Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead

**Details**:
**Reference number**:

- 304520**Salary**:

- £37,295 - £41,425- Pay award pending- A Civil Service Pension with an average employer contribution of 27%**Job grade**:

- Senior Executive Officer**Contract type**:

- Permanent**Business area**:

- CEFAS - Corporate - Human Resources Department within Cefas' Corporate Directorate**Type of role**:

- Human Resources**Working pattern**:

- Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time**Number of jobs available**:

- 1Contents

Location

About the job

**Benefits**:
Things you need to know

Location
- The vacancy is based at Cefas' main location in Lowestoft.About the job

**Job summary**:
This is an exciting opportunity to join a professional HR team, evolving our service to provide continually improving outcomes for our customers.

This role will combine deep expertise and experience with modern and fresh thinking to enable real transformation of our organisation. While based in HR your work and impact will need to expand to all areas of the organisation. This requires a step change in our approach and thought leadership to lead tangible actions that make a long-term difference to diversity primarily.
- and late-career changers with transferable skills, people from all backgrounds and circumstances regardless of disability, gender, age, ethnicity, LGBT+ identity and socio-economic status.

**Job description**:
The main duties and responsibilities of this position are:

- To operate and lead on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and related activities and projects within HR, influencing and challenging to help shape and deliver a fresh approach on diversity and inclusion (D&I) across Cefas.
- To bring about a step change in behaviours, people results and culture, contributing towards our Cefas 2030 strategic objective to ensure “everyone is valued”.
- To engage key stakeholders in Cefas and across Defra group to understand their business requirements now and in the future. Challenging areas of slow progress, providing support and expertise to build a great offer that will help the business deliver its strategic objectives and be a “great place to work”.
- To contribute to the development of workforce planning that builds in our EDI objectives, ie: supportive procedures and working practices, training and development, value and recognition, etc.
- To ensure that Cefas is well connected across Other Government Departments as well as the local area(s) community engagement initiatives.
- To report on and prepare presentations on all EDI data requests and gender pay returns internally and externally.
- To contribute to and influencing strategies across equality, diversity and inclusion encompassing latest thinking, innovation and in service of business delivery and strategy.
- Leading the development and delivery of EDI projects to support and deliver key strategic priorities across a complex organisation.
- Encouraging and influencing sharing of best practice and providing latest thinking to staff networks.

**Person specification**:
It is essential that the successful applicant is able to demonstrate having the following essential criteria:

- A thorough understanding of external trends, developments and changing landscapes in relation to equality legislation, diversity and inclusion initiatives and socioeconomic demographics;
- Good working knowledge of cross government equality, diversity and inclusion functions and ability to contribute across government and influence on behalf of Cefas;
- Proven relationship building with key stakeholders and at senior level to build in positive action in support of more diverse talent pipelines, developing high potential and facilitating great inclusivity throughout the business;
- Excellent communicator - able to articulate the vision and purpose and work closely with other teams to deliver on customer requirements seamlessly;
- The ability to contribute to strategic direction based on analysis of data about the organisation, its broader strategic direction and its people priorities for business delivery;
- Up to date knowledge of how to build an inclusive approach to developing people from diverse backgrounds and with differing needs;
- Excellent IT skills including good working knowledge of Microsoft Office (not limited to but including Excel, PowerPoint Outlook and Word); and
- CIPD qualified to Level 5 or above, or able to demonstrate an equivalent level of experience and meeting the essential criteria.

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

- Communicating and Influencing
- Leadership
- Working Together
- Communicating and Influencing

**Benefits**:

- Alongside your salary of £37,295, Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science contributes £10,070 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.- Generous annual leave entitlement - Cef