Head of Finance, Government Security Group

Job summary

The Head of Finance will play a key leadership role in the Government Security Group, the core of the Security Function. The role will report into the Deputy Director responsible for Resourcing and Planning, with the Government Chief Security Officer as the countersigning officer. The role supports the delivery of our Strategic Outcomes and will achieve this through ensuring that GSG has a credible financial plan, complies with business rules and has an effective monitoring and business partnering regime. The post-holder will build finance capability across the group and help negotiate successful business planning outcomes. You will be responsible for all aspects of financial management, developing appropriate reports to ensure decision makers have good quality insight.

This post provides an opportunity to be highly visible and influence the senior leadership team through the provision of credible analysis and financial expertise.

Government Security has an exciting vision to deliver over the next few years and this role is a key part of ensuring the group has the right resources to deliver that vision.

Job description

Responsibilities

The post holder will be responsible for:

• Developing the Government Security Group’s approach to multi-year business planning, working with colleagues to bring together a coherent financial plan, linked to the functional business plan and agreed across the organisation.
• Managing the annual budget setting process, ensuring credible budgets are developed that withstand scrutiny by the Senior Management Team.
• Managing in-year financial management within the group, testing compliance and understanding of the financial controls and ensuring business cases have the right scrutiny to meet the requirements of the investment committee. GSG manages a significant programme portfolio and this requires flexibility to meet the changing demands of the group.
• Providing strategic advice and guidance to a range of stakeholders in Government Security on the financial impact and risks of potential decisions.
• Establishing trust and credibility with leaders and practitioners across Government Security to understand our business and ensure alignment with financial planning and reporting requirements.
• Further develop and grow the team as needed to deliver the changing priorities of the Government Security Group. It will be crucial to ensure members of the team have the appropriate skills and capacity to reach their potential and build a culture of innovation throughout the team.

Person specification

Essential skills and experience:

• A recognised professional accounting qualification and an understanding of government finance and the control processes for public spending;
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills working collaboratively across a breadth of internal and external stakeholders to build trust and credibility;
• Strong analytical skills to understand and model the various funding options for the security function;
• Ability to effectively manage competing demands, ensuring continuous progress across a range of responsibilities;
• Ability to understand a range of information sources and extract and distil into the key points;
• Evidence of strong leadership with personal credibility, impact and influence at senior levels, including managing a wide range of senior stakeholder relationships.
• A high degree of personal credibility and resilience, along with enthusiasm and a commitment to delivery.
  Desirable skills and experience:
• Working knowledge of security or experience of working in a security-related environment.

Key skills:

• Business partnering experience
• Collaboration skills
• Gives advice and guidance
• Negotiation skills
• Presentation skills
• Strategic thinking
• Team working
• Verbal communication skills
• Written communication skills

Qualifications

• Fully qualified accountant with a recognised professional body.

Additional information:

A minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace. Although requirements to attend other locations for official business will also count towards this level of attendance.

Qualifications

Fully qualified accountant with a recognised professional body

Behaviours

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

• Making Effective Decisions
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing

Technical skills

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

• At interview you will be asked technical questions to assess your accounting knowledge.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £69,308, Cabinet Office contributes £20,078 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 which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and employer contributions of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30.

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.

Application process

As part of your application, you will be required to provide a CV setting out your career history/qualifications/previous skills and experience, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant to the essential criteria in the person specification section of the job advert.

You will also be asked to provide a Statement of Suitability (no more than 1000 words).

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

Interview process

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview. Unfortunately, late applications will not be considered.

Candidates who are successful at the application stage will progress to interview where they will be assessed against a mixture of behaviour, experience and technical based questions.

You may also be asked to deliver a short presentation at interview. Further details will be provided if you are invited to interview.

Your interview will either be conducted face to face or by video. You will be notified of the location if you are selected for interview.

Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.

Further Information

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Any move to Cabinet Office 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; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service/Disclosure Scotland on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact Government Recruitment Service via menurecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

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.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.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

Job contact :

• Name : Leslie Gilbert
• Email : Leslie.Gilbert@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : menurecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles.
If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and wish to make a complaint, then in the first instance you should contact Government Recruitment Service at: menurecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.
If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission at: info@csc.gov.uk.
For further information on the Recruitment Principles, and bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission, please visit their website at: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk.

Attachments

Cabinet Office Terms and Conditions - External 2025-02-20 Opens in new window (docx, 83kB)Cabinet Office Employee Offer Opens in new window (pdf, 302kB)