Establishment Fire Focal Point

Job summary

The Ministry of Defence employs over 50,000 Civil Servants. Within that, the AIR Top Level Budget (TLB) employs around 5,000 MOD Civil Servants located at over 300 locations. It is a diverse workforce, with roles ranging from trainers, human resources, teachers, and psychologists to storekeepers, financiers, project and programme managers, and policy secretariat staff. There are many different functions and professions delivering key outputs for the Royal Air Force.

Operating from RAF Odiham, the Chinook Helicopter Force has been at the forefront of UK operations for 42 years. In this role you will be pivotal to ensuring the safe operating environment of a frontline helicopter unit and circa.2500 Service personnel, Civil Servants and Contractors.

The Establishment Fire Focal Point (EFFP) is a new post and will be based at RAF Odiham. You will be responsible to the Regional Commander / Station Commander to ensure improvement and maintenance of a correct Fire Safety culture You will ensure Defence policy compliance, on behalf of the Head of Establishment, to fire safety in accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 – Part 2 Fire Safety Duties. With direct links into The Chief Environment and Safety Office (CESO) and Capita Fire and Rescue (CFR), you will provide subject matter expertise across the unit.

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.

Job description

The successful candidate will be responsible for the Management and maintenance of the Stations’ Fire Safety Management Systems (FSMS) and Fire Safety Management Plans. You will manage and maintain Stations’ fire orders and fire policies and produce and maintain fire risk reporting dashboards. You will carry out preliminary fire investigation following a fire incident and record on the Defence safety management tool My Safety and ASSURE reporting system.

The EFFP will oversee a programme of risk-based 1st Party Assurance (1PA), and conduct assurance of fire safety measures in the Stations’ buildings, ensuring that findings of 1PA are managed appropriately, and significant risks are elevated via the risk management tool ASSURE. You will prepare Station documentation for 2PA conducted by Air Command and 3rd Party Audits conducted by the Defence Fire Safety Regulator (DFSR).

Acting as the intelligent interface for communications from CESO Air the EFFP will organise Fire Safety meetings and prepare information for the wider Functional and Total Safety forums including Executive Level and RAF formations. You will also liaise with Local Authority Fire Rescue Services (LAFRS) and arrange training with LAFRS, where required.

The EFFP will advise Building Custodians, and Officers in Charge, on the development of building fire orders and evacuation plans and assist with fire evacuation drills, delivering and planning BC training. You will manage and deliver Fire Safety training and oversee and advise on emergency planning.

Holding a secondary duty of Electro Magnetic Field Officer, the EFFP will ensure risk assessments are carried out across all buildings and to the standards directed by DSTL.

Person specification

Essential:

• NEBOSH National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety or equivalent Level 3 qualification. (or to be completed within nine months of taking up the post).

• Completion of the MOD Noise Risk Assessor course (or to be completed within nine months of taking up the post).

• Be able to demonstrate the ability to build robust relationships across a broad range of personnel. With strong communication skills, they will liaise across all elements of the Unit to provide advice, guidance and direction and will be confident in liaison with external agencies and higher commands.

• With attention to detail, the EFFP will ensure action plans reflect the requirements and audit programmes are planned appropriately. Confident in their professional knowledge and ability to deliver training within their sphere.

• A team player, the successful applicant must be able to work collaboratively whilst routinely leading on initiatives and guiding a wider audience. Working autonomously, the EFFP will be a self-starter able to make an immediate and lasting impact across the Unit.

Desirable

• Fire Safety Level 3 qualification (or NEBOSH Fire Certificate) and have a strong background in delivery of health and safety and/or Fire Safety management.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £30,740, Ministry of Defence contributes £8,905 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%
• Access to the station facilities
• On-site parking

The post does not offer relocation expenses.

External recruits who join the MOD who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a six-month probation period.

Please Note: Expenses incurred for travel to interviews will not be reimbursed.

Please be advised that the Department is conducting a review of all pay related allowances which could impact on those allowances that the post currently being advertised attracts.

Any move to MOD from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment however some exemptions are in place, please refer to local guidance. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments.

MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey – We may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Policy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights.

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 Strengths and Experience.

At application you will be assessed against the following:

• Candidates will be required to provide CV details to include job history; qualification details and previous skills and experience.

• Personal Statement: Candidates will be required to provide a statement of suitability (500 words) outlining why they are best suited to the role and how they meet the person specification within the advert.

At sift, you will be assessed against your CV and Statement of suitability and the following behaviour:

• Working Together

At interview, you will be assessed against the following Success Profiles Behaviours/strengths :

• Changing and Improving
• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing
• Leadership
• Strengths

Application sifting will be scheduled to take place within 7 days of the application closing date.

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

The post does not offer relocation expenses.

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact: DBSCivPers-Resourcingteam3@mod.gov.uk .

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came in to effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points based system.

Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure

that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out

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.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

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 : Linzi Neal
• Email : Linzi.neal498@mod.gov.uk
• Telephone : 07814598319

Recruitment team

• Email : DBSCivPers-ResourcingTeam3@mod.gov.uk

Further information

Please ensure you read the attached candidate information document prior to completing your application. If you are dissatisfied with the service you have received from DBS, or believe that DBS has failed to follow the recruitment process in line with the Civil Service Commission principles of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of Fair and Open competition, you can raise a formal complaint by writing to DBS at the following address: Defence Business Services, Scanning Hub, Room 6124, Tomlinson House, Norcross Lane, Blackpool, FY5 3WP. If after raising your complaint with DBS you remain dissatisfied you can complain directly to the Civil Service Commission at the following address: Civil Service commission, Room G/8, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ Or by email: info@csc.gov.uk.

Attachments

20201013-Air Command Candidate Information Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 316kB)20230201 - Air Command's Applicant Guide (1) Opens in new window (pdf, 499kB)Candidate Information 2025 Opens in new window (docx, 31kB)MOD Candidate Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 1562kB)