Health Insights Enquiry Line - Team Manager

Job summary

Do you have excellent communication and organisational skills? Have you got a good eye for detail? If so, this might be the role for you.

This post sits within Social Surveys Telephone and Ports Collection (SSTPC) division which encompasses the International Passenger Survey community, who are based at airports, seaports, and international train stations across the UK, and the Telephone Operations community, which is based within our HQ offices.

The division also incorporates the Survey Enquiry Line, who support field interviewers and the public who call in requesting assistance, and the Survey Validation team who undertake critical coding and editing work.

The Survey Enquiry Line (SEL) Team sits under the Directorate of Social Survey Telephone & Ports Collection.

Within the SSTPC, SEL is responsible for 2 contact centres covering public & field enquires for social surveys and the Health Insights Survey (HIS).

The teams provide a crucial role in supporting field staff in their work and to provide an effective service to survey respondents.

Job description

In this role you will manage the day to day running of the Health Insights Contact Center and line manage a small team of agents working on the HIS. The Health Insights Study (HIS) sits within HPaM. Its aim is to provide a survey vehicle that allows for wider health surveillance so that we can monitor the health of the nation, inform the public and help shape and evaluate policy.

The aim of HIS is to provide a survey vehicle that allows for wider health surveillance so that we can monitor the health of the nation, inform the public and help shape and evaluate policy.

The project will be run by ONS until March 2028 with several internal delivery partners to deliver data and analysis for other government departments.

In the first instance, the study will focus on requirements for NHS England who are working to understand patient experiences when accessing GP services. Other requirements may be onboarded over time.

Case Worker’s work on a shift basis covering the call centre opening times which are Monday – Friday 09:00-16:30.

This role will also include supporting the Survey Enquiry operations managers and the SEL Staff training programme. The SEL operation opening hours are 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday & Saturdays 9am to 1pm and you will provide support during these hours on an adhoc basis.

The induction for this role will be delivered in person. You will be required to complete a one‑week induction programme onsite at the ONS Titchfield office in Fareham. The hours will be 09:00am – 16:00pm for the training. Following this initial induction period, you will then work primarily from your contractually allocated office location, spending at least 40% of your working time on site.

Working from 09.00 to 18.00 Monday to Friday, and Saturdays 09.00 to 13.00, the team provides a crucial role in supporting field staff in their work and to provide an effective service to survey respondents. Flexibility will be required within your role to support your team across these hours.

We welcome applications from candidates seeking part‑time or compressed working patterns. However, due to the nature of the work and the shift coverage required, the minimum number of contracted hours for this role is 30 hours per week.

Responsibilities

• Day to day line management responsibilities for a team of up to 4 HIS call agents.
• Maintaining capacity and staffing levels to ensure shifts are staffed to required levels according to predicted demand.
• Monitoring of workflow and progressing calls to ensure effective management, resolution, and closure.
• Managing day to day queries, liaising with business partners to ensure issues are identified and escalated as needs be.
• Producing management information from databases and call handling systems, monitoring standards of information entered and discussing with agents.
• Providing a quality assurance function by regular assessments of phone calls, feedback outcomes and provide coaching and training for agents.
• Management of complaints databases, responding to complainants direct or allocating to appropriate Manager.
• Maintaining issue logs and escalating operational issues to HEO and senior management.
• Supporting the SEL operations managers as required.
• Supporting the SEL staff training programme.
• Willingness to work flexibly across SEL / HIS opening hours on a shift basis of early & lates.

Person specification

Essential criteria

• Evidence of contact centre or inbound telephone experience, Software’s such as 8x8 or similar telephony packages.
• Evidence of leading a team in an area with changing priorities.
• Evidence of motivating and developing staff to improve performance.
• Evidence of adapting to change and supporting others through it.
• Excellent communication skills at all levels and evidence of building effective relationships.

Behaviours

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

• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Changing and Improving

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £28,138, Office for National Statistics contributes £8,151 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).

The Office for National Statistics is part of the Civil Service, and as such we share a number of key benefits with other departments, whilst also having our own unique offerings to support our valued colleagues across the organisation.

Whether you are hearing about us for the first time or already know a bit about our organisation, we hope that our careers site will give you a great insight into the benefits and facilities available to our colleagues, and our fantastic working culture.

Inclusion & Accessibility

At ONS we are always looking to attract the very best people from the widest possible talent pool, and we are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a Disability Confident Leader we’re committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.

As part of our application process, you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process that you need. If you would like to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying, please contact the recruitment team in the first instance.

If you would like an accessible version of any of the attachments or recruitment documents below or linked to in this advert, please contact the recruitment team who will be happy to assist.

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 and Experience.

Visa Sponsorship

ONS is unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. Applicants must have a valid right to work in the UK when employment commences. If you are currently in the UK on a time-limited visa, it must have at least 18 months remaining at the point of application.

Right to Work and Nationality Requirements:

To work at ONS, applicants must meet the Civil Service nationality requirements, satisfy UK right to work requirements and, where applicable, meet the relevant security clearance requirements.

If you are unsure whether you meet the appropriate right to work or security clearance eligibility criteria, please refer to the guidance on Gov.uk or contact the recruitment email provided in the advert before applying. Failure to meet these requirements will result in your application being rejected and employment offers being withdrawn.

Security Clearance:

For ONS the requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for 3 consecutive years immediately prior to applying and the department will consider eligibility by exception on a case-by-case basis. You will be asked to provide information regarding your UK residency during your application, and failure to provide this will result in your application being rejected.

If you are unsure that you meet the eligibility above, please read the information available on Gov.uk on this linkor contact the recruitment email on the advert before applying to discuss, as failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected and any offer of employment being withdrawn.

At the point of SC application, you will need to provide or give access to the following evidence:

• Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)
• UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records
• Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency
• Security Services records

Application Process:

Number of Stages: 3 stage process

Stage 1: Civil Service Skills test

Stage 2 : Application

Stage 3: Interview

Stage 1 – Civil Service Customer Service Skills online test:

Upon submission of Part 1 your application form you will be sent an invitation to complete Customer Service Skills online tests.There will be full instructions on how to complete each test including an opportunity to practice before undertaking the actual test. The test is made up of three parts. Please note that Part 3 is timed, and you will have 10 minutes to complete this section. For further information about the assessment, including guidance on how to prepare and what to expect, please visit:

Preparing for the Customer Service Skills Test - GOV.UK We recommend reviewing this guidance before completing the test to help you familiarise yourself with the format and requirements.If you pass a test, you will then receive a further invite to complete each subsequent test if there is more than one for this vacancy. If you fail a test your application will not proceed to the next stage.

If you pass all tests for this vacancy, you will be invited to complete the final stage of your application, this is where you will provide information such as your work history. Skills and experience and Personal Statement.

Stage 2 – Application

The assessment process at the application stage will be based on your work history, skills, experiance and personal statement. It is important that your application is tailored to highlight the skills, knowledge, and experience relevant to the role.

A personal statement is required at application stage, the maximum wordcount allowed is 1250, which should not be exceeded. You should provide evidence for each essential skill criterion listed in the person specification. As these criteria are scored, it is advisable to give clear examples for each one, including the impact of your actions, ideally utilising the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result).

Please note that Success Profiles Behaviour examples are not required at this stage of the application process.

When a high volume of applications are received, the sift pass mark may be adjusted. Candidates will be invited to interview based on their merit order, with those achieving the highest scores being prioritised. Applicants who score below the adjusted pass mark but still pass will be placed on hold and may be invited to interview at a later date.

Stage 3 – Interview

If invited to interview, you will be assessed using techniques aligned with the Civil Service Success Profiles framework, covering all behaviours listed in the job advert and any required technical skills.

Interviews will be in person at the Titchfield office. Please note - travel expenses will not be reimbursed. Please ensure you bring a form of valid photo ID to the interviews.

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

Important Dates:

The Sift will be conducted from 14/09/2026

Interviews will be conducted from 28/09/2026

Dates are subject to change.

For the full terms and conditions of the post, please see attachment.

Please note that all campaigns may be subject to withdrawal at any stage if the internal resource position changes.

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

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 : Marcus Still
• Email : Recruitmentoperations@ons.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : Recruitmentoperations@ons.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 recruitment.complaints@ons.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission

Attachments

ONS_Vacancy_Terms(Permanent) Opens in new window (pdf, 83kB)Role1_Standard_Requirements (1) Opens in new window (docx, 25kB)