Senior Support Administrator

Job summary

We are seeking 3 x full time permanent and 2 x part-time (18.75 hours per week) permanent Senior Support Administrators to join the Laboratory Data Services Team at our Colindale Scientific Campus.

The Senior Support Administrators will be required to:

• Provide administrative support to Reference Microbiology Services (RMS)
• Contribute to quality assurance of data entry
• Deputise for the Data Entry Supervisor in their absence
• Carry out Data Entry tasks on MOLIS as required
• Provide a Financial and Resource Management (FARM) service for Reference Microbiology (RM) as cover for staff absences as required
• Provide support for RM meetings e.g. note taking as cover for staff absences as required

Job description

Administrative Duties

• Contribute to a telephone answering/triage service to ensure that all telephone calls to RM are dealt with efficiently and/or transferred to the appropriate member of RM staff using judgement and discretion, where necessary, and to refer complex matters to relevant senior members of Unit staff
• Ensure administrative support is provided to RM staff including assisting dealing with queries via telephone/email as necessary
• Be the point of contact for staff reporting in sick at the beginning of the day and ensuring that appropriate staff in RM are informed in a timely manner
• Responsible for briefing managers on staff absences, e.g., sickness, which will involve close liaison with Supervisors as appropriate
• Support the Operations Administrator and RM Operations Safety Manager after they have carried out quarterly Health and Safety inspections of the non-laboratory areas within RM; scan paperwork and file appropriately on relevant network drive as required
• Take part in the DART rota as required to support postal distribution of results
• Contribute to a “buddy” system with the EO (Band 5) Administrative Unit Leads to ensure familiarity with the key roles of the Team Administrative Lead roles and be confident in being able to cover tasks during periods of annual/sick leave

Data Entry Support

• Provide data entry support for Unit specific work using MOLIS (LIMS database)
• Ensure quality of work and undertake weekly/daily MOLIS housekeeping, as required and during times of surge due to increase in numbers of specimens
• Responsible for quality control of data input by Laboratory Support Administrators, checking work and ensuring all outputs are accurate prior to dispatch to users
• Retrieve information from MOLIS in order to liaise with hospitals and private labs to respond to or resolve any queries

General Duties

• Provide flexible administrative cover within RM
• Assist senior Unit staff in ensuring accreditation is maintained for all Units and contribute to achieving single accreditation for RM

Other

• Ensure that the laboratory equipment in the Units are reported to the RM Operations and Maintenance Team if not in good working condition or require a service engineer visit

It should be noted that the work of the RM division is of a confidential nature and must not be communicated to other persons except where required for authorised purposes.

The above is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of these roles.

They will carry out any other duties as may reasonably be required. The job descriptions and person specifications may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the organisation.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

• 3 GCSE’s or equivalent qualifications, one of which must be English language and/or relevant office experience
• Knowledge of Excel and Outlook (Microsoft Office) to intermediate level
• Good organisational skills with accuracy and eye for detail

Desirable Criteria

• Good interpersonal skills and team player
• High level of self-motivation
• Flexible and adaptable
• Willing to learn and acquire new skills through training as necessary

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £29,613, UK Health Security Agency contributes £8,578 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 pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.

UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all.

Please visit our careers site for more information: Reasonable Adjustments , Civil Service Careers

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

Application & Sift (Competency-based)

At sift stage you will be assessed against the 3 Essential Criteria listed in this job advert.

You will be required to complete:

• an Application Form (‘Employer/Activity history’ section on the application)
• a 750 word Supporting Statement - do not exceed 750 words as we will not consider any words over this amount

This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge provide evidence of your suitability for the role. You will receive a joint score for your application form and supporting statement.

The application form is the kind of information you would put into your CV – please be advised you will not be able to upload or email us your CV. Please complete the application form in as much detail as possible.

Longlisting

In the event of a large number of applications, we may longlist into 3 piles of:

1. Meets all Essential Criteria
2. Meets some Essential Criteria
3. Meets no Essential Criteria

Only 'Meets all Essential Criteria' will progress to Shortlisting.

Shortlisting

In the event of a large number of applications, we may conduct an initial sift on the following Essential Criteria:

• Good organisational skills, with accuracy and eye for detail

Desirable criteria may be used in the event of a large number of applications/successful candidates.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview. Please note feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Interview (Competency-based)

You will be invited to a single face-to-face interview at our Colindale Scientific Campus in North London. Interview date(s) to be confirmed.

During the interview we will assess against the below in relation to the 3 Essential Criteria:

• Knowledge
• Experience
• Skills and Abilities

There will be a 10-minute administration assessment during your interview which will assess your speed and accuracy. Further details will be provided at the interview. No preparation is required.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Incident Response Activity

From time to time, the role holder may be required to support UKHSA’s incident response activity by contributing their appropriate expertise within an Incident Cell; during such periods, supported by the line manager, this work will take priority over normal day-to-day responsibilities, commensurate with their grade, skills and experience.

Qualifications and Registrations

For roles where specific qualifications or registrations are required, successful applicants will be asked to provide appropriate evidence. Employment cannot commence until satisfactory documentation has been received and verified.

Eligibility Criteria

Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service as well as internal applicants.

Salary Information

Grade: Administrative Officer (AO)
Inner AO: £29,613 - £30,266 per annum, pro-rata

If you are successful at interview, and are moving from another government department, NHS, or Local Authority, the relevant starting salary principles for level transfers or promotions will apply. Otherwise, roles are offered at the pay scale minimum for the grade, but in exceptional circumstances there may be flexibility if you are able to demonstrate you are already in receipt of an existing, higher salary. Pay increases are through the relevant annual pay award for the role and terms.

Location

This role is being offered as hybrid working based at our Colindale Scientific Campus, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ.

We offer great flexible working opportunities at UKHSA and operate using a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata, (averaged over a month) working at our Colindale Scientific Campus.

Security Clearance Level Requirement

Successful candidates must pass a basic disclosure and barring security check before they can be appointed.

Based at our scientific campus, you will be required to have a minimum of a Counter Terrorism Check (CTC) security vetting check as a minimum.

For meaningful National Security Vetting checks to be carried out individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years as the role requires CTC clearance. In exceptional circumstances UK residency less than the outlined periods may not necessarily bar you from gaining national security vetting and applicants should contact the Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

Future location

UKHSA is investing in a new state-of-the-art National Biosecurity Centre in Harlow, Essex, which will eventually bring together teams currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale and Porton Down. For more details, please see: Huge biosecurity centre investment to boost pandemic protection - GOV.UK The new facilities will start becoming operational in the mid-2030s, with full completion by 2038. Staff will move in phases as facilities become available. If you're appointed to a role currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale or Porton Down, please note that we'll continue investing in these sites for the next decade. As we get closer to the transition, we'll provide full information about relocation support available to staff.

Reasonable Adjustments

The Civil Service is committed to making sure that our selection methods are fair to everyone. To help you during the recruitment process, we will consider any reasonable adjustments that could help you. An adjustment is a change to the recruitment process or an adjustment at work. This is separate to the Disability Confident Scheme. If you need an adjustment to be made at any point during the recruitment process you should contact the recruitment team in confidence as soon as possible to discuss your needs. You can find out more information about reasonable adjustments across the Civil Service here: Reasonable Adjustments , Civil Service Careers

International Police Check

If you have spent more than 6 months abroad over the last 3 years you may need an International Police Check. This would not necessarily have to be in a single block, and it could be time accrued over that period.

Internal Fraud Check

If successful for this role as one aspect of pre-employment screening, applicant’s personal details – name, national insurance number and date of birth - will be checked against the Cabinet Office Internal Fraud Hub, and anyone included on the database will be refused employment unless they can show exceptional circumstances. Currently this is only for external candidates to the Civil Service.

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.

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

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 : Sarah Handy
• Email : sarah.handy@ukhsa.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@ukhsa.gov.uk

Further information

The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.

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 UKHSA Public Accountability Unit via email: Complaints@ukhsa.gov.uk

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk

https://www.healthjobsuk.com/job/v8320366