Official Business Advisor (Band 4/HEO)

Health and Safety Executive; Ashford; On-site; GBP 37,000; Part time

Job summary

A governmental agency in the UK is seeking a candidate to support engagement and policy work. The role involves drafting responses to Parliamentary Questions and managing correspondence for the team. Part-time work is available with a commitment of a minimum of 30 hours per week. Competitive salary and benefits are included, making it an excellent opportunity for someone with strong communication skills and the ability to work collaboratively.

Benefits

Competitive rates of pay

Access to the Civil Service Pension Scheme

Annual leave increasing with service

Flexible working options

Family friendly policies

Qualifications

• Experience with drafting Parliamentary Questions and Treat Official responses.
• Ability to produce concise and accurate drafts of briefings and reports.
• Experience of a range of official correspondence types.

Responsibilities

• Identify recurring Parliamentary business matters and draft responses.
• Coordinate briefing for the HSE Chief Executive and Chair.
• Monitor the quality of Official Business responses.

Skills

Proven written and oral communication skills

Experience working effectively as part of a team

Ability to balance competing priorities

Organisational and planning skills

Job description

Engagement and Policy Division (EPD) is at the heart of how the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) reduces risk and protects people and places - EPD brings together strategy, policy, analysis, communications and engagement to support HSE and external organisations to reduce work-related injury and ill-health.

EPD's Divisional Support Unit (DSU) was created during a recent reorganisation of the Division and has responsibility for: planning and monitoring cross-divisional work; high-level workflow and delivery management across functional Groups; EPD allocated Parliamentary and other "Official Business"; engagement with EPD's people; compliance and assurance; and governance and support to the EPD Senior Leadership Team.

Working pattern
Part time working hours are available for this role. We can accept part time applicants who can commit to working a minimum of 30 hours per week.

Travel
As part of the role you may occasionally be required to attend any of the HSE office locations as advertised. This may occasionally necessitate overnight stays with travel and subsistence provided.

With a world-class reputation for safeguarding the health and safety of people at work, HSE is adapting and evolving to meet the new challenges ahead. A crucial part of our mission to protect people and places is our work engaging with external stakeholders, including Members of Parliament, duty holders and the general public. The successful applicant will support EPD colleagues in delivery of the EPD Official Business protocol (covering Parliamentary Questions, Ministerial and "Treat Official" correspondence).

Responsibilities

• Identify recurring Parliamentary business matters and proactively draft lines to take that can be used to answer to Parliamentary Questions, Ministerial Correspondence (MC), and Treat Official (TO) correspondence.
• Regularly draft responses to Parliamentary Questions, Ministerial Correspondence, and Treat Official correspondence.
• Coordinate briefing for the HSE Chief Executive and Chair where EPD holds Senior Civil Service-level clearance, identifying appropriate contributors, managing contributions within tight deadlines, and redrafting lines as required to ensure coherence and well-drafted responses.
• Monitoring the quality of Official Business responses in EPD, identifying areas of strength and for development. Work with DSU colleagues to provide guidance and training to EPD staff to improve the consistency and quality of Official Business drafts.
• Maintaining an awareness of the wider policy context and to inform how EPD contributes effectively to HSE's response to Official Business.
• Contribute to the wider business of the DSU as required.
• You will also be asked to complete an anonymised Personal Statement of no more than 750 words, demonstrating how you meet the essential skills and criteria of the job advert.

Application Guidance

Please access the following link for guidance on how to apply and how to complete a Personal Statement https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/how-to-apply/

Sift information

The sift will take place week commencing 20th October 2025. You will be assessed against your CV and Personal Statement. If there are a high volume of applications an initial sift may be conducted on your CV. Candidates who successfully pass the benchmark for their CV will then be assessed on their personal statement. Please note the sift and interview dates could be subject to change due to panel availability.

Interview Information

Interviews will take place week commencing 3rd November 2025 via Microsoft Teams. You will be assessed on your experience and the advertised behaviours.

AI Tools & Platforms

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

HSE reserve the right to conduct additional checks, including Google and social media checks, when recruiting candidates into a role within HSE. These checks will be carried out in line with the Civil Service Commission Principles and, if used all candidates will be subject to these additional checks.

From 23rd June 2025, if you are successful at interview, as part of your pre-employment checks, HSE's Recruitment Team are required to check your details against the Internal Fraud Hub (IFH), using your personal details - name, NINO, and date of birth. If you are included on the database, you will be refused employment. If you believe that there has been an error in the inclusion of your data and wish to make an appeal, please contact the CO email box [e-mail] .

Details of the types of internal fraud/dishonesty covered by this process are defined by the Cabinet Office and can be found here Internal Fraud Register privacy notice - GOV.UK

It is the candidate's responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful in their application. For a summary of HSE terms and conditions as part of Civil Service Reform, please see the attached HSE Terms and Conditions document.

Progression through pay ranges is subject to annual pay awards as permitted within annual Civil Service pay remit guidance and negotiations with Trade Unions.

HSE is proud to be a part of the Disability Confidence Scheme (DCS). As a Disability Confident employer, we positively welcome applications from disabled people. We are committed to making workplace adjustments to ensure anyone can participate in the recruitment and selection process.

If, during the application or interview process, you require any assistance due to a disability or a medical condition, please contact us at the email address below to discuss how we can support you. For example, if you have a disability, and you need an application form in an alternative format or you would like to know more about our recruitment process, please contact: [e-mail]

If successful in securing your role, HSE can provide suitable workplace adjustments to support you throughout your career with HSE.

Any move to HSE 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 here

Please note, if you are a current civil servant and you are currently undergoing any of the following formal actions your application will not be progressed any further; Formal discipline action, any formal action regarding attendance, poor performance or any restriction of duties as a result of disciplinary action.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.

Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
UK nationals
nationals of the Republic of Ireland
nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission recruitment principles. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

+ Experience of a range of official correspondence types, including handling required, style and typical timescales for completion. Including, but not limited to, Parliamentary Questions, Ministerial Correspondence, and Treat Official correspondence.

+ Experience of drafting Parliamentary Questions and Treat Official responses at pace.

+ Proven written and oral communication skills, and ability to produce concise and accurate drafts of briefings, reports and submissions.

+ Experience working effectively as part of a team and working collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders, drawing on their expertise as required.

+ Ability to balance competing priorities and achieve objectives at pace.

+ Proven organisational and planning skills, including being able to take responsibility for delivering outcomes on time to required standards.

Capabilities
Communicating and Influencing
Working Together
Delivering at Pace

Alongside your salary of £36,235, Health and Safety Executive contributes £10,497 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Learning and development tailored to your role
An environment with flexible working options
A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
We invest in our people with;

+ Competitive rates of pay
+ Access to the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme to which HSE contribute 28.97%, far more than in the private sector.
+ Family friendly policies and working hours to help balance your home life and career
+ Carer friendly policies to help create a supportive working culture
+ 25 days annual holiday increasing to 30 days after 5 years' service, plus bank holidays and 1-day Civil Service privilege leave
+ Parental leave benefits
+ As a member of HSE you will gain access to a wide range of fantastic benefits that you can take advantage of such as the Cycle to Work Scheme, E-Gift Cards and Vouchers via our partner EdenRed.