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The Electoral Commission

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Executive Support Officer x2

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Description

  • Job grade: Other
  • Contract type: Permanent
  • Business area: TEC - Administration
  • Type of role: Administration / Corporate Support
  • Working pattern: Full-time
  • Number of jobs available: 2

Location

National

About the job

Job summary

Basis: Permanent, Full time 36 hours per week


A £312 tax-free working from home allowance is also payable annually.


Location: Cardiff, Edinburgh or Belfast (Hybrid - minimum 2 days per week in office) or Remote (UK)


Benefits: Outstanding benefits including Civil Service Pension Scheme, flexible working, 28+ days holiday, and more.


About the Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is the UK's independent body overseeing elections and regulating political finance. Everything we do is about ensuring trust, participation, and integrity in the democratic process.

As we enter a bold new chapter under our five-year Corporate Plan, we are increasing our workforce and transforming how we plan and deliver core services. This post plays a central role in that journey.

Job description

About the role

We are looking for organised, proactive and highly professional Executive Support Officers to provide executive support to Directors and the wider Senior Leadership Team

As part of our Corporate Support team, you will work alongside Directors and senior leaders at the heart of the organisation, helping them navigate competing priorities and make the best use of their time. You will be a trusted partner, coordinating activity, anticipating challenges and ensuring key commitments continue to move forward in a fast-paced environment. This is much more than diary management. You will develop a detailed understanding of organisational priorities, build relationships across the Commission and help senior leaders stay connected to the issues that matter most. Key responsibilities include:

  • Acting as the primary contact for assigned Directors, coordinating meetings, travel, events and related support.
  • Proactively managing complex diaries with competing priorities and changing commitments.
  • Preparing agendas, briefing packs, correspondence and meeting documentation.
  • Recording and tracking actions, ensuring commitments are completed and deadlines met.

About the team

The Corporate Support team provides professional executive and administrative support to the Commission's senior leaders, helping to ensure the organisation operates efficiently and effectively.

The team works at the heart of the organisation, supporting Directors, the Chief Executive and senior colleagues across a wide range of strategic and operational activities. We pride ourselves on being collaborative, responsive and solutions-focused, working together to deliver a high-quality service in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.

Joining Corporate Support offers a unique opportunity to gain insight into the Commission's priorities, work closely with senior decision-makers and develop relationships across every part of the organisation. It is an environment where professionalism, teamwork and continuous improvement are highly valued.

Person specification

Who we’re looking for

This role would suit an experienced Executive Assistant, Executive Support Officer or administrative professional who enjoys working in a fast-paced environment and building effective working relationships with senior leaders and colleagues across an organisation.

You will be someone who can confidently manage competing priorities, exercise sound judgement and maintain exceptional levels of professionalism and discretion..

We're particularly interested in candidates who can demonstrate:

  • Previous experience providing executive support to senior leaders, including diary and meeting management.
  • Strong organisational skills and the ability to prioritise workloads effectively.
  • Experience working to tight deadlines while maintaining high levels of accuracy and attention to detail.
  • The ability to handle confidential and sensitive information appropriately.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  • The confidence to anticipate problems, identify risks and propose solutions.
  • A proactive, adaptable and customer-focused approach to work.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £31,549, The Electoral Commission contributes £9,139 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).

Why work for us?

This is an exciting opportunity to work at the centre of an organisation that supports democracy across the UK. You'll gain exposure to senior leaders and strategic decision-making while developing your executive support, stakeholder management and organisational skills in a highly respected public body.

The role offers variety, responsibility and the opportunity to make a genuine contribution to the Commission's success. You'll work alongside supportive colleagues who are committed to delivering excellence and continuous improvement, while benefiting from an organisation that actively invests in employee wellbeing, development and career progression.

We offer a strong total reward package, including:

    • Flexible working and hybrid model (40% office minimum)
    • 28 rising to 30 days annual leave + bank holidays
    • Civil Service Alpha Pension Scheme - a valuable defined benefit pension providing a guaranteed, inflation-adjusted income in retirement, based on your pensionable earnings and years of membership
    • Study support for professional qualifications
    • Ongoing learning and development opportunities
    • Ride2Work, eye care vouchers and more

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

How to apply

We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. To help reduce unconscious bias and ensure all applicants are assessed solely on their skills, knowledge and experience, we use an anonymous recruitment process.


When applying, please provide an anonymised CV which omits your protected characteristics and any personally identifiable information:


Do not include:

  • Your name, address, phone number, email or other contact details
  • Your date of birth or age
  • Gender, ethnicity, nationality or other personal identifiers
  • A photo of yourself
  • Remove educational dates as these are a clear indication of your age
  • There is no requirement to include your primary education details.

Do include:

  • Your employment history including employers and dates of employment
  • Explanation for gaps in your history
  • Your duties, responsibilities and achievements

If your CV contains personal details (such as your name or contact information), we will be unable to consider your application. Please double-check your documents before submitting, including the file name you use to save and upload your CV.

Supporting disabled applicants


The Electoral Commission is proud to be a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. As part of this commitment, we aim to prioritise interviews for disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria listed in the job description.


There may, however, be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria. For example, during periods of exceptionally high application volumes or seasonal recruitment activity, the Commission may need to limit the overall number of interviews offered to both disabled and non-disabled applicants.


If you have a disability and would like to be considered under this commitment, please indicate this when you apply. We also welcome requests for reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process or within the workplace.


Key dates

  • Application deadline: 20th November (23:59)
  • Interviews (1st stage): 7th December
  • Interviews (2nd stage): Week commencing TBC
  • Anticipated start date: 1st February

For applicants in devolved nations, interviews may be conducted virtually via Microsoft Teams.



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

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.
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 the Civil 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

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 : Talent Acquisition Team
  • Email : recruitment@electoralcommission.org.uk
Recruitment team
  • Email : recruitment@electoralcommission.org.uk

Further information

Raising a Concern About the Recruitment Process

At the Electoral Commission, we are committed to delivering fair, inclusive, and transparent recruitment. Our recruitment practices are guided by Civil Service values and comply with the Equality Act 2010 and other relevant legislation.

If you have concerns about the way a recruitment process has been conducted, we encourage you to raise them with us.

How to Make a Complaint

If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of our recruitment process, you can contact us directly by email:

recruitment@electoralcommission.org.uk

Please include the following information:

The job title or reference number

A clear explanation of your concern

Any relevant supporting information

Your preferred contact details

We aim to respond to all complaints within two working days.

Our Commitment

All complaints are treated seriously and in confidence. They are handled in line with our Recruitment Policy and the relevant provisions of the Equality Act 2010, Employment Rights Act 1996, and the Data Protection Act 2018.

If you require this information in an alternative format, or need additional support, please contact us at recruitment@electoralcommission.org.uk or call 020 7271 0500.

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