Diary Manager

Job summary

This is an exciting opportunity to join the UK Health Security Agency’s Public Health Microbiology Private Office.

The Diary Manager plays a pivotal role in enabling the Director and Deputy Directors to operate effectively by providing high-quality diary management, administrative and logistical and business support. The post holder will, ensure that senior leaders are fully prepared for meetings, visits and engagements, having the right information at the right time, and are able to focus on delivering strategic priorities.

Working as part of a fast-paced Private Office, the Diary Manager will manage competing demands, exercise sound judgement, and work closely with colleagues across the organisation and with external stakeholders. The role requires flexibility, resilience and a strong commitment to maintaining a professional, responsive and confidential service within a modern and dynamic working environment.

The role offers regular exposure to senior policy and operational leaders and requires close collaboration with colleagues across the Public Health Microbiology directorate and wider Agency. As part of a cross-cutting team, the postholder is expected to flex their workload, provide mutual cover, and support business continuity across the Private Office.

Job description

• Strategic diary management for the Director and Deputy Directors, maintaining a detailed understanding of organisational, directorate and cross-government priorities, and proactively advising on the effective use of senior leaders’ time.
• End-to-end management of the diary, including scheduling meetings, responding to invitations, resolving clashes, and rapidly re-prioritising in response to emerging issues, ensuring senior leaders’ time is used effectively.
• Preparation of daily and weekly diary packs, commissioning, collating and quality-assuring briefing material, papers and updates from policy and operational teams to ensure senior leaders are fully briefed for all meetings and engagements.
• Meeting coordination and support, including drafting and circulating agendas, chasing papers and actions, commissioning updates in advance of meetings, and ensuring accurate records are maintained.
• Minute taking and action tracking for selected meetings, producing clear and timely records, following up actions, and ensuring accountability and progress are maintained.
• Travel and visit coordination, arranging domestic travel and logistics, liaising with internal and external stakeholders to ensure visits and engagements are well planned and delivered smoothly.
• Handling correspondence and invitations, working with Private Office colleagues and policy teams to provide clear, timely advice and oversee responses on behalf of senior leader.
• Providing ad hoc and flexible support to the wider Private Office team, including deputising for the Assistant Private Secretary or Private Secretaries as required, and contributing to continuous service delivery across the team.

*This list is not exhaustive*

The diary manager will:

• Provide ad hoc and flexible support to the wider Private Office team, including deputising for the Assistant Private Secretary or Private Secretaries as required, and contributing to continuous service delivery across the team
• Provide comprehensive diary management, administrative, logistical and business support to the Director and Deputy Directors within the Public Health Microbiology Private Office.
• Be central to the effective functioning of the Private Office, ensuring senior leaders’ time is planned, prioritised and used efficiently to deliver organisational and directorate objectives.
• Take responsibility for the end-to-end management of senior leaders’ diaries, working proactively to schedule meetings, visits and engagements, balancing competing priorities and responding flexibly to changing demands. This will include exercising sound judgement to resolve diary conflicts, advising on priorities, and ensuring sufficient preparation time is built into the diary.
• Ensure that the Director and Deputy Directors are fully prepared for all meetings and engagements including commissioning, collating and quality-assuring briefing material, drafting and circulating agendas, chasing papers and updates from policy and operational teams, and producing accurate and timely daily and weekly diary packs.
• Maintain a strong understanding of key priorities across the directorate and wider Agency in order to support effective planning and briefing.
• Provide meeting coordination and secretariat-style support, including arranging meeting logistics (virtual and in-person), taking minutes when required, tracking actions, and following up with contributors to ensure actions and outputs are delivered.
• Ensure meetings are well-organised, professionally run and appropriately recorded.
• Manage invitations and correspondence on behalf of senior leaders, working closely with Private Office colleagues and policy teams to draft advice, coordinate responses and ensure communications are timely, accurate and appropriate.
• Work as part of a fast-paced, cross-cutting Private Office team, building strong working relationships across the organisation and with external stakeholders.
• Manage multiple workstreams simultaneously, maintain confidentiality at all times, and demonstrate resilience and professionalism under pressure.
• Provide flexible and ad hoc support to the wider Private Office, including providing cover for colleagues, deputising for the Assistant Private Secretary or Private Secretaries where appropriate, and contributing to business continuity and continuous service delivery across the team.

Person specification

Essential criteria

• Experience of diary management and arranging meetings / preparing papers.
• A strong communicator, able to communicate messages clearly to a range of audiences at all levels – both verbally and in writing.
• Ability to organise and support meetings, including drafting agendas, chasing papers, collating information, and ensuring accurate records and actions are maintained (including minute taking where required).
• Strong organisational skills and ability to prioritise work.
• Skilled in the Microsoft office suite packages (specifically Excel, Word, Outlook and PowerPoint)
• The ability to build productive working relationships quickly and to engender confidence with colleagues and stakeholders.
• Experience of managing conflicting priorities in a fast paced, constantly changing work environment to achieve successful outcomes.
• Experience of arranging travel, visits or logistics, working with internal and external stakeholders to ensure effective coordination and delivery.

Desirable criteria:

• Previous experience of working in public health or another healthcare-related area.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £28,547, UK Health Security Agency contributes £8,270 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce. UKHSA's ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.

• 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 & Sift - Success profiles

You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the listed essential criteria, and this will be in the form of:

• An Application form (‘Employer/ Activity history’ section on the application)
• 1200 word Supporting statement

This should outline how you consider your skills, experience and knowledge provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.

You will receive a joint score for your application form and statement. (The application form is the kind of information you would put into your C.V –please be advised you will not be able to upload your CV. Please complete the application form in as much detail as possible). Please do not email us your CV.

Healthjobs UK has a word limit of 1500, but your supporting statement must be no more than 1200 words. We will not consider any words over 1200 words.

Longlisting: In the event of a large number of applications we will longlist into 3 piles of:

• Meets all essential criteria
• Meets some essential criteria
• Meets no essential criteria

Only those who meet all essential criteria will proceed to shortlisting.

Shortlisting: In the event of a large number of applications we may conduct an initial sift, on the lead criteria of:

• Experience of diary management and arranging meetings / preparing papers.
• Ability to organise and support meetings, including drafting agendas, chasing papers, collating information, and ensuring accurate records and actions are maintained (including minute taking where required)
• A strong communicator, able to communicate messages clearly to a range of audiences at all levels – both verbally and in writing.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview & assessment.

Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Stage 2: Interview - Success profiles

You will be invited to a remote interview.

Interviews dates to be confirmed.

The Behaviours tested during the interview stage will be:

• Communication and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Eligibility Criteria

External: Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including internal applicants).

Location

This position is a hybrid role and can be based at any of our Core HQ’s in London, Leeds, Birmingham and Leeds, or from one of our Scientific Campuses in Colindale (London) and Porton.

Security Clearance Level Requirement

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Security Clearance. For meaningful National Security Vetting checks to be carried out individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 5 years as the role requires Security Check (SC) clearance. UK residency less than the outlined periods may not necessarily bar you from gaining national security vetting and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder / Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

Salary Information

If you are successful at interview, and are moving from another government department, NHS, or Local Authority, the relevant starting salary principles for level transfers or promotions will apply. Otherwise, roles are offered at the pay scale minimum for the grade, but in exceptional circumstances there may be flexibility if you are able to demonstrate you are already in receipt of an existing, higher salary. Pay increases are through the relevant annual pay award for the role and terms.

Please be aware that the salary is based on the office location

Executive Officer (EO)

£28,547- £33,196 (National)

£30,441- £35,576 (Outer London)

£32,624-£37,737 (Inner London)

Future location

UKHSA is investing in a new state-of-the-art National Biosecurity Centre in Harlow, Essex, which will eventually bring together teams currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale and Porton Down. For more details, please see: Huge biosecurity centre investment to boost pandemic protection - GOV.UK.

The new facilities will start becoming operational in the mid-2030s, with full completion by 2038. Staff will move in phases as facilities become available. If you're appointed to a role currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale or Porton Down, please note that we'll continue investing in these sites for the next decade. As we get closer to the transition, we'll provide full information about relocation support available to staff.

Reasonable Adjustments

The Civil Service is committed to making sure that our selection methods are fair to everyone. To help you during the recruitment process, we will consider any reasonable adjustments that could help you. An adjustment is a change to the recruitment process or an adjustment at work. This is separate to the Disability Confident Scheme. If you need an adjustment to be made at any point during the recruitment process you should contact the recruitment team in confidence as soon as possible to discuss your needs.

You can find out more information about reasonable adjustments across the Civil Service here: https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/reasonable-adjustments/

International Police check

If you have spent more than 6 months abroad over the last 3 years you may need an International Police Check. This would not necessarily have to be in a single block, and it could be time accrued over that period.

Internal Fraud check

If successful for this role as one aspect of pre-employment screening, applicant’s personal details – name, national insurance number and date of birth - will be checked against the Cabinet Office Internal Fraud Hub and anyone included on the database will be refused employment unless they can show exceptional circumstances. Currently this is only for External candidates to the Civil Service.

Careers website

Please visit our careers site for more information https://gov.uk/ukhsa/careers

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a 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

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

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 : John Inglis
• Email : john.inglis@ukhsa.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@ukhsa.gov.uk

Further information

The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: Complaints@ukhsa.gov.uk

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk