction data and accounting. Disputes between POL and postmasters have occurred over the last two decades, and the lack of satisfactory resolution of the Horizon issues, the suspension and termination of postmasters’ contracts with POL, and the prosecution and conviction of postmasters led ultimately to the launch of successful group litigation against POL. On 26th February 2020, the Prime Minister committed to an Independent Inquiry, and in September 2020 the Chairman Sir Wyn Williams was announced. More information about the Inquiry can be found here:
We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Everyone in the Inquiry brings something different, and so will you. We are an equal opportunities employer and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.
Person specification
- Manage their own workload (including meeting tight deadlines) with appropriate supervision and risk management;
- Carry out extensive disclosure exercises including documentation review, using the Relativity IT Platform;
- Build and maintain effective working relationship with stakeholders;
- Assist with the team’s knowledge management/sharing objectives;
- Attend and contribute to team meetings;
- Assist with administrative tasks when required to do so;
- Display the Civil Service Values: honesty, integrity, impartiality and objectivity;
- Keep abreast of legal developments and current thinking on related issues and use training and other methods to refresh and improve their skills and knowledge.
Skills and Expereince
Essential
- Good organisational skills (including the ability to work to tight deadlines and prioritise own work in order to manage a busy and/or complex workload, and the ability to master new areas of law quickly) are essential;
- Effective team working and the ability to build good working relationships with colleagues and stakeholders;
- An ability to work proactively and independently with appropriate supervision;
- Demonstrate good oral and written communication skills.
Desirable
- Previous experience of public inquiries/reviews and/or litigation (ideally public law litigation);
- Experience of using document management software-e.g. Relativity, Egress;
- High level of IT proficiency;
- Legal qualifications.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Making Effective Decisions
- Delivering at Pace
- Communicating and Influencing
- Working Together
We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:
- Making Effective Decisions
Benefits
BEIS offers a competitive mix of benefits including:
A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme.
A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need (from September 2021, depending on how the public health guidance evolves).
Things you need to know
Selection process details
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Please use your personal statement (in no more than 250 words) to explain why you are the right person for the role.
Please note - the CV incorporated into the application form is for information purposes only and will not be scored.
Applications will be sifted on personal statement & behaviours
Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the Lead behaviour (Making Effective Decisions) Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview.
The interview will consist of behaviours
Expected Timeline subject to change
Sift dates: w/c 03rd April 2023
Interview dates: w/c 10th April 2023
Interview Location: MS Teams.
Candidates are asked to note the above timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process.
Further Information
Existing BEIS recruitment campaigns are continuing as usual, but candidates should be aware that following the Government’s announcement on the changes to some civil service departments, roles may be subject to the machinery of government moves and will ultimately be located in one of the new departments. We will provide more information if you are selected for a role. This work remains of high importance to the civil service, and we thank you for your continued interest.
This post is advertised as a Fixed Term for a period of 12 months.
Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply, but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.
Reasonable Adjustment
If a disabled person is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.
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.
We are proud to be a disability confident leader, more information about the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) and some examples of adjustments that BEIS offers to disabled candidates and candidates with long-term health conditions during our recruitment process can be found in our candidate guidance document. A plain text version of the guidance is also available.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
A location based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role become available within that period you may be offered this position.
Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.
Any move to Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy 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 https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk
BEIS does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home).
BEIS cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. BEIS holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.
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.
BEIS wants to be accessible for all, and this includes offering assistance to attend interviews. The offer is targeted toward those from a lower socio-economic background, or who struggle to cover the cost of attending an interview. Please see the attached guidance document at the bottom of this Civil Service Jobs advert. Embedded in the document on page 5, are 2 documents that must be completed and returned to the email addresses listed on the forms to claim an expenses payment. If you have any issues accessing these documents please contact us at [email protected]
Feedback
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
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Recruitment team :
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