Security Operations Officer

About the Government Legal Department

At Government Legal Department we have a vital, single-minded purpose: to help the Government govern well within the rule of law. This is complemented by our exciting vision to be an outstanding legal organisation, committed to the highest standards of service and professionalism and a brilliant place to work where we can all thrive and fulfill our potential.

Our work touches almost every aspect of public life. We are the largest provider of legal services across government, working on high profile matters.

Our respected professionals are involved in everything from regulation and litigation to advice on drafting legislation. They provide expertise to the full range of government departments. We are at the heart of delivering the government’s priorities and our success depends on our people.

GLD is a non-ministerial government department headed by the Treasury Solicitor, our Permanent Secretary, and employs nearly 4000 people, including nearly 3000 legal professionals. We have offices nationwide, in Bristol, Leeds, inner and outer London and Manchester. Our lawyers can also be located within other departments and overseas.

GLD also depends on a range of cross-functional professionals to provide our corporate services. There are nearly 1000 colleagues playing an essential part in helping GLD to achieve its purpose and truly deliver much more than law.

This is an exciting time to join GLD, with cutting edge legal work on global issues and a transformation agenda which is ensuring the Department exemplifies the Modern Civil Service.

To find out more about what we do you can view our introductory film. On our website you can hear from team members, find out how to apply and learn about the benefits of working for GLD. You can also read more about the future vision for GLD in our GLD Strategy 2024 – 2027.

About the People and Place – Operations Division – Protective Security

The People and Place Directorate provide a range of services in support of GLD. The teams within our Directorate are wide-ranging and include all aspects of Human Resources (planning, recruitment, and learning and development) and Operations (security, business resilience, health & safety, records management & facilities management, property, ways of working and data protection). Whilst the work we do is varied we share a common aim, to provide the support necessary to enable GLD to be the best in the business. In the People and Place Directorate, we get things done and will always aim to provide a professional and efficient service.

From managing day to day services to delivering key projects, the Operations Division is a key component that enables GLD to fulfil its wider role in providing legal advice to Government. You will be joining a division rich in diversity and specialist skills, whose wide-ranging portfolio includes property, business continuity & resilience, information management, security and ways of working.

Some of our key achievements in recent months have included the delivery of GLD’s long term property strategy by expanding outside of London and moving into state-of the-art facilities across the regions, working to create and adopt the first ever Sustainability Strategy as part of the “Greening Government” commitments, to working alongside Cabinet Office in adapting security frameworks amidst emerging conflicts and threats.

Our colleagues are the core of what we do and who we are. We offer several training packages and development plans in order to equip our staff with both specialist and transferable skills that will enrich their careers, whether within GLD or the wider Civil Service.

We look forward to receiving your application and onboarding you soon.

About the Role

The People and Place Directorate provides services that support the Government Legal Department and enable colleagues to deliver high-quality legal services to government. Its work covers people, workplaces, information, resilience, health and safety, facilities, data protection and protective security. Although the Directorate’s responsibilities are varied, its teams share a commitment to providing professional, practical and efficient services that help GLD operate safely and effectively.

The Operations Division plays an important role in supporting GLD’s day-to-day business and longer-term priorities. Its portfolio includes accommodation, business continuity and resilience, information management, protective security and ways of working. The Division brings together colleagues with a wide range of specialist and transferable skills who work across organisational boundaries to manage services, deliver projects and respond to changing operational requirements.

The Security Team supports GLD in protecting its people, information and assets. National security vetting is an important part of this work, helping ensure that individuals have the appropriate clearance for their roles and access requirements. The team works with staff, managers, internal stakeholders and external vetting authorities to coordinate applications, maintain accurate records and support clearance holders throughout the vetting lifecycle.

We recognise that our colleagues are central to the service we provide. The Directorate supports learning and development so that staff can build specialist knowledge, strengthen transferable skills and develop their careers within GLD and the wider Civil Service.

This is an opportunity to develop experience in protective security while contributing to an organisational priority. The successful candidate will join a supportive team and gain experience of case management, stakeholder engagement, information handling and cross-government vetting arrangements in practice.

The Role

The Security Operations Officer primarily supports the delivery of national security vetting across GLD. The postholder administers and coordinates security clearance applications, provides guidance to staff and managers, maintains vetting records and acts as a principal point of contact for routine enquiries.

The role supports the GLD Vetting Uplift Programme and wider clearance activity. Working with an Administrative Officer, internal stakeholders, the vetting provider and, where required, the vetting authority, the postholder will help applications progress efficiently and ensure that issues requiring advice or decision are identified and escalated promptly.

The postholder will receive and process applications for Counter Terrorist Check, Security Check and Developed Vetting clearance. They will review applications before submission, checking that mandatory information, identity evidence and supporting documents are present, legible and complete. Where information is missing or incorrect, they will return the application, explain what is required and coordinate any necessary resubmission or reinitiation.

The postholder will manage competing priorities, monitor deadlines and track cases from initiation through to completion. They will identify delayed or stalled applications, follow up outstanding actions and maintain a clear overview of active casework. Applications involving residence, eligibility, business-case or other exceptional considerations will be referred to senior security colleagues or the vetting provider for advice or decision.

The successful candidate must gain SC clearance before commencing the role and maintain it throughout their appointment.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage routine national security vetting applications and enquiries, providing a professional and responsive service to staff and managers.
• Review clearance applications and supporting documents for accuracy and completeness before submission.
• Provide clear guidance on vetting processes, clearance types, eligibility, residence requirements and actions needed to progress cases.
• Support nominated team Points of Contact during the Vetting Uplift Programme and other organisation-wide clearance exercises.
• Submit applications and liaise with the vetting provider and vetting authority where required.
• Monitor active cases, follow up delays and outstanding actions, and escalate significant issues appropriately.
• Maintain accurate clearance records, trackers and case-management information, including expiry, renewal, transfer, sharing, lapsing and reactivation requirements.
• Produce management information that shows progress, outstanding work and matters requiring attention.
• Prepare and distribute clearance lists containing only necessary information, applying appropriate security markings, access restrictions and secure handling arrangements.
• Support clearance aftercare, including the annual Security Appraisal Form process for Developed Vetting holders, monitoring returns and escalating persistent non-response.
• Undertake other duties appropriate to the grade and role, as reasonably required to support the work of the Security Team and wider Operations Division.

Behaviours

Below are details of the Success Profiles that make up this role. Demonstrating all the behaviours listed below is essential at either application or interview. You can read more about Success Profiles and how they are used as an assessment method before completing your application.

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

• Managing a Quality Service (Lead Behaviour)
• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing

Key Skills & Experience

Essential – must be demonstrated at application and interview

• Experience of managing administrative processes, casework, records or similar business activities requiring accuracy and attention to detail.
• Experience of providing advice, guidance or support to customers, colleagues or stakeholders.
• Experience of managing competing priorities and meeting deadlines in a busy environment.
• Experience of handling sensitive or confidential information appropriately.
• Ability to analyse information and identify omissions, inconsistencies or outstanding actions.

Desirable

Desirable criteria will be used when there is a need to distinguish between candidates who are closely tied or the same after the initial consideration of essential criteria, at sift and / or interview.

• Experience of working within a security, vetting, personnel security, HR, compliance or governance environment.
• Experience of liaising with multiple stakeholders to coordinate activities or resolve issues.

Technical Skills

Essential – must be demonstrated at application and interview

• Proficient in the use of Microsoft 365 applications, particularly Outlook, Excel, Word and Teams.

Security Clearance Level

All GLD employees must successfully obtain Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) clearance before starting employment. This role requires Security Check (SC) clearance. You cannot start employment until your SC clearance checks has been completed. If you are unable to obtain SC clearance, you may not be able to remain in the role you have been appointed to and this may lead to the termination of your contract or offer of employment.

Current SC clearance requirements typically include a 5-year verifiable UK residency history, with no more than 6 months spent outside the UK in the preceding 12 months. As security vetting requirements are determined by the relevant vetting authority and may change over time, applicants are encouraged to review the latest UK Security Vetting guidance before applying via United Kingdom Security Vetting: Applicant Guidance.

If during pre-employment checks it is found that you are unable to gain the required level of security clearance for the role, your provisional offer of employment will be withdrawn.

Sponsorship and Visas

Visa sponsorship will not be given to candidates except where they are existing civil servants employed by GLD who meet the Home Office/UKVI requirements for sponsorship. If you are an existing civil servant employed by GLD who requires sponsorship, you should confirm your eligibility for sponsorship for this role before applying. Individuals should seek Home Office guidance on how a new position within the organisation may affect their sponsorship eligibility. Candidates with Limited Leave to Remain may apply but must have at least 12 months remaining on an existing visa which permits them to work for GLD when employment begins. Candidates must ensure that their current visa covers the full period of employment or that they are eligible under a non-sponsored immigration route that allows them to remain employed by GLD for the duration of the role.

The expectation is that applicants have an existing visa, which at the point they start work with GLD has at least 12 months remaining on it. The share code provided as part of pre-employment checks must relate to a visa that gives you the right to work in the role for a minimum of 12 months. The 12-month requirement must be met by your existing visa and cannot be met by relying on a visa application that is still awaiting a decision.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the right to work in the UK and hold an appropriate visa or use an alternative immigration route covering the full period of your employment. GLD will not be able to sponsor this role when your current visa arrangements expire, and you will not be able to continue your employment with GLD through sponsorship. Please allow three months for the onboarding process from the point of offer.

Candidates with Indefinite Leave to Remain may apply.

You will be asked to confirm your immigration status and visa type as part of the application process. If you do not meet these requirements, your application will be fail the eligibility pre-sift for this vacancy and your application for this role will rejected.

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

• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Managing a Quality Service

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

• Technical Skills

• 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%

Learning and Development

Benefits of working for the Civil Service

Whatever your role, we take your career and development seriously and want to enable you to build a really successful career with the Department and wider Civil Service. It is crucial that our employees have the right skills to develop their careers and meet the challenges ahead, and you’ll benefit from regular performance and development reviews to ensure this development is ongoing. As a Civil Service employee, you’ll be entitled to a large range of benefits.

Learning and Development at GLD

GLD has a comprehensive learning and development offer for all employees.

We offer a programme of in-person/hybrid and virtual sessions providing learning on profession-specific, soft skills, technical skills, and different topics. We also support colleagues through a range of different professional qualifications.

Cross-Functional Professional

We support all Professions with building their careers and capability aligning with the wider Civil Service offerings for each Profession.

There are also talent and development opportunities offered throughout the year these include:

Senior Leaders and Future Leaders Schemes – cross Civil Service accelerated development schemes.

Beyond Boundaries – cross government development programme designed to help participants develop the knowledge, skills and networks required to build a satisfying and effective career in the Civil Service.

Mentoring and Coaching – we encourage all colleagues to share their knowledge, capability, and experience.

Apprenticeships - We have a range of apprenticeships on offer across all professions with the opportunity for all employees to explore a profession specific apprenticeship to support their development in role.

Job contact :

• Name : Robert Fox
• Email : robert.fox@governmentlegal.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : activecampaigns@governmentlegal.gov.uk

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