Economist

Job summary

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is the independent economic and safety regulator for Britain’s railways and monitor of performance on England’s strategic road network.

This is an exciting time to join ORR. We are delivering a significant transformation programme to create a consistently agile and enabling organisation, with the right capability and a strong, inclusive culture that reflects our talented people. This will ensure we continue to operate as an independent, expert regulator, fit for the future and equipped with the capabilities and ways of working required to support sector-wide rail reform, while contributing to the government’s broader agenda on regulatory reform and economic growth. Further detail on our future role is set out here.

​​ORR’s Rail Economics team works on a wide range of economic and policy issues, concerned both with leading development of rail policy and providing specialist advice. ​The Rail Economics team is part of the Economics, Finance and Markets directorate, and works closely with the Regulatory Finance team which carries out financial analysis of rail markets.​

Job description

ORR’s Rail Economics team works on a wide range of economic and policy issues, concerned both with leading development of rail policy and providing specialist advice. ​The Rail Economics team is part of the Economics, Finance and Markets directorate, and works closely with the Regulatory Finance team which carries out financial analysis of rail markets.​

​​​You will be expected to work flexibly across a range of ORR’s economic and financial analysis workstreams. Your key responsibilities, although not exhaustive, are expected to include:

• Carrying out analysis of Great British Railway’s passenger service income and expenditure. This work will help shape ORR’s future roles in advising funders on GBR’s integrated business plans and monitoring GBR’s ongoing delivery of its functions to promote its financial stability.

As part of the Rail Economics team, you may also be involved in other areas of the team’s work, where you may include:

• ​Providing high-quality economic assessment and advice on the impact and implementation of policy proposals.
• ​Contributing to and leading aspects of economic benchmarking and financial analysis projects such as analysis of whole-industry productivity.
• ​Conducting analysis of applications from train operators to run new services.
• ​Contributing to ORR’s reviews of the charging and financial frameworks for infrastructure managers such as London St Pancras High Speed, Eurotunnel, Crossrail and Core Valley Lines.
• ​Support ORR’s engagement with the development of the future charging and performance schemes for Great British Railways.
• ​You will also contribute to ORR’s wider economics and analysis communities and support analytical projects across ORR as and when they arise (for instance competition projects).​​

Person specification

For key responsibilities please see the attached job description.

Additional Information

At ORR, our hybrid working means that we currently work from our workplace location a minimum of 40% of our working week, although requirements to attend other offsite locations for official business, also count towards this level of attendance. Working arrangements are subject to continuous review.

Qualifications

Do you have a degree in economics or finance or a discipline with a substantial quantitative component, or have the equivalent experience?

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Making Effective Decisions

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Application of knowledge: a good understanding of economic and financial principles, and a proven ability to apply them
• Analysis of data: highly numerate and comfortable working with data and spreadsheets

Benefits

A Civil Service Pension with employer contribution of 28.97%

Details of our employee benefits can be found in the attached Candidate Information Pack.

Find out what our colleagues have to say about their ORR careers Our people Office of Rail and Road (orr.gov.uk).

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

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.For information on the selection process, please see the attached Candidate Information Pack and Job Description.

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 : Mark Grundy
• Email : Mark.Grundy@orr.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : peopleservices@orr.gov.uk

Further information

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 ORR via email: peopleservices@orr.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 here: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/recruitment/recruitme…

Attachments

Economist Job Description Opens in new window (pdf, 185kB)ORR Job Information Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 1205kB)