Learning and Development Specialist (Talent)

Job summary

Established in 2020, Government Skills (formerly the Government Skills and Curriculum Unit) enhances the quality and consistency of civil service learning and development by delivering better training, knowledge and networks. It serves as the foundation for The Campus, unifying physical and digital environments where more than 450,000 civil servants develop their capabilities across government.

The organisation’s mission is to accelerate capability building for all civil servants and extend impact into the wider public sector, ultimately driving improved public service delivery nationwide.

Under a new Government, Government Skills is transitioning to an updated operating model designed to elevate output quality while reducing learning costs. This expansion marks a dynamic phase of growth, featuring new roles created to drive future strategic goals.

The Beyond Boundaries programme sits within the Fast Stream and Emerging Talent team as part of Government Skills.

Job description

You will oversee end-to-end delivery of the 12-month Beyond Boundaries talent and learning programme, encompassing 11 virtual modules. Your primary duties will include leading and co-facilitating workshops, evaluating session effectiveness and driving continuous programme improvements. Acting as the primary point of contact for approximately 50 learners, you will provide ongoing guidance, formal one-to-one coaching and group coaching via action learning sets.

Administrative responsibilities include issuing pre-work and joining instructions, logging FAQs, gathering workshop feedback and managing tracking and reporting attendance, attrition and evaluations. Following the core 12-month programme, you will deliver an additional 6 months of post-programme mentoring support.

Collaboration across teams is essential to align with overarching programme goals, prevent duplicate efforts and feed key insights into Fast Stream learning evaluation metrics. As needed, you will also scope and assist with other Fast Stream and Emerging Talent learning initiatives and assessments, sharing best practice across the business unit to reinforce a centre of expertise model.

Following completion of the programme, you will deliver an additional six months of post-programme mentoring support to participants.

This role involves collaborating closely with colleagues across teams to ensure alignment with wider programme goals, prevent duplication, and contribute relevant data and insights to the overarching Fast Stream learning evaluation. Furthermore, you will assist with scoping and supporting additional Fast Stream and Emerging Talent learning assessments and initiatives as required, sharing best practice across the business unit in line with our centre of expertise model.

Person specification

Experience & Knowledge

Essential

• Experience of facilitating learning events individually and in pairs;
• A theoretical and practical understanding of different adult learning styles and how this can shape the design and delivery of learning interventions;
• An understanding of evaluation methods and measuring learning impact, including continuous improvement and the challenges associated with this;
• Experience of formal coaching and talent development and learning principles.
• Excellent knowledge of the wider civil service and civil service career pathways, success profiles and development opportunities.

Desirable:

• Evidence of proactively using a variety of learning methodologies and styles;
• Ability to promote a culture of continuous learning where innovative and quality learning is available and accessible for all;
• Experience in using formal coaching tools to enhance facilitation.
• Experience in structured talent development

Skills

• Experience in delivery and facilitation of training workshops
• An eye for detail and excellent organisation skills.
• Ability to manage projects effectively and proactively, delivering outcomes in a timely manner;
• Open to feedback and willingness to learn, demonstrating learning agility and a growth mindset.
• Ability to build strong relationships and work well with both internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience of working with complex data, and use this to make informed decisions.

Qualifications:

• A formal coaching qualification and/or extensive formal coaching experience and preferably Level 5 CIPD L&D qualification or willing to work towards.

Additional information:

Cabinet Office policy is that a minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace. For some roles, due to their nature and the business need, this may be up to 100%. Requirements to attend other locations for official business will also count towards this level of attendance.

Behaviours

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

• Developing Self and Others
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace
• Managing a Quality Service

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £45,292, Cabinet Office contributes £13,121 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).

• 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, Strengths and Experience.

As part of the application form you will be asked to submit:

• A CV

And a

• A 500 word Personal Statement/Statement of suitability setting out how you meet the criteria in the person specification

Selection process

During the Interview process you will be asked question on behaviours and Strengths.

Expected timeline (subject to change)

Expected sift date – TBC

Expected interview date/s – TBC

Interview location - 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.

Further Information

This role is full time only. Applicants who wish to work an alternative pattern are welcome to apply however your preferred working pattern may not be available and you should discuss this with the vacancy holder before applying.

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.

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 cabinetofficerecruitment.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 an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

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 that this role requires CTC clearance, which would normally need 3 years’ UK residency in the past 3 years. This is not an absolute requirement, but supplementary checks may be needed where individuals have not lived in the UK for that period. This may mean your security clearance (and therefore your appointment) will take longer or, in some cases, not be possible.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.

Please be aware the levels of national security clearance are changing which may impact on the level needed for this role by the time of appointment. All efforts will be made to keep candidates informed of any changes and what that will mean in terms of vetting criteria. For more information please See our vetting charter

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

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 counter-terrorist 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.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 : Myles Lester
• Email : myles.lester@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : cabinetofficerecruitment.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 by email at : cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response 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-Employee-Offer Opens in new window (docx, 762kB)Cabinet Office Terms and Conditions - External 2025-02-20 Opens in new window (docx, 83kB)