Policy Delivery Advisor – Post Office Financial Redress

Job summary

We are recruiting two policy delivery advisors to join the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) team responsible for delivering the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme (HCRS).

The Post Office is a key national asset at the heart of communities across the country. Government owns Post Office Limited; BIST is responsible for setting the strategic direction for the company and works with UK Government Investments (UKGI) to oversee the company’s performance.

The Post Office has been at the centre of the Horizon scandal, where postmasters were accused of taking money and were forced to pay back alleged shortfalls in the Horizon accounting system – with many prosecuted by Post Office and sent to prison. The scandal is widely regarded as one of the most widespread miscarriages of justice in British history and continues to attract sustained media and Parliamentary attention. Putting this injustice right is central to our work.

Many of those affected have since had their convictions overturned through the courts or by mass exoneration legislation. BIST administers Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme, which provides financial redress to eligible postmasters whose convictions have been overturned. These roles sit in the team delivering this scheme.

They offer the opportunity to contribute to work of significant public importance, engage closely with senior colleagues and operate in a high-profile environment attracting sustained media, public, Parliamentary and Ministerial interest. You will join a supportive and friendly team that places a high value on personal wellbeing.

Job description

These roles sit in the casework and policy delivery team. Our overarching aim is to deliver swift, full and fair financial redress to victims of the Horizon scandal. Candidates in these roles will lead policy delivery on complex and sensitive issues, working closely with policy, legal and finance colleagues, as well as our external delivery partners. All roles require strong decision-making capability, excellent stakeholder management, and the ability to deliver high-quality advice at pace in a fast-moving environment.

Key Responsibilities

The postholders will be responsible for:

• Advising seniors on the amount of financial redress due to individuals. This involves interpreting legal advice from external lawyers, scheme policy and principles and the evidence put forward in the claim in order to make robust recommendations
• Using sound judgement where information or guidance is ambiguous to identify and recommend solutions, with clear rationale
• Managing their own caseload, with support from their line manager, meeting deadlines, prioritising work, and identifying and mitigating blockers
• Following operational processes with diligence to ensure case progress is logged accurately, and data and documentation is properly filed for audit
• Establishing strong relationships across stakeholders in BIST legal, finance and analysis, as well as BIST’s external legal advisers. Using relevant stakeholder expertise to strengthen recommendations
• Communicating clearly both verbally and in writing at all levels, anticipating and addressing the needs of different stakeholders.

Candidates may be asked to work flexibly across other Post Office redress schemes depending on priorities.

Person specification

Essential criteria:

The below criteria are essential and will be assessed at application stage;

• Excellent judgement skills. Working with imperfect information and using sound judgement to make clear, well-reasoned recommendations. Applying and interpreting policy and guidance to make decisions.
• Strong analytical skills and confidence working with numerical/financial information with the ability to interpret complex information and evidence.
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills, with an ability to present complex information clearly and concisely.
• Stakeholder management and relationship-building skills, including the ability to influence senior stakeholders. Good judgement on when to bring expert stakeholders in and awareness and anticipation of their interests.
• Good strategic awareness and an understanding of the wider policy environment and government priorities.
• Ability to develop positive working relationships with external stakeholders, including vulnerable claimants. Confidence to handle sensitive topics with care and strong personal resilience.
• Experience of policy delivery

Desirable criteria:

The below criteria are desirable only. These will not be assessed throughout the recruitment process, but will be used in the event of tied scores between candidates;

• Experience working on a government redress scheme or similar major delivery programme
• Knowledge of Post Office redress schemes
• Experience of close working with lawyers

Behaviours

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

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £44,913, Department for Business and Trade contributes £13,011 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 with an employer contribution of 28.97%

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.

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.

Interviews for this vacancy will be conducted virtually. We will, however, consider in-person interviews by exception.

Please ensure that you check your emails regularly as all updates from us will be sent to you this way.

To apply for this post, you will be asked to complete the following as part of the online application:

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Provide employment history that relates to the essential criteria, and that any gaps in employment history within the last 2 years are explained. The CV should not exceed more than 2 x A4 pages.
• A Personal Statement of up to 750 words, explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role in reference to the essential criteria.

Your application will be sifted against the Experience criteria of the Civil Service Success Profiles.

It is likely that the sift will take place 1-2 weeks after the closing date and interviews 3-5 weeks after the closing date, though this is subject to change.

We aim to sift both the CV and the Personal Statement but, in the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift may be conducted on the Personal Statement only. Candidates who pass the initial sift of the Personal Statement will either progressed to a full sift where the CV is then assessed, or progressed straight to further assessment/interview.

Candidates who pass the sift will be invited to interview, where we will assess you on the Success Profiles elements of Behaviours and Strengths.

Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply, but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.

Please note, following a recent change to the Machinery of Government, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) will be renamed to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) as of 20th July 2026. BIST will connect the UK’s world-class science and technology base directly to the businesses, places and workers that will drive good growth across the country. Such changes will not affect the selection process for this campaign; however, we wanted to take this opportunity to advise you of the recent changes to our department.

You can find further information here regarding recent governmental changes Machinery of Government changes: Fact Sheet - GOV.UK.

Reasonable Adjustments

We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. This includes making reasonable adjustments to our process. In order to request an adjustment:

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section on the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process.

Alternatively contact the Government Recruitment Service at DBTrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

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 see attached Candidate Pack for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department.

Further Information:

• A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Reserve Lists will be for each location and appointments made in merit order based on location preferences.
• Any move to the Department for Business and Trade from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments.
• The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.
• 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. Any applicant who has 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.
• Terms and Conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.
• Candidates that do not quite meet the standard for this role may be offered a position at a lower grade.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service /Disclosure Scotland/Access NI 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

For further information on the Access NI confidential checking service telephone: the Access NI Helpline on 0300 200 7888 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email accessni@ani.x.gsi.gov.uk

Feedback

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) 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 : Emily Snow
• Email : emily.snow2@businessandtrade.gov.uk

Recruitment team

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

Further information

Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of appointment on the basis of fair and open competition and appointment on merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles.
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact DBT by email: Resourcing@businessandtrade.gov.uk.
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.
For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: Click here to visit Civil Service Commission/Complaints.

Attachments

DBT T&Cs 2025-08-18 Opens in new window (doc, 46kB)