Paralegal Officer (Band 5/EO)

Job summary

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is recruiting a Paralegal to join the Paralegal Teams of our Legal Services Division (LSD). This is an exciting opportunity to be a part of a vibrant paralegal team which deals with some of the most complex and significant prosecutions in this area of regulatory law which, put simply, helps to save lives.

As Great Britain’s Health and Safety regulator, our enforcement powers are key not only to enforcing compliance with the wider H&S regime but also to backing-up our wider messages and ensuring that those responsible for causing death and serious injury are appropriately punished. This is a key role and one which will contribute directly to public confidence, both in HSE and in the wider justice system.

Legal Services Division plays a vital role in supporting HSE to deliver its strategic objectives, in particular to ensure that Great Britain remains one of the safest countries to work in. The Division undertakes a wide range of legal services on behalf of HSE, including making decisions on whether to institute criminal proceedings for breaches of health and safety legislation, acting on behalf of HSE in criminal prosecutions and other litigation and providing investigative advice to operations divisions.

You will report to a Senior Paralegal and be working in one of the paralegal teams above.

Working Pattern

Part time working hours are available for this role. We can accept part time applicants who can commit to working a minimum of 30 hours per week.

Travel

We have flexible teams which are also based across the jurisdiction which will require regular travel to HSE’s headquarters in Bootle and, less regularly, to other HSE offices. In addition, regular travel to Court Centre’s across the jurisdiction will be required, to cover trials and other hearings. The majority of visits will be ones which can be planned in advance and aren’t routinely/by exception required at short notice. This will involve periods of working away from home and overnight stays.

Job description

Key Responsibilities

• Liaise with Counsel, Inspectors, witnesses, court staff and other Government Departments
• Arranging Court hearings, laying information and serving summonses, and preparing Court bundles
• Preparing Briefs and instructions to counsel, arranging and attending case conferences, as well as attending Court hearings and Employment Tribunals
• Assisting in preparation for Coroner’s Court Inquests
• All general casework tasks, including maintaining accurate records, assisting with data collation, collating evidence and dealing with correspondence
• Overseeing workflows
• Assisting in relation to budgets and with the Pandemic Inquiry and reviewing documents

Person specification

Essential Skills and Criteria

• A good working knowledge of the Criminal Justice System and Criminal procedures in relation to prosecutions
• Experience in reassessing workloads and priorities
• Experience of working as part of a team
• Experience in maintaining accurate records
• Experience of working to tight deadlines

At HSE, we are proud to be able to offer our people the opportunity to work in a hybrid way which combines working from home and the office. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement, and your allocated office will be your contractual place of work.

There will be a requirement to travel to the office for various activities, e.g., collaborative working, supporting and training colleagues. If hybrid working is suitable for you and your role, you will be expected to attend the office, or other business-related site, for 60% of your working week. The arrangements will be determined primarily by business need, but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account.

Therefore, we would encourage candidates to consider if the commute from home to the office is a feasible distance to travel before making an application. Please note that if you are successful, hybrid working will be discussed prior to taking up the post.

Behaviours

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

• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together
• Making Effective Decisions
• Managing a Quality Service

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £32,770, Health and Safety Executive contributes £9,493 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

We invest in our people with;

• Competitive rates of pay
• Access to the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme to which HSE contribute 28.97% far more than in the private sector.
• Family friendly policies and working hours to help balance your home life and career
• Carer friendly policies to help create a supportive working culture
• 25 days annual holiday increasing to 30 days after 5 years' service, plus bank holidays and 1-day Civil Service privilege leave
• Parental leave benefits
• As a member of HSE you will gain access to a wide range of fantastic benefits that you can take advantage of such as the Cycle to Work Scheme, E-Gift Cards, and Vouchers via our partner EdenRed.

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.

Application information

As part of your application, you will be invited to complete an anonymised CV which should include your career history as well as your skills and experience. Please be advised that the CV is for information purposes only and will not be scored.

You will also be asked to complete an anonymised Personal Statement, of no more than 750 words which demonstrates how you meet the Essential Skills and Criteria of the job advert

You will also be asked to submit 250 words on the Behaviour 'Delivering at Pace'.

Application Guidance

Please access the following link for guidance on how to apply and how to complete a personal statementhttps://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/how-to-apply/

Sift Information

The sift will take place from 16th April when you will be assessed on your Personal Statement and the Lead behaviour.

Please note: In the event of a high number of applications we will conduct the sift on the Lead behaviour only.

Interview Information

Interviews will take place from 5th May when you will be assessed against the behaviours detailed within the job advert.

Sift and interview dates may be subject to change due to panel availability.

Sponsorship

This role is not open to application from those who will require sponsorship under the points based system. Should you apply for this role and require sponsorship your application will be rejected, and any provisional offers of employment will be withdrawn.

Further Information

Please note that a Reserve List will be held for the period of up to 12 months. There is no guarantee you will be offered a role from our reserve lists, so if you see a vacancy on Civil Service Jobs that you are interested in, we recommend you apply

HSE reserve the right to conduct additional checks, including Google and social media checks, when recruiting candidates into a role within HSE. These checks will be carried out in line with the Civil Service Commission Principles and, if used all candidates will be subject to these additional checks.

From 23rd June 2025, if you are successful at interview, as part of your pre-employment checks, HSE’s Recruitment Team are required to check your details against the Internal Fraud Hub (IFH), using your personal details – name, NINO, and date of birth. If you are included on the database, you will be refused employment. If you believe that there has been an error in the inclusion of your data and wish to make an appeal, please contact the CO email box internal.fraud@cabinetoffice.gov.uk .

Details of the types of internal fraud/dishonesty covered by this process are defined by the Cabinet Office and can be found here Internal Fraud Register privacy notice - GOV.UK

It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful in their application. For a summary of HSE terms and conditions as part of Civil Service Reform, please see the attached HSE Terms and Conditions document.

Progression through pay ranges is subject to annual pay awards as permitted within annual Civil Service pay remit guidance and negotiations with Trade Unions.

HSE is proud to be a part of the Disability Confidence Scheme (DCS). As a Disability Confident employer, we positively welcome applications from disabled people. We are committed to making workplace adjustments to ensure anyone can participate in the recruitment and selection process

If, during the application or interview process, you require any assistance due to a disability or a medical condition, please contact us at the email address below to discuss how we can support you. For example, if you have a disability, and you need an application form in an alternative format or you would like to know more about our recruitment process, please contact: HR.Resourcing-Team@hse.gov.uk

If successful in securing your role, HSE can provide suitable workplace adjustments to support you throughout your career with HSE.

Any move to HSE 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 athere.

Please note, if you are a current civil servant and you are currently undergoing any of the following formal actions your application will not be progressed any further; Formal discipline action, any formal action regarding attendance, poor performance or any restriction of duties as a result of disciplinary action.

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.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 : Rebecca Forman
• Email : Rebecca.Forman@hse.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : HR.Resourcing-Team@hse.gov.uk

Further information

If you believe that Civil Service Commission principles of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of Fair and Open competition have not been met, you can raise a complaint by emailing: HR.Resourcing-Team@hse.gov.uk or by writing to HSE at the following address:

HR Resourcing Team, 2.3 Redgrave Court, Merton Road, Bootle, Merseyside, L20 7HS. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact Civil Service commissioners:

https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/code/civilservicecode…

Attachments

HSE Terms and Conditions - CSJ Advert Annex Opens in new window (pdf, 116kB)