The Home Office works to build a safe, fair and prosperous UK. We achieve this through our work on counter-terrorism, policing, fire, crime, drugs policy, immigration and passports. We’re advertising 400 jobs in our Customer Services Group at locations across the UK. You can learn more about these roles, including how to apply, below.
Customer Services Group brings together His Majesty’s Passport Office and UK Visas and Immigration. As a major operational arm of the Home Office, we play a vital role in supporting the economy and cultural life of the UK.
Our vision is for everyone, no matter their role, to be able to make decisions that will help place our customers’ needs at the centre of what we do. Our priorities are to ensure that customers’ voices are heard and that we strive to improve.
Our customers range from UK citizens applying for passports to foreign nationals wishing to come to or stay in the country for visits, work, study or to be with family or seek refuge as asylum seekers.
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About the campaign
We are recruiting 400 Administrative Officer Apprentices to work in roles across our Customer Services teams. This is a unique opportunity to combine formal learning and development with on-the-job experience.
This apprenticeship offers you a fantastic opportunity to learn, earn and develop your skills. If successful, you will be joining over 280,000 people in the Operational Delivery Profession across Government who have the vital job of keeping the UK running and make a real difference to people’s lives.
Training will be provided for all roles. Part time and flexible working roles are available, but for majority of roles there will be an initial full time training requirement.
About the Apprenticeship
This role gives you an opportunity to join the Home Office on a permanent contract as an Administrative Officer and get paid time off to complete your Level 3 Operational Delivery Apprenticeship.
As an apprentice within Customer Services and the wider Civil Service, you’ll have a first-rate opportunity of working in an energetic and transformative organisation while gaining an internationally recognised qualification.
Apprenticeships are work-based training programmes and apprentices spend 6 hours of their contracted hours undertaking off-the-job training with the support of their learning provider and Line Manager. The apprenticeships will take up to 18 months to complete and you will serve a period of probation.
Meet the Team
We will be holding online recruitment Q&A events via Microsoft Teams Live at the dates and times shown below. Clicking on the relevant link below will take you to a page where you can register for the event. There is no requirement to attend an event in order to apply for these roles.
- Thursday 11th May 13.00- 13.45
- Wednesday 17th May 18.00 – 18.45
- Tuesday 23rd May 18.00 – 18.45
- Tuesday 30th May 13.00 – 13.45
Hybrid working
The roles available will vary between a requirement to be fully office-based and hybrid working. Please be aware that whilst some hybrid roles may be available this is not guaranteed. You should be willing, from the outset, to attend the office 100% of your working hours if your role requires this.
Benefits
We offer competitive starting salaries, along with a Civil Service Pension with employer contribution rates of at least 26.6%, as well as a range of other brilliant benefits including flexible working and 25 days annual leave on appointment, rising with service.
Find out more about some of the other benefits we offer.
More about the roles
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- Belfast
- Cardiff
- Corby
- Croydon
- Durham
- Glasgow
- Harmondsworth
- Hemel Hempstead
- Leeds
- Liverpool
- Newport
- Peterborough
- Portishead
- Ramsgate (Manston)
- Sheffield
- Solihull
- Southport
- Stoke-on-Trent
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- National: £22,400
- London: £26,400
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You do not require any qualifications to apply for this Apprenticeship, however, if you hold GCSEs at Grade 9 to 4 or A to C or equivalent in Maths and English you must have already been awarded the qualification(s) and must be able to provide your certificate(s) at interview.
If you hold GCSE Grade 3 or D or equivalent in Maths and / or English, as part of your apprenticeship and to bring you up to Grade 4 or C standard or equivalent, you must also be willing to complete Functional Skills Level 2 qualifications in either or both of these subjects.
If you do not hold any GCSE qualifications as part of your apprenticeship and to bring you up to Grade 4 or C or equivalent standard, you must also be willing to complete Functional Skills Level 2 qualifications in Maths and English.
To successfully complete these required elements, you will be provided with support from both your line management chain and the apprenticeship provider.
Please note that we will also accept equivalent qualifications at the same level achieved from a wide range of formal academic and vocational training providers as determined by The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual), including for example, qualifications obtained in Scotland or some BTEC and higher level NVQs. You must have already been awarded the qualification(s) and must be able to provide your certificate(s) at interview.
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Key responsibilities will include but are not limited to:
- Using guidance and policy to consider and make decisions on customer requests
- Carrying out case working functions in order to make decisions on immigration cases within the decision-making framework
- Meeting quality and accuracy standards, adhering to relevant guidance and policy when making decisions and providing excellent customer service
- Considering large amounts of information, legislation and case law to produce clear, structured letters on behalf of the Secretary of State outlining reasons for the decision
- Producing a set number of interviews and decisions both weekly / monthly whilst demonstrating sensitivity, emotional resilience and understanding of the needs of your customers
- Developing and maintaining good working relationships to deliver what is required
- Developing specialist knowledge of legislation and policy, keeping up to date with guidance and case law, seeking advice and escalating to senior colleagues or specialist caseworkers
- Delivering against timeliness and quality targets, providing excellent customer service
- Making and demonstrating well-judged decisions
- Managing email inboxes, identifying and assigning work to the owning team
- Updating and maintaining accurate databases to enable teams to prioritise and allocate work
- Responding to non-complex enquiries from customers and internal colleagues by email or telephone
- Supporting colleagues to deliver performance of a high standard
- Working positively with internal and corporate partners and stakeholders
- Providing accurate information in a professional and helpful manner by collecting and assessing relevant data and information from various sources
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- Making well informed decisions for our customers.
- Providing support by undertaking a range of administrative tasks such as: file movement and tracking, logging correspondence, monitoring electronic inboxes, issuing letters and dealing with customer queries.
- Scanning and digitising of customer supporting evidence and updating relevant databases / files.
- Ensuring case files are decision ready for casework, appeals or removal processes.
- Telephone call handling / booking appointments.
- Escorting customers, conducting face to face identity interviews and facilitating language analysis interviews.
- Working closely with colleagues and contributing to maintaining a comprehensive database of freelance interpreters.
- Additional duties within the scope of the grade may vary dependant on business needs and the specific team where placed.
- Able to demonstrate sound interpersonal, communication and relationship-building skills and thrive working as part of a team.
- Committed to meeting the high standards of conduct and behaviour that is expected of a civil servant.
Candidates are expected to be both flexible and adaptable as there may be a requirement to work across all departments, depending on business need.
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This vacancy uses Success Profiles and will assess your Strengths and Ability.
You will submit your application through the online civil service recruitment portal.
1. Application form
2. Verbal Reasoning Test
After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Verbal Reasoning Test. Please complete the online test as soon as possible. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test.
3. The interview
If you successfully pass the Verbal Reasoning Test, you will be invited to an interview which will be on strength-based questions.
Strength based questions seek to find out what people enjoy and when they are at their best. They are less about what they can do. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. It is important that you answer the questions as openly and honestly as you can, thinking about the kind of work that you enjoy doing and the role you are applying for.
Your interview will be via Launch pad, which is a virtual platform. A full explanation of how this works will be provided to you, but you will need to have access to a laptop or computer with a working webcam and good Internet access.
Due to the size of the campaign, it will not be possible to provide candidates with feedback at either the Verbal Reasoning Test or Interview stage.
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The closing date for applications is 23:55 on 5th June 2023.
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If you are interested in one of these roles, please apply using the relevant link below.
