Administrative Officer Ref: 3611

Department

Admin

Location(s)

Cheltenham, London

Contract Type

Permanent

Hours of Work

Full Time

Salary

London: £30,719 rising to £32,773 after one year (pro rata), Cheltenham: £27,780 rising to £30,032 after one year (pro rata)

Job description

Flexible working: we support full-time, part-time, compressed, flexible hours and job sharing, subject to business need. Due to the nature of this role, remote or homeworking is not possible.

About us

MI5 keeps the country safe from serious threats like terrorism and attempts by states to harm the UK, it's people and way of life. We carry out investigations by obtaining, analysing and assessing intelligence, and then work with a range of partners, including MI6 and GCHQ to disrupt these threats. Through our protective security arm, we provide advice and guidance to government, businesses and other organisations about how to keep themselves safe. A role in MI5 means you'll do unique and challenging work in a supportive and encouraging environment, making a real difference to UK national security.

The role

MI5's mission is to keep the country and its people safe. It means we have rewarding careers that rely on people with varied backgrounds, ages and skills – just like our Admin Officer role. Whether you've just finished school or are returning to work after a break, whether you choose to work full-time or part-time, you'll have a hugely positive impact and be at the heart of what we do. It's a chance to develop your skills and get plenty of support along the way.

You'll be allocated to a department depending on business need at the time of appointment, and therefore you won't know which area you will be working in until you join the organisation. It's all an exciting part of the unknown.

To give you an idea of potential first postings, they can include (but are not limited to):

• finance
• recruitment
• the post room
• the pass office
• investigative information management hub
• estates services

Regardless of the department you are placed in, each position offers a range of tasks, diverse challenges and interesting insights. Each day will look a bit different but typically you'll be managing email inboxes, organising meetings, managing information and records, booking travel, looking after visitors and providing essential support to our business. It's all about helping us to run smoothly.

About you

We're after lots of initiative, great organisational skills and an ability to draw on information from a variety of sources to inform decisions. You'll also need to be comfortable talking to a range of people and paying close attention to detail. If you're keen to learn new skills, you'll have all the makings of an excellent Admin Officer. We're interested in all the things that make you, you. So, there's really no 'type' of person we're after. Please apply even if you don't think you have all of the skills outlined above.

You'll need two GCSEs (or equivalent) in maths and English Language, at grades A*-C / 9-4. Or, you'll have relevant experience within an office and/or admin role. This is important so we can initially assess your knowledge and ability and make sure you are a good fit for the role.

Training and development

We're committed to staff development. As an Admin Officer, you'll attend a short induction course when you join. You'll also have the opportunity to attend a wide range of personal development and job specific courses throughout your career. Whether it's through courses run by our own academy, or through knowledge sharing, you'll never stop learning. Our strong community of Admin Officers have created a peer support group, where you can learn from each other, share ideas, organise events and build connections that'll last throughout your career.

Rewards and benefits

You'll receive a starting salary of £27,780 or £30,719 (depending on location), plus other benefits including:

• 25 Days Annual Leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, and an additional 10.5 days public and privilege holidays.
• opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme
• a Dedicated Development Budget
• opportunities to work flexibly, subject to business needs
• an interest-free season ticket loan
• an excellent pension scheme
• a cycle to work scheme
• facilities such as a gym, restaurant and on-site coffee bars (at some locations)
• paid parental and adoption leave

Equal opportunities

At MI5 diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website: Diversity | MI5 - The Security Service

We're Disability Confident

MI5 is proud to have achieved Leader status within the Department for Work and Pensions' Disability Confident scheme. This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain and develop disabled people. As a Disability Confident Leader, we aim to ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants who best meet the essential minimum criteria for this position, will be offered an interview, if it is practical for us to do so (this is known as the Offer of an Interview). To secure an interview for this role, the minimum criteria (in order of application process) are:

• Two GCSEs in maths and English Language at grade A*-C (or 9-4)
• Demonstrating the attitudes to work and the role that we are looking for (assessed by a question on the application form)
• On completion of the application form, you will be invited to an online interview. This is your offer of interview

There is a wide range of extra support available throughout the recruitment process to enable you to do your best, see our website here for information on reasonable adjustments we can offer.

What to expect

Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:

• Eligibility questions - you'll answer a number of questions based on the requirements for the role
• Initial form - you'll create a personal account and complete our equal opportunities monitoring questions. If you do not feel comfortable completing equal opportunities monitoring, there is a 'prefer not to say' option for each question
• Application form - you'll be asked to complete an application which will cover relevant experience, your motivation for applying and some situational judgement questions aligned to being an Admin Officer, but which require no prior knowledge or experience of the role. To process your application, it is essential that you provide all the information requested in the application form. Our recruitment team will complete an application sift and successful applicants will be invited to the next stage which is an online interview
• Online interview – which will take place online over a video conferencing system. You won't be required to visit any of our premises. This interview will further explore that you have the potential skills and motivation to join MI5

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take around 6 - 9 months to process including vetting, so we advise you to continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer.

Before you apply

To work at MI5, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. Read about our eligibility criteria.

This role requires the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It's something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. Find out more about the vetting process.

Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can't take any recreational drugs and you'll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.

Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application with us more securely.

The role is based in London or Cheltenham, so you'll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.

Right to withdraw statement

Please be aware that we reserve the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.