International Support Officer

Job summary

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the UK’s largest producer of official statistics, covering a range of key economic, social and demographic topics. These include measuring changes in the value of the UK economy, estimating the size, geographic distribution, and characteristics of the population, and providing indicators of price inflation, employment, earnings, crime, and migration.

The International Division sits within the National Statistician’s Office (NSO). You will also be part of the Civil Service Policy Profession. This is UK-wide and is made up of around 33,000 civil servants whose aim is to develop and deliver public policy for ministers and citizens. More detail can be found on the Policy Profession Website:

(https://www.policyprofession.civilservice.gov.uk).

Job description

Are you interested in working internationally, engaging with stakeholders across UK

Government and across the Global Statistical System? Are you an effective communicator and would you like to work in a varied role in a fast-paced environment? If so, this could be the role for you, to support delivery of the International Strategy for the Government Statistical Service and achievement of the UK Government’s International Policy Goals.

In this role you will need to be confident in engaging with stakeholders both domestically and internationally, and building the relationships required to deliver successful outcomes for the UK Statistics Authority. You will have an ability to communicate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders with competing priorities and earn their trust; to support the delivery of a coherent and coordinated international strategy; and to contribute to a team of high performing individuals.

You will have, or quickly develop, a good understanding of the UK Statistical System and the role that international engagement plays in supporting the UK Statistics Authority’s five-year strategy. You will be able to identify connections both within and outside of the ONS, being a reliable contact point for Government Statistical Service (GSS) technical experts and our international partners.

The post holder will need to have the ability to adapt their communication style for diverse audiences, bringing stakeholders together to foster collaboration and interpret technical information from numerous statistical areas and provide high-level support to a diverse set of users. You will be able to pick up existing communication tools and develop them to deliver relevant and quality information. You will also have confidence to put forward new ideas that can improve ways of working.

Key Responsibilities:

• Providing logistical and administrative support to the International Relations team and senior UK Statistics Authority staff.
• Dealing with a diverse range of ad-hoc international queries and processes via the management of the team’s shared inbox.
• Providing administrative support on key international projects and initiatives, supporting business areas in the delivery of the GSS International Strategy.
• Contributing towards the commissioning and drafting of briefings for senior UK Statistics Authority staff attending international meetings.
• Monitoring UK Statistics Authority staff travelling internationally and ensuring the return of meeting summaries and outputs.
• Supporting the International Relations team’s monitoring and evaluation function, ensuring that ONS understands the impacts of its international engagement activities.
• Keeping abreast of developments in the Global Statistical System, and of key international and geopolitical events across the international system more broadly, to understand the potential implications for the ONS and achievement of organisational priorities.

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• Work with senior staff in the ONS and the UK Statistics Authority to quickly build trust, while balancing competing priorities and agendas.
• Identify and develop key relationships and networks to increase the profile of the UK Statistical System both domestically and internationally.
• Work at pace to respond to changing external demands and internal priorities as part of a team.
• Commission, draft and interpret briefs across a wide range of subjects to the highest standards.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of wider organisational objectives and work, and how your work supports those priorities.
• Have excellent organisational and administration skills, and be proficient in the use of Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, SharePoint and multiple conferencing platforms.

Behaviours

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

• Working Together
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace
• Seeing the Big Picture

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £28,138, Office for National Statistics contributes £8,151 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).

The Office for National Statistics is part of the Civil Service, and as such we share a number of key benefits with other departments, whilst also having our own unique offerings to support our valued colleagues across the organisation.

Whether you are hearing about us for the first time or already know a bit about our organisation, we hope that our careers site will give you a great insight into the benefits and facilities available to our colleagues, and our fantastic working culture.

Inclusion & Accessibility

At ONS we are always looking to attract the very best people from the widest possible talent pool, and we are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a Disability Confident Leader we’re committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.

As part of our application process, you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process that you need. If you would like to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying, please contact the recruitment team in the first instance.

If you would like an accessible version of any of the attachments or recruitment documents below or linked to in this advert, please contact the recruitment team who will be happy to assist.

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 B