Deputy Director Sustainable Futures

Job summary

The post is part of the new Welsh Government Strategy Directorate, within the First Minister and Cabinet Office Group.

The post holder will lead an effective, integrated team which works flexibly across at high pace across a range of complex and novel issues, rapidly adapting to emerging requirements.

The postholder will lead on continuing to mainstream the Well-being of Future Generations Act within Welsh Government, advising Ministers and senior officials on the Welsh Government’s own responsibilities under the Act, and promoting integrated policy making across government.

They will also be responsible for the Equality Impact Improvement team who lead and manage the delivery of a cross organisational ‘Section 23 Action Plan’ to bring about organisational reform and culture change in the way that equality impacts are considered from the start of our policy making, ensuring that equality impact assessments have been properly undertaken and that statutory equality duties have been met.

Job description

The postholder will work across Government and with partners to further develop and deliver approaches to mainstream the Wellbeing of Future Generations within Welsh Government policy making, boost policy capability and act as lead advisor on ensuring the Welsh Government fulfils its own responsibilities under the Act.

The postholder will liaise closely with the office of the Future Generations Commissioner and strengthen cross-Wales and international networks on wellbeing policy.

The postholder will:

Lead through influence across Welsh Government and the public sector to embed sustainable development across all public bodies covered by the Well-being of Future Generation Act.
• Provide leadership, direction and support for Sustainable Futures Division staff and across Welsh Government.
• Promote and embed the Well-being of Future Generations as an operating system for the Welsh Government, including refreshing guidance, delivering training, and leading staff engagement sessions.
• Build capacity and understanding across Welsh Government through champions, networks, and knowledge sharing.
• Act as the lead advisor on ensuring the Welsh Government fulfils its own responsibilities under the WFG Act, advising ExCo and the WG Board as necessary.
• Work closely with senior officials, special advisors and Ministers to deliver the Welsh Government’s Well-being and Future Generations objectives.
• Lead on the delivery of grants to Public Services Boards (PSBs), the Future Generations Commissioner, and Sustainable Futures Divisional funding.
• Lead on benchmarking policy skills and applying future trends within policy development.
• Deliver enhancements to the practice and process of assessing impact, especially where there are statutory obligations.
• Provide leadership, management and oversight for the effective delivery of the Equality Impact Improvement action plan and provide timely progress updates on s23 to ExCo and the Welsh Government Board.

Person specification

The successful candidate will need to have a range of experience, skills and experience, including:

Behaviours (assessed at application and interview)

• Leadership - work to influence the strategy, direction and culture to increase effectiveness
• Working Together - proactively create, maintain and promote a strong network of contacts across the organisation and externally
• Seeing the Big Picture - identify and shape how your work area fits within and supports the priorities of the organisation
• Communicating and Influencing - influence external partners, stakeholders and customers successfully securing mutually beneficial outcomes

Experience (assessed at application and interview)

1. Experience of championing and nurturing best practice relating to the Well-being of Future Generations Act in particular the five ways of working, including futures thinking.

2. Experience of working on equalities issues, including stakeholder engagement, organisational improvement and impact assessments.

In the event of a large number of applications the sift will be undertaken on the lead Behaviour of ‘Leadership’ and lead Experience point 1 of ‘championing and nurturing best practice relating to the Well-being of Future Generations Act, in particular the five ways of working, including futures thinking’.

Behaviours

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

• Leadership
• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Communicating and Influencing

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £86,000, Welsh Government contributes £24,914 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).

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

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 Behaviours and Experience.

Stage 1 – Application
To apply for this role, you will be asked to submit:

Application Form

We welcome applications in Welsh and English. Applications in either language will be treated equally. If you have an impairment that would prevent you from applying online, please contact [email removed] to request an alternative format or a reasonable adjustment to submit your application.

CV

We operate name-free recruitment. The selection panel will not see personal information while shortlisting in line with our commitment to end bias and promote equality and diversity. Please remove your name from your CV and personal statement.

Personal Statement

Your personal statement will be input into the application system and has a maximum word count of 1,000. Please explain how your professional qualifications, skills, qualities and experience meet the essential criteria included in the person specification and how you meet the key behaviours necessary experience criteria listed above.

Diversity Information

The Welsh Government is committed to achieving a workforce that reflects the society it serves – at all levels. You will be asked to confirm some diversity information on your application form. Collecting this information enables us to identify whether we are recruiting from the widest p