3519 - Executive Assistant - Disused Tips Authority for Wales

Job summary

This is a rare and exciting founding opportunity to support the new Chief Executive and Board members for the Disused Tips Authority for Wales.

You’ll be joining at the very start of a brand‑new public body with a vital mission: protecting communities across Wales by overseeing the safety and management of disused spoil tips.

The Disused Tips Authority for Wales is a new Welsh Government sponsored public body being established under the Disused Mine and Quarry Tips (Wales) Act 2025. Its primary purpose is to ensure that disused tips, both coal and non-coal spoil tips, from historical mining and quarrying, do not pose a threat to public safety through instability. The Authority will address long-standing risks associated with tip landslides and collapses, helping to safeguard communities across Wales.

The Authority will be responsible for inspecting, recording, monitoring and managing disused tips throughout Wales. It will be the first organisation of its kind in the UK and aims to become a world leader in this specialist field — developing knowledge, expertise and skills that will benefit the people of Wales for generations to come.

We are currently in the process of appointing a Chief Executive and are now seeking a dynamic and highly organised Executive Assistant to support the Chief Executive and senior team in establishing this new organisation from the ground up.

The Authority will become operational on 1 April 2027, growing to around 70 staff when fully established. Until then, successful candidates will be appointed by and “hosted” within the Disused Tips Authority branch of Welsh Government.

When the new Disused Tips Authority becomes a legal entity in April 2027, your role will transfer to it —meaning you will move from the Civil Service into this new public body while retaining the same, or substantially the same, terms and conditions, including continued participation in Civil Service pension arrangement’

This is not a traditional Executive Assistant role within a long‑established organisation. You’ll be working in a fast‑moving, evolving environment where structures and ways of working are still being built. You’ll play a key role in developing processes, supporting senior leadership—including the new CEO, Chair, and Board—to shape the culture identity and operating rhythm of a new national Authority.

Job description

We’re looking for people who are:

• motivated by public purpose and real‑world impact
• comfortable with ambiguity and able to exercise sound judgment
• proactive, organised and excited by the challenge of helping to build something new from the ground up

The role will be varied and demanding, requiring flexibility, pragmatism, initiative and a willingness to support a wide range of colleagues in a developing organisation.

A key aspect of the role will be the ability to quickly build credible, trusted relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders, both during the Welsh Government hosting period and after the transfer to the Authority in 2027.

Person specification

In this pivotal role, you will help shape how the new Authority operates by providing high‑quality support to the CEO, Chair, Board and senior leadership team. Your responsibilities will include:

• Acting as a key point of contact for the CEO, Chair, and Board — building strong working relationships and liaising with project teams involved in establishing the Authority.
• Providing excellent administrative and logistical support, including arranging hospitality, travel, accommodation, room bookings, visitor passes and supporting visit arrangements.
• Organising and supporting events, meetings and workshops — both in‑person and hybrid — ensuring they run smoothly, troubleshooting issues and providing professional technical support where needed.
• Preparing and coordinating meeting documentation, including drafting agendas, collating papers, arranging attendance, taking minutes and tracking actions through to completion.
• Maintaining organised and compliant electronic filing systems, ensuring documents are stored and retrieved effectively in line with Welsh Government and, later, Authority requirements.
• Helping to establish new systems, policies and processes to support Board operations, including assisting members with expenses and administrative requirements.
• Supporting senior leaders in their external engagement, helping to coordinate interactions with key partners and stakeholders.
• Managing the CEO’s diary and workflow, arranging internal and external meetings, ensuring papers and briefings are prepared on time, and providing accurate logistical details such as contact information and MS Teams links.
• Overseeing the CEO’s and Executive Management Team’s inboxes and diaries, once appointed, prioritising requests, coordinating hybrid meetings and ensuring smooth day‑to‑day operations.
• Managing correspondence and commissioning briefings or presentations, ensuring materials are accurate, timely and tailored to the needs of the CEO and Board — including arranging clarification meetings with drafters where helpful.

Qualifications

Welsh language skills are not essential for this post, they are however desirable and will be considered if two or more candidates receive the same score at the application or interview stage.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £30,754, Welsh Government contributes £8,909 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
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

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 (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

The Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

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 AI candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection Process and Stages

Welsh Government, like all other Government Departments use Success Profiles when we recruit. For each role we consider what you will need to demonstrate to be successful. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job. It raises performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.

The selection process and stages are:

Number of Stages:2 stage processStage 1Application FormStage 2Interview

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 (opens in new window) 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 (opens in a new window) 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's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

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

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : DisusedTipsAuthorityJobs@gov.wales
• Email : DisusedTipsAuthorityJobs@gov.wales

Recruitment team

• Email : SharedServiceHelpdesk@gov.wales

Further information

Recruitment principles and complaints

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition. Please see the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles on the Commission's website.

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and wish to make a complaint please email complaints@gov.wales. Please ensure that you refer to the vacancy reference number.

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Welsh Government, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: info@csc.gov.uk.