Operational Support Officer

Ministry of Justice; Newport; Hybrid; GBP 21,000 - 26,000; Full time

Job summary

Ministry of Justice in Newport is seeking Operational Support Officers to provide telephone-based and administrative support to court users. The role includes a structured training programme and a focus on delivering high-quality service across various courts and tribunals.

Candidates should be confident communicators, able to handle sensitive matters calmly, and willing to work in a hybrid setup with standard full-time or part-time patterns.

Qualifications

• Strong customer service skills in a service-led environment.
• Good digital and administrative skills with attention to detail.
• Effective communication in person, on the phone, digitally and in writing.
• Resilient and empathetic when dealing with sensitive information.
• Collaborative and flexible to meet HMCTS objectives.

Responsibilities

• Taking inbound calls from the public and legal representatives and returning calls as required.
• Communicating effectively with the public, court users and partner organisations.
• Delivering high-quality customer service with empathy under stress or challenging circumstances.
• Using email, webchat and performing general administrative work.
• Interpreting information to accurately update digital records.

Skills

Customer service

Digital skills

Administrative tasks

Communication

Team player

Job description

Full Time, Part Time, Part Time/Job Share, Flexible Working

Vacancy Approach

External

Location

Newport

Region

Closing Date

16-Sep-2026

Post Type

Permanent

AO

Number of jobs available

24

Reserve List

12 Months

Job ID

21665

Descriptions & requirements

Proud to serve. Proud to keep justice going.

Our Operational Support Officers within National Services provide excellent telephone and administrative support to court users. This position is predominately telephone-based and our training programme provides a structured yet flexible approach to building the skills required to perform this vital role.

We support multiple judications such as Social Service and Child Support, Family Public Law, Probation, Crime, Immigration and Asylum, Divorce, Online Civil Money Claims, Special Education Needs and Disability Tribunal (SEND), Mental Health Tribunal and the Single Justice Service.

We’re looking for individuals who are committed to public service and making a difference in people’s lives to deliver justice. If you are interested in developing a career with a real purpose, please apply.

Your role

Working as part of a team, you will contribute to the overall operational, performance and service standard targets across your area of work.

You need to be a confident communicator with the self-assurance to liaise with members of the public regarding complex and sensitive matters in a calm and professional manner. You will be supported by a Team Leader and, alongside our in-depth training programme, will have access to ‘SHELF’ (guidance document) to assist in your role.

You will be adaptable, able to multi-task and effectively carry out a variety of duties, which will include:

• Taking inbound calls from the public and legal representatives and returning calls as required.
• Communicating effectively with the public, other court and tribunal users and representatives of other agencies and organisations.
• Delivering a high standard of customer service, responding to enquiries with empathy and understanding, particularly in situations where individuals may be under stress or facing challenging circumstances.
• Using email and webchat and undertaking general administrative work.
• Interpreting information to accurately update digital records.

Your knowledge, skills and experience

• Strong customer service skills with the ability to work in a service-led environment.
• Good digital and administrative skills; with excellent attention to detail.
• Effective communication and organisational skills. Able to communicate confidently in person, over the telephone, digitally and in written communications.
• Resilient and empathetic to be able to deal with sensitive information and situations.
• A team player; able to work collaboratively and flexibly to deliver HMCTS objectives.

Please refer to the role profile attachment for more information.

The office is open Monday-Friday from 07:30 to 18:00. We can offer Saturday working as part of your weekly contracted hours. Saturday operating hours are 08:00 to 16:00. All of our staff are expected to work 6 Saturdays per year on a rota basis. Requests for particular shift patterns will be discussed with successful candidates upon successful completion of pre-employment checks.

Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. Applications for part-time working will be considered, however due to the nature of the role the minimum we could consider is 30 hours per week, shift patterns will be between 08:00 and 18:00. HMCTS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs and are agreed prior to appointment. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.

Non-contractual hybrid working is currently available. Hybrid working arrangements will be determined by the business and are only relevant to particular teams, and only available when it has been established that delivering the service from