Details
Reference number
425886
Salary
£56,764
A London weighting allowance of £4245 is payable in addition to the advertised salary range if London based.
A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
GBP
Job grade
Grade 7
Contract type
Fixed term
Length of employment
12 Months
Type of role
Administration / Corporate Support
Governance
Other
Working pattern
Full-time
Number of jobs available
1
Contents
* Location
* About the job
* Benefits
* Things you need to know
* Apply and further information
Location
Bootle, North West England, L20 7HS : City of Westminster, London (region), SW1H 9AJ
About the job
Job summary
Do you have an impeccable eye for detail and meticulous organisational skills to support the smooth running of a public sector Board?
Are you an expert in navigating complex situations and influencing senior stakeholders in order to drive effective governance and support strategic decision making?
We are seeking an experienced governance professional to join our Corporate Office team for 1-year maternity cover. The expected start date for the role is late November 2025.
Based in Liverpool or London, regular travel to our London office will be required to service Board and Committee meetings on pre-scheduled dates (Usually 5 Board meetings and 7 Committee meetings per year).
You will ensure effective governance of the Charity Commission that fulfils our statutory obligations, follows best governance practice, delivers our governance framework, and meets changing business needs. This will include influencing and providing professional governance support to the Chair, Chief Executive and Board. You will also deliver a high-quality and expert secretariat service to the Board and its sub-Committees.
Job description
* Provide a high-quality, well-organised secretariat service for the Board and its sub-committees. This includes maintaining forward plans, agreeing agendas, managing the paper commissioning process, quality assuring and circulating papers, and taking high-quality minutes that accurately reflect discussions and recording action points.
* Lead all matters relating to Board recruitment and induction, including acting as the key point of contact for the DCMS Public Appointments team, advising on Board succession planning, submitting reappointment requests, and coordinating the delivery of inductions that equip Board Members to perform their role effectively.
* Use creativity and judgement as required to brief and advise Board members on matters of governance, procedure and propriety. Anticipate and react to novel or complex issues where there is no guidance or precedent, identifying options which are pragmatic and within governance guidelines.
* Co-ordinate the production and laying of the Annual Report and Accounts, and lead on the production of the Accountability Report.
* Ensure that the Commission's key governance documentation, including the Governance Framework, Governance Handbook, Framework Document and Scheme of Delegation together with related policies, are comprehensive, reviewed periodically, reflect best practice and are understood and complied with by all stakeholders.
Person specification
* Experience of having supported Board or Committees in a secretariat role in a fast paced and rapidly changing environment.
* Experience and expertise in charity, public sector or similar governance environment.
* Report writing and minute taking skills with meticulous attention to detail.
* Excellent communication and relationship management skills to effectively persuade and influence senior stakeholders across the organisation.
* Ability to plan, prioritise and work collaboratively at all levels for self and others to achieve demanding targets and deadlines.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
* Seeing the Big Picture
* Making Effective Decisions
* Communicating and Influencing
* Managing a Quality Service
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £56,764, Charity Commission contributes £16,444 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
This is your chance to make a contribution that really matters and to make an impact in an organisation where your voice will be heard and your hard work noticed.
Watch this short video to find out more about us.
We operate a flexible hybrid working policy where office attendance is combined with at least 3 days homeworking per week dependent on role requirements.
We recognise everyone as an individual, accepting people for who they are and treating everyone fairly. We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring from all backgrounds and we aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We champion inclusion and wellbeing, aiming to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and has a sense of belonging.
We do not discriminate on the basis of culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor.
We offer access to the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme (employer contributions of 28.97%), far more than in the private sector, and a flexible, family-friendly environment. Additionally you can look forward to other great benefits via our 'Perkbox' and 'Edenred' schemes. These include everything from an interest-free season ticket loan and bicycle loan (after two months) to discounts on gym membership, cinema tickets and restaurants. Please see the attached Charity Commission benefits document.
A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30 days per year.
The Charity Commission's operational ambition is to realise the Commission's values of being an expert regulator that is fair, balanced, and independent, which works in a way that is supportive, collaborative, and innovative to achieve our ambitions. We want to develop our capability to regulate charities to realise this goal and meet our statutory and public duties to ensure that charity in England and Wales can deliver maximum benefit to society in a way that upholds its reputation in the eyes of the public.
Work at the Charity Commission and you'll make a difference every day to:
* The 170,000 charities of all shapes and sizes that we regulate across England and Wales.
* The trustees we partner with and advise.
* The people and causes that benefit from the £10bn generously donated each year by the public.
Find out more about working for us here.
To note: Any move across the Civil Service on or after 4 October 2018 may have implications on an employee's ability to carry on claiming childcare vouchers.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles, and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.
This is a fixed-term appointment as a Grade 7 in the Head of Governance Team. Your responsibilities are listed in the Job Description for this post. This post will therefore begin from the date of your appointment and end after 12 months.
To apply for this post, you must complete an online application with the following:
* A blind CV setting out your Job History/Full Qualifications/Previous skill and experiences.
* A Personal Statement (maximum 750 words) demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria for the role outlined on the Job Description.
At interview you will be assessed on your knowledge and experience and the following behaviours:
* Seeing the Bigger Picture
* Making Effective Decisions
* Communicating and Influencing
* Managing a quality service
Interview Arrangements
The sift is due to take place on the week commencing 22nd September 2025.
Interviews will be held face to face in Liverpool and London on the 1st and 3rd of October.
We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.
At the interview, the panel can then probe further and ask applicants to provide further specific examples that show how they best demonstrate their skills.
We reserve the right to raise the score required at any stage of the process to manage numbers.
The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment.
Behaviours:
The distinguishing Behaviours (the required skills, knowledge, and behaviours) for this role are set out in the Civil Service Behaviours Framework 2018 (Success Profiles - GOV.UK )) and should be referred to when making this application.
You are required, under the Behaviours approach, to describe how you have dealt with a specific situation.
You must give evidence of your knowledge, skills, and behaviours and how you have applied this, such as what you did or said and how you interacted with other people.
When you are giving your examples, do not spend too many words on description and background information. Avoid using general or unspecific statements. Instead say what the situation was, what you did, what your thought process was and what was the result.
This post is full time however those applicants who do or wish to work an alternative working pattern are welcome to apply. The preferred working pattern may or may not be available. You should discuss this with the vacancy holder.
Reasonable Adjustment:
If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled persons, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.
If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:
* Contact Government Recruitment Service via as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
* Complete the "Assistance required" section in the "Additional requirements" page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you're deaf, a Language Service Professional.
Reserve Lists:
If we have more successful candidates than available vacancies, we will hold a 12-month reserve list as standard.
During that time, we may use the list to fill the same, or similar roles with closely matching essential criteria, without further testing of merit. Any appointments from the Reserve list will be made in strict merit order.
Applying:
We recognise everyone as an individual, accepting people for who they are and treating everyone fairly.
All applications for these vacancies must be made online. There are limited exceptions to this. Paper applications will only be considered if you have a disability that will prevent you from applying online. If this is the case, please email
Once you have submitted your application it cannot be amended; only submit your application when you have completely finished and answered all the relevant questions.
Please note that late applications will not be accepted.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
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 for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a 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)
* 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
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles .
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.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.
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 and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy .
Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.
The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).
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 : Sarah Fairhead
* Email :
Recruitment team
* Email :
Further information
The Charity Commission's recruitment processes are underpinned by the Civil Service Commissioner's Recruitment Principles, which outlines that selection for appointment is made on merit based on fair and open competition.
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the values in the Civil Service Code and/or if you feel the recruitment has been conducted in such a way that conflicts with the Civil Service Commissioner's Recruitment Principles, and wish to make a complaint, then you should contact in the first instance
If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web page here.