Shellfish Delivery Manager

Job summary

The FSA is a non-ministerial department of over 1600 people. We play a critical role in protecting public health and consumers’ wider interests in food across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Our vision is an important one - to drive change, delivering “food you can trust” and working towards a healthier and more sustainable food system.

Do you have experience delivering food law official controls, either directly or through a delivery partner? Can you combine scientific expertise with strong judgement, stakeholder management and clear recommendations?

About the role
As a Shellfish Delivery Manager in the Food Standards Agency’s Shellfish Delivery Team, you will play an important role in delivering and monitoring shellfish hygiene controls at primary production.

Available positions
We are recruiting for two positions: one permanent and one temporary. The temporary position will include line management responsibilities.

You will help deliver the FSA’s statutory responsibilities for shellfish official controls, including the classification and review of shellfish harvesting areas, sanitary surveys and oversight of monitoring programmes for phytoplankton, biotoxins and chemical contaminants. You will work collaboratively with colleagues and external partners, using scientific evidence and analysis to support effective decisions and the continued development of shellfish official control delivery

Job description

Working as part of a team with shared responsibilities, you will lead on aspects of the shellfish official control programme and build effective relationships with policy and delivery colleagues, Cefas, local authorities and other partners. You will support the management of delivery arrangements, horizon scan for emerging issues affecting marine primary production, and provide scientific input and challenge to ensure relevant monitoring, research and other work meets appropriate scientific standards.

You will assess different sources of information, develop realistic options and provide clear verbal and written recommendations. You will also contribute expert insight to work reviewing the future delivery of shellfish official controls and respond to queries and briefing requests. The role requires experience of regulatory delivery in food law official controls, strong communication and analytical skills, and a degree with post-graduate experience in a relevant biological science discipline

Working pattern guidance

If applying as a job share partnership you should both complete separate application forms on Civil Service Jobs but should make it clear that you are applying as job sharers. Further details on job sharing can be found here JSF – What is the recruitment process for job sharers? , Civil Service Careers (civil-service-careers.gov.uk)

Applicants who wish to work compressed hours are welcome to apply - however your preferred working pattern may not be available and you should discuss this with the vacancy holder before applying.

Please read before applying

One post is a temporary Fixed Term appointment available until the return of the substantive post holder, estimated to be 14/01/2028 There may be the potential, but no guarantee, of extension or permanency.

Candidates that are already established Civil Servants or from non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will come to the FSA on a Loan basis and will need to request permission from their Home Department for the Loan prior to applying for this vacancy.

Note for FSA employees

You must seek approval from your substantive manager before applying for any non-permanent vacancy - please refer to the ‘Temporary internal appointments framework’ on the FSA intranet for more details. Please note that if applying for a temporary post within the FSA or elsewhere on promotion, successful appointment will not automatically result in a permanent promotion - you will revert to your current substantive grade at the end of the Fixed Term or Loan period (unless funding has been approved to make the post permanent).

Person specification

Please read the attached Candidate Pack to discover further details about the role, who we are looking for and the criteria we will assess against during the selection process.

We look forward to receiving your application and wish you every success.

Qualifications

A degree and post-graduate experience in a relevant biological science discipline

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• A degree and post-graduate experience in a relevant biological science discipline

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £44,087, Food Standards Agency contributes £12,772 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

Please take a look at the Working for the Food Standards Agency , Civil Service Careers to find out about the benefits the FSA has to offer

Please also refer to the Terms and Conditions statement attached to this advert.

Things you need to know

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 (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.

Full details of the selection process can be found in the attached candidate pack.

Application and shortlisting

You will be asked to provide personal details (not seen by the Panel) and to confirm your eligibility to apply for the role.

You will then be asked to complete an application which will be used to assess you against the following essential criteria.

Essential criteria

Experience

• Lead criteria: Experience of regulatory delivery, whether directly or through a delivery partner, in the context of food law official controls
• Proven experience of excellent interpersonal, oral and written communications with experience of building effective working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders
• Strong analytical skills, weighing up different sources of information to underpin operational decisions and make clear recommendations to senior officials
• Ability to adapt quickly and effectively to a fast-changing environment and show high levels of resilience. This includes the ability to confidently manage different workstreams at once while maintaining a high quality of work.

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