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At the Cabinet Office we support the Prime Minister and the Minister for the Cabinet Office in delivering key objectives and milestones ensuring the smooth running of government - from developing policy, to modernising public services. The Cabinet office is both a “corporate centre” for government and a policy department in its own right that challenges, supports, leads and provides services to other Ministerial Departments. We welcome talented people from all backgrounds with the skills and the commitment to build a career in the Civil Service.

The Cabinet Office Purpose is:

• to maintain the integrity of the Union, coordinate the security of the realm and sustain a flourishing democracy;
• to support the design and implementation of HM Government’s policies and the Prime Minister’s priorities; and
• to ensure the delivery of the finest public services by attracting and developing the best public servants and improving the efficiency of government.

The work Cabinet Office delivers is vast and therefore presents opportunities to develop your skills and experience in a variety of critical government agendas.

An organisation of approximately 7,000 employees, the Cabinet Office is a vibrant, modern and exciting place to work, attracting a diverse workforce which represents the people we serve. Our main offices are in London, but we have staff based around the UK.

At the heart of this are our Cabinet Office values. To deliver our Purpose and help make Cabinet Office a great place to work, we all commit to:-

• treating everyone with Respect
• actively Collaborate, and
• build Trust

We have an aspiration to become the most inclusive employer across the Civil Service. We have a number of staff benefits, including flexible working, and access to a number of staff support networks to ensure we meet this. The Cabinet Office has achieved a Bronze award in the Inclusive Employers Standard and a Gold Talent Inclusion & Diversity Evaluation (TIDE) award from the Employers Network for Equality & Inclusion (ENEI).

The Priority Projects Unit (PPU) provides high-calibre professional support to Cabinet Office’s directorates, working on the department’s highest priority and most complex projects. As the department’s priorities change, so do we, meaning that we’re always at the leading edge of what the Cabinet Office and Government is delivering.

PPU members are typically placed on three-month projects with teams across the Cabinet Office. These placements can be both individual or alongside other PPU members at different grades. Recently this has meant team members leading the Government’s response to Covid-19 and its consequences, supporting the work of the National Security Secretariat, responding to climate change through COP, managing our changing relationship with the European Union, and the modernisation and reform of the Civil Service. We aim to meet the changing business needs and priorities of the department, while providing team members with the best opportunities for individual development.

Successful candidates will be expected to:

• take ownership of hitting tight deadlines and managing competing priorities without compromising on quality of output;
• analyse evidence, work out what the options are and reach judgements as to which is best;
• engage stakeholders, and factor their views into the decision-making process;
• communicate clearly and confidently, both orally and in writing, to help senior people take decisions;

If you can do these things outside Government, we can support you in learning how to do that in a central Government context.

The PPU is committed to diversity and inclusion through our training offer and a range of team initiatives, as well as to a team culture in which all team members can thrive. We’re committed to making the PPU a great team to work in. To make this happen, we all take on a corporate responsibility, giving 10% of our time to the team to create a vibrant team culture.

Like the Cabinet Office, the PPU runs a multi-location model with a strong presence in London and a growing team in the Department’s second headquarters in Glasgow. The Department ultimately aims to have 50% of its staff based outside London by 2025. A key part of this is growing our second headquarters at Glasgow’s 1 Atlantic Square. The PPU shares this ambition to grow our presence in Glasgow and become an even more geographically diverse team.

What are we offering?

The role within the Priority Projects Unit offers the opportunity to support directly HMG’s ever-evolving agenda and top priorities. You will be involved in delivering a range of important, consequential and historic policies in areas for which you have a real passion. Team members are supported by a dedicated line manager within PPU who focuses on wellbeing and career development, working alongside your project task manager who will oversee the expectations of your current placement.

The PPU is committed to supporting and developing its team members. If successful, you will have access to a wide range of learning and development materials in addition to the core civil service offer, including expert seminars, a week-long training package at PPU ‘basecamp’, and comprehensive induction materials, all aimed at empowering you to thrive in this challenging, exciting team. To make this happen, PPU team members contribute 10% of their time to champion areas and team projects, providing opportunity to help shape the team and encourage an inclusive, diverse environment.

Our project-based work can also adapt to those who need to work flexibly through a part time or job share arrangement, but who want to be involved in shaping some of the highest priority projects in Government. Several members of our team already do this around caring responsibilities. We can offer a range of flexible working arrangements that will be agreed with successful candidates on a case-by-case basis prior to the start of employment. Our only requirement is that successful candidates can work in one of our offices for a minimum of two days per week.

What are my responsibilities?

Each project and its demands are unique but frequently PPU team members are requested to work on complex, cross-cutting areas of work; significant policy, delivery and analysis reviews; short term problem solving with policy teams on urgent issues; project management to establish programmes; and working with Ministers. This may be within the Cabinet office or across departments.

Within projects you will be expected to:

• Quickly identify objectives and learn the work of the team and policy area;
• Take responsibility for a set of high priority objectives, work independently and with minimal supervision;
• Be an ambassador for PPU, leading by example and taking responsibility, frequently within demanding circumstances.

To be successful in this role, you will:

• Have the drive and organisational skills to deliver projects quickly over a short time-frame;
• Be comfortable with frequent change - both moving between projects and as priorities change during projects;
• Be able to settle into new teams, forming good work relationships and working effectively without understanding all the detail;
• Be a strong analytical thinker who can work both with detail and understand the wider context; solve problems and work out what needs to be done and take pride in doing it to completion;
• Have strong report writing skills and ability to communicate key messages clearly and succinctly to senior leaders and ministers;
• Be highly organised, with the ability to work on and manage multiple projects within tight timelines and with minimal supervision; and
• Have a good set of essential skills to operate across a range of projects and teams - including: effective planning; the ability to bring along colleagues across government to achieve objectives; and the ability to think through difficult policy problems.

Data and digital skills are an increasingly important part of operating successfully in PPU. We offer training to make sure everyone in the unit has a good understanding of the fundamentals. We would especially welcome your application if you have data and digital experience.

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

• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing
• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture

• Learning and development tailored to your role.
• An environment with flexible working options.
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity.
• A Civil Service Pension which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and average employer contributions of 27%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30.

Job contact :

Name :
PPU Recruitment Team
Email :
[email protected]

Recruitment team :

Email :
[email protected]