Central Quality Co-ordinator

Job summary

Do you enjoy working to defined standards and encouraging others to do the same?

Can you collaborate with colleagues to facilitate excellent customer service?

Could you thrive in a post at the heart of the VCA and our core values?

If so, we welcome your application for this post.

Our work is focused on improving vehicle safety and environmental protection by providing robust testing and certification to national and internationally recognised standards. We are a part of the Department for Transport as the designated UK Vehicle Type Approval Authority. With more than 40 years’ experience, we have become one of the largest and well-respected approval bodies around. This position has been built on a reputation for technical expertise and quality, which is at the heart of everything we do, and what you could be a part of.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at VCA

Job description

This is an exciting opportunity for someone who likes to sit at the heart of an organisation and gain an insight into the whole business. We are looking for somebody who shares our values of honesty, integrity, objectivity, impartiality, and professionalism.

The postholder would be expected to work autonomously preparing documents, statistics and reports for various audiences including the VCA Management Board and the wider DfT.

Excellent organisation skills are necessary for multiple tasks that will need to be managed simultaneously. Communication skills and a strong customer focus is equally as important, to ensure all internal and external customer requirements are addressed promptly and accurately.

There is Line Management responsibility for 1 Administration Officer. Training will be provided if you have not previously been a Line Manager or have not within the Civil Service.

The post holder will be part of the VCA’s internal audit team and will be required to hold a current ISO 9001 Lead Auditor qualification or equivalent. If the successful candidate does not hold this qualification, they will be provided guidance via a mentor and will be expected to complete an ISO 9001 Lead Auditor course and pass the exam within 3 months of appointment. The training days and course fee will be funded by the business.

As part of a VCA-wide digital transformation programme, Central Quality and the Quality Management System are core components of a digitalisation process aiming to transition to a full SharePoint system and digitise historic paper records retained by statute. The agency has invested heavily in this area to improve work processes and increase efficiency. The postholder will be expected to engage with this programme and as the Agency Records Officer will have the chance to influence the way in which the Quality Management System operates in future.

Continuous improvement principles are always at the forefront of our team, and we welcome applications from those who drive efficiencies and value.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

• Agency Records Officer (ARO) – attending meetings, providing feedback, document management, training.
• Quality – monitoring mailboxes, manage queries, internal auditing, track and report agency wide audits, tracking standards applicable to VCA.
• Administration – purchase orders, maintaining hub page, report drafting, project support.
• 1 role has line management of an administration assistant.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills set out in the Civil Service Line Management Standards.

Flexible resourcing

Colleagues are expected to work with a degree of flexibility, meaning responsibilities may change to support priority delivery.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile and candidate pack.Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

You will be required to provide evidence that you hold any essential qualifications/licenses at some point during the recruitment process. If you cannot provide evidence, your application will be withdrawn.

To be eligible to apply, the following are essential:

• A full UK Category B Driving Licence is essential
• Level 2 qualifications in Math and English, i.e. GCSE - grades 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 or grades A*, A, B, C or equivalent.

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

• Good communication skills and an ability to build and maintain effective relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Worked in a fast-paced environment with changing priorities.
• Excellent organisational and planning skills, with the ability to prioritise and work quickly and accurately with the flexibility to switch at short notice
• The ability to work at a fast pace, as part of a team and on your own initiative with minimum supervision.
• A familiarity of working to and/or managing quality management systems, documents and procedures
• Excellent communication skills both verbally and in writing to a range of audiences
• Ability to balance the needs of internal and external customers whilst adhering to defined standards, policies and procedures.
• Strong IT Skills in Microsoft programs and databases
• Strong attention to detail when working with documentation and accuracy in data entry is essential
• Ability to see the big picture and collaborate with colleagues to deliver organisational objectives
• Balancing the needs of internal and external customers whilst adhering to defined policies and procedures
• A UK driver’s license and willingness to travel with occasional overnight stays.
• The successful candidate will complete the ISO 9001 Lead Auditor course and pass the IRCA exam within 3 months of appointment if they do not already hold this qualification.
• Line Management of 1 Administration Assistant

Additional Information

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week.

Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part-time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 27 hours per week.

This role is suitable for hybrid working, which is a non-contractual arrangement where a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements.

The expectation at present is a minimum of 60%