Deputy Director, Place Division

Welsh Government

Wales

Hybrid

Expires: Expiring in less than 3 weeks

Housing

Full time

£86,000 - £105,000 per year

Job summary

Place Division is part of the Housing and Regeneration Directorate within the Local Government, Housing, Rural Resilience and Sustainability Group.

This post plays a key part in ensuring that everyone in Wales has a safe, affordable place to call home in the community they would like to live in.

The work of the directorate is varied, fast paced and keenly focused on delivery for ministers and the people of Wales. Our work spans land acquisition and use, supporting home building, regeneration of our towns, cities and villages, supporting those who live in our homes and communities and acting as system steward to ensure the quality of what we build, the quality of places we build in and of landlord and resident services.

The division’s purpose, and therefore the purpose of the post, is to work in partnership across the directorate and wider Welsh Government and with other governments and partners to:

Lead the establishment of Unnos, a land development body for Wales which enables the delivery of more homes across the country through unblocking barriers, securing private finance and bringing land forward for build.
Lead and manage the land portfolio to support the government’s target of delivering 20,000 affordable homes over four years. The portfolio consists of c27 sites owned by Welsh Ministers with a current book value of c£43m.
Ensure there are effective delivery systems in place which direct investment toward building the right homes in the right places to meet the nation’s needs and improving the vibrancy and viability of town centres.
Lead on the current Transforming Towns Programme and on the outcome of the Town Centre Taskforce to drive successful regeneration of town centres across Wales, which seeks to unlock more strategic sites/opportunities, tackle empty properties on the High Street, maximise community and cultural assets, take forward more public realm projects and support business infrastructure, and increase the appeal and viability of town centre living for all.
Lead on the delivery and implementation of Community Right to Buy legislation to improve community rights to buy local assets of community value.

Job description

The post holder will lead a team of c40 staff with four direct reports and be responsible for an annual capital funding programme currently at £65m and revenue budget of circa £4m.
Managing the resources, financial and people, of Place Division in the delivery of its functions maintaining a focus on professional standards, good financial management and have proper regard to governance matters.
Lead on delivery of Programme for Government commitments which include establishing Unnos, Town Centre regeneration and Community Right to Buy legislation.
Build, and then maintain, the Ministers’ trust and confidence. The role will require regular engagement with Ministers on both the delivery of the Programme for Government and the development of the land portfolio.
Lead on the land development programme including a grant programme (£25m pa) and develop long delivery frameworks and partnerships.
Advise Ministers and senior officials on the development of a strategy for the development of brownfield regenerations sites in Wales, following the findings and recommendations of the Audit Wales report.
Lead a team that will consistently be resolving legal, financial and subsidy issues concerning property and site management and disposals. This will also include the potential of overseeing complex building/site acquisitions using Compulsory Purchase powers to help unlock strategic opportunities.
Influence, provide strategic leadership and work collaboratively with key stakeholders, including local authority Chief Executives and senior Directors across the Welsh public sector on the regeneration and residential development land sectors and agendas, including fostering strategic relationships within Wales and beyond its borders.
To be a positive influence on the Welsh Government property network as Joint head of Welsh Government Property profession in helping to build professional capability and set standards.
Promoting an open and inclusive working environment, encouraging equality, diversity and anti-racism.

Person specification

Civil Service success profiles relevant to this role are set out below (click here to view more information on Civil Service Success profiles).

Your application (personal statement and CV) should set out your evidence in relation to the person specification below (i.e. success profile behaviours and experience listed).

Experience

Must have proven experience in the property market and built environment sector, including land development and be qualified to MRICS.

Experience of understanding how government operates, gained through working within, alongside, or engaging with government organisations.

Seeing the big picture

Create joined up strategies that put into practice and support the government’s vision for the future.

Making effective decisions

Make sense of a wide range of political and national pressures and influences to develop strategies which meet organisational goals

Delivering at pace

Establish an inclusive culture which allows people space and authority to deliver their objectives whilst ensuring appropriate support is in place when needed

Communicating and influencing

Influence external partners, stakeholders and customers successfully securing mutually beneficial outcomes

The Welsh Government aims to be a bilingual organisation, whilst Welsh language skills are not essential for this post they are welcomed and you would have the opportunity to use those skills through the course of business.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £86,000, Welsh Government contributes £24,914 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

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

Stage 1 – Application

To apply for this role, you will be asked to submit:

Application Form

We welcome applications in Welsh and English. Applications in either language will be treated equally. If you have an impairment that would prevent you from applying online, please contact SCSRecruitment@gov.wales to request an alternative format or a reasonable adjustment to submit your application.

CV:

We operate name-free recruitment. The selection panel will not see personal information while shortlisting in line with our commitment to end bias and promote equality and diversity. Please remove your name from your CV and personal statement.

Personal Statement:

Your personal statement will be input into the application system and has a maximum word count of 1,250. Please explain how your professional qualifications, skills, qualities and experience meet the essential criteria included in the person specification. These are the key behaviours listed above: Seeing the Big Picture, Making Effective Decisions, Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing and the two experience criteria.

The Welsh Government is committed to achieving a workforce that reflects the society it serves – at all levels. You will be asked to confirm some diversity information on your application form. Collecting this information enables us to identify whether we are recruiting from the widest possible pool of talent and check that all groups are being treated fairly throughout the process; this form will not be disclosed to anyone involved in assessing your application. If you do not wish to provide a response to a particular question, you select ‘prefer not to say.’ You will not be able to submit your application if you leave any of the questions unanswered.

Stage 2 – Assessments

If shortlisted, you will take part in the following assessments:

Online Psychometric Tests:

These include a discussion with a psychologist via Microsoft Teams. You will receive a link to the online tests within 10 working days after the shortlisting meeting. You do not need to take these tests again if you have completed these tests in the last two years for a role at the same grade.

Staff/Stakeholder Engagement Exercise:

This exercise gives you the opportunity to present your experience, ideas and views on effective leadership for this role. You will meet with a group of staff via Microsoft Teams who may be future team members, peers, colleagues or stakeholders.

Interview & Scenario Exercise:

Before your interview, the selection panel will receive feedback on your psychometric tests and staff engagement exercise.

You will be given a presentation topic before your interview and will be asked to give a 5-minute verbal presentation.

Interviews will be around 45 minutes and will consider how the skills and experience in your CV and personal statement meet the requirements of the role. The interview will be held in person at the Welsh Government’s office in Cathays Park in Cardiff.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).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

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.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.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).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

Salary range

£86,000 - £105,000 per year