Deputy Private Secretary/head of Office Upper Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal, SEO, Judicial Office

**General Information**:

- Salary
- £49,325 - £53,081
- Working Pattern
- Full Time
- Vacancy Approach
- Cross Government
- Location
- London
- Region
- London
- Closing Date
- 30-Sep-2025
- Post Type
- Permanent
- Civil Service Grade
- SEO
- Number of jobs available
- 1
- Reserve List
- 12 Months
- Job ID
- 9728

**Descriptions & requirements**:

- Job description

**Job Specification**

**Grade: Senior Executive Officer (SEO)**

**Deputy Private Secretary/Head of Office Upper Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal Private Office**

**Private Offices Directorate, Judicial Office**

**Organisation**

The Judicial Office (JO) is a unique branch of the civil service, independent from the machinery which supports the Government, and dedicated to supporting the judiciary as the third arm of the state. We promote and safeguard judicial independence to maintain confidence in the rule of law. We are answerable not to Ministers but instead, through our Chief Executive, to the Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales and the Senior President of Tribunals as we help them to fulfil their responsibilities to the judiciary.

We support c.22,000 judicial office holders, providing policy, legal and handling advice, and operational support. This includes advice on judicial leadership, support with relationships with Government and Parliament, assistance with justice sector reform, judicial education and training, comms, and HR.

**Directorate**

The postholder(s) will join the Judicial Private Offices directorate. The business units include operational private offices; jurisdiction and policy private offices; and the Judicial Executive Board Secretariat.

**Overview**:
This is an exciting opportunity to provide leadership to a busy Judicial Private Office, supporting Chamber Presidents of the UT. This position would suit someone looking for a stretching role working with some of the most senior Tribunals judiciary in the country.

Within the Judicial Office, the Chamber Presidents Private Offices are a series of small jurisdictional teams focused on supporting each Chamber and Tribunal President across all of their leadership functions. Each Private Office provides policy and legal advice, and general secretariat and administrative support to the Chamber and Tribunal Presidents, working collaboratively with expert teams across the Judicial Office.

**Role Summary**:
The postholder(s) will be responsible for ensuring that the jurisdictional Private Office provides high quality policy advice and administrative and operational support to the Chamber Presidents. This roles involves the development and implementation of new ways of working within the Private Office(s) and the delivery of efficiencies across the wider CPO and Judicial Office.

The role involves maintaining an overview of developments in Tribunals liaising with and building strong relationships with peers and senior stakeholders across the Justice system, including His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service, the Ministry of Justice, other government departments, and across the Private Office Directorate in Judicial Office.

**Main Activities / Responsibilities**:**

The main responsibilities of the post include, but are not limited to:

- Providing advice for the Chamber President(s) on a variety of matters including governance, legislation and policy and signposting to professional support e.g. HR, Communications, Judicial Training, across the Judicial Office.
- Ensuring that the Chamber President(s) has the information they need to engage effectively with others, including retaining an overview of issues that impact on the tribunals and providing and/or commissioning written and oral advice and briefing.
- Communicating on behalf of the Chamber President(s) with the Senior President and with judges from both the courts and tribunals system, senior officials from MoJ, HMCTS, and OGDs, senior stakeholder organisations, and members of the public/their legal representatives.
- Providing advice and support to the Chamber President(s) on specific projects, including arranging and supporting judicial working groups and networks.
- Supporting the Chamber President(s) in their interaction with the JO Data Governance, Policy and Analysis Team and with the HMCTS Analysis & Performance Team
- Providing advice to the Chamber President(s) on prioritisation of their workload and setting clear direction for the Private Office team
- Providing leadership and oversight of the jurisdictional Private Office and setting objectives with clear links to the Judicial Office Business plan.
- Overseeing and leading on both internal and external recruitment and forecasting for the Chamber. Drafting and obtaining the relevant approvals for business cases.
- Drafting and/or contributing to Practice Guidance, internal management and policy documents.
- Acting as the primary contact for accommodation matters.

**Management of Resources**:
The postholder will manage a team consisting of x2 HE