Length of employment: Job Summary: DWP has a vacancy for a head of library in the Central Analysis and Science Directorate (CASD). The role will be based in Leeds or Sheffield. We are recruiting a Librarian to lead the library service in the Central Analysis and Science Directorate (CASD), within Finance Group. This Directorate supports the whole of the DWP Analytical Community (AC). One of the largest analytical communities in Government the AC is an exciting and dynamic place to work. CASD provides support to enable this community to operate to a world class standard and promotes continuous improvement, new ideas and ways of working to enable this. The Library serves the whole of our Government Department and has recently moved into this analytical community in order to embed it into our analytical work and to strengthen our Knowledge Management capabilities. The Library has the following three breakthrough objectives: Research Excellence: building on the excellent work of the Research Librarians who undertake literature searches for the analysts and for the wider Department. 'Library without Walls': creating a user experience which is the same for those who come into the physical library in London and those who access it virtually. Current work on this includes the development of a single portal to all our journals databases, library catalogue and internal SharePoint 'Knowledge Bank'. Knowledge Management: continuing to implement and bringing new ideas into our Knowledge Management Strategy for the Analytical Community. Job Description: Successful candidates can expect to be involved in a range of the following: Leading and managing a team of 5 Librarians, managing their workload and supporting their professional development. Leading on customer and stakeholder engagement through our established customer forums. Developing the digital and physical library collections while ensuring these align with DWP priorities. Managing a high-quality literature search service for analysts and policy professionals. Identifying growth opportunities for the Library and implementing changes to service delivery to support this. Supporting the implementation of our knowledge management strategy. Representing DWP Library at internal and external events. DWP have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes: Working patterns to support work/life balance such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours. Generous annual leave - at least 23 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (pro-rata for part time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave. Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme. Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly). Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 year's continuous service. Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes. An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Women's Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more. Proven experience of managing and leading a team of librarians or other knowledge and information professionals. *Lead criterion Proven experience of leading customer engagement activities, including consultations and user forums. Ability to prioritise tasks and effectively manage competing demands. Experience of transforming service delivery and managing change. Experience of developing Library collections to support organisational and strategic priorities. As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form. Written Sift The written sift will be conducted using evidence from your CV and Personal Statement and will be assessed against the Key Criteria listed within the advert and Person Specification page of the candidate pack. CV The CV is an on-line tool accessed through the Civil Service Jobsite and there is no requirement to upload your personal CV. Our CV element is short, and allows an initial check of eligibility, so please put the main content of your evidence and skills in your Personal Statement. Please make sure that you fully complete the qualifications and employment history section in the application form. If essential qualification are not provided or not clear, your application will be deemed ineligible. Personal statement When completing your personal statement, please read and understand the Key Criteria thoroughly as this is what your written evidence will be assessed against. Your layout is entirely your preference; you may choose narrative, bullets, etc. You may choose to address each criteria separately, however, one narrative example may cover and evidence several key criteria. You may not be able to meet all the key criteria, but please ensure you evidence: the key personal requirements and what have you done that relates to the requirements. You don't have to explain the whole process, just what you have done and the skills and experience you have used. Share with us what makes you suited to this role and why, what you can do and the skills you have that are transferable to the key requirements, and the life experience or passion you have that are linked to this role. In the event of a large number of applications we will use the Lead Criteria: Proven experience of managing finance and procurement in a library or public sector environment, applications that do not meet the minimum requirement for this criterion will not progress to full sift. Sift and interview dates to be confirmed. Interview Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend a video interview. The interview panel will be a minimum of two people. The interview will assess: Behaviours and Technical skills. The interview will start with a ten-minute presentation to demonstrate your technical skills, and to help you prepare and settle into the interview you will be sent the main behaviour questions 7 days in advance. These questions should be treated as confidential. The interview panel may ask you other questions which are not shared in advance, including follow-up questions and those about your experience and technical expertise. Candidates will be asked further probing questions to determine suitability for the role. The Civil Service uses a Behaviour Framework to assess candidates' knowledge and skills. You will be assessed against the following Civil Service Behaviours at interview; Seeing the Big Picture Managing a Quality Service Changing and Improving The technical skills you will be assessed against are part of the Government Knowledge and Information (GKIM) professional skills framework. GKIM - LI0 9 | Library and Information Strategy (Practitioner) Use experience and expertise to develop strategies and policies for library services that meet business needs and are aligned with legal and policy requirements. Selection We will notify all candidates as soon as possible. A reserve list will be held for up to six months, which we may also use to fill future similar vacancies. Civil Service Behaviours can be assessed ina number of ways andat various stages of the recruitment process. Depending on the type of assessment, for example in anapplication form or at an interview, you may be asked to giveexamples of when you have demonstrated a particular behaviour. Civil Service Behaviours are tailored to the grade level of the job role, but you will not be asked to demonstrate all Civil Service Behaviours for one role. For this vacancy, we will be assessing Civil Service Behaviours at interview. If you progress to interview you will be asked questions on the three Civil Service Behaviours listed in the selection process section of this pack. To help you prepare for interview, you can find more informationabout Civil Service Behaviours, along with definitions andexamples of each of the three behaviours we will be assessinghere: Success Profiles - Civil Service Behaviours(publishing.service.gov.uk) You can have your own notes in the interview to remind you of possible examples if you think this would help you, but you should not simply read pre-prepared answers. (The panel may also ask you follow up questions). When answering the questions, think about What you did, How you did it and what the Outcome was (WHO method of answering questions). You may find reading more about the STAR method helpful too: The STAR method | National Careers Service You may also find the blog post here useful, especially if you are new to Civil Service recruitment: How to get a job in the Civil Service - Open Innovation Team (blog.gov.uk) (please note this blog is not from our team. For our vacancy we will shortlist/sift candidates based on the Key Criteria in our job advert, but the advice here may be helpful when preparing for an interview). The interview panel will assess you based on your response to the interview questions, so they won't refer to, or take evidence into account from your Personal Statement/CV on your application form as that has been assessed separately at our sifting stage. It's also a good idea to familiarise yourself and read through the GKIM framework to help you understand the kind of technical skills the panel will be looking for and the level we will be assessing candidates against. Disability Confident Scheme The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. DWP is recognised as a Disability Confident Leader, demonstrating the departmental commitment to attracting, recruiting and retaining disabled people and supporting them in achieving their full potential. We run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria for the advertised role. To be considered for an interview, you musthave: a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long term (over 12 months) adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day to day activities; or a long-term health condition; and demonstrated that you meet all the minimum qualifying criteria set out in the advertisement for the post at the application and testing stages. A full definition and examples of conditions can be found on this webpage. You will be asked at the initial application stage if you wish to apply via the scheme. Further Information Find out more about Working for DWP Any move to DWP from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website. If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out. In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing stating the job reference number in the subject heading. New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band. Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. Reasonable Adjustment At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce. We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia. If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: Contact Government Recruitment Service via DWPRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. Complete the "Reasonable Adjustments" 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 interview, or if you're deaf, a Language Service Professional. Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing. The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action. Feedback