Health and Safety Communications and Engagement Lead

Company: Department for Work and Pensions
You will contribute to the delivery of our key strategic outcomes as outlined in the DWP working safely strategy.

Working Together, Promoting Ownership - Achieve superior levels of both stakeholder management and storytelling to embed a health and safety mindset across DWP. Create and sustain effective relationships with senior stakeholders including Directors and key partners/stakeholders to develop stronger working across DWP to create powerful, purposeful partnerships.

Tackling stress, supporting all Engage with stakeholders across the department to ensure everyone understands their responsibilities on stress management and the requirement to support our people wherever possible through early intervention.

Managing risk, preventing harm - Be responsible for the People Safety Intranet site and its upkeep. Ensuring all safety lessons learnt by the business are effectively communicated to stakeholders.

Supporting our business, clear & simple advice always - Use and create innovative ways of communication tools such as DWPTV to engage with a large and complex organisation.

Keeping pace with change, providing future proof capability - Develop and manage processes that allow effective horizon scanning across the organisation to identify potential projects that support the communication strategy of People Safety.

Celebrate success, positive culture ensure open and transparent dialogue on safety issues, active listening to employee feedback, and clear dissemination of safety policies and procedures. Ability to positively inspire, encourage and influence others, actively seeking and listening to feedback by encouraging discussion and ideas in support of development.

Be responsible for all formal DWP communication on behalf of People Safety i.e. Parliamentary Questions; Freedom of information requests.

Managing various People Safety communication channels e.g. DWPTV, SharePoint to engage and educate on health and safety matters.

Create and sustain effective relationships with senior stakeholders including Directors and key partners/ stakeholders to develop stronger working across DWP to create powerful, purposeful partnerships.

You will support the growth of a positive health and safety culture through excellent information management such as ownership of the People Safetys SharePoint library and corporate governance reporting.

In addition to fulfilling your communication activities you will lead a team and have line management responsibilities., We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Leadership


• Communicating and Influencing


• Working Together


• Seeing the Big Picture


• Making Effective Decisions, What the task/ work was, How you approached the task/work/situation and what the Outcomes were, what did you achieve? Or What was the Situation? What were the Tasks? What Action did you take? What were the Results of your actions?


To help you further prepare and settle into the interview you will be sent the behaviour questions in advance of the interview, 5 days prior to your interview. These questions should be treated as confidential. Candidates may be asked further probing questions to determine suitability for the role. The interview panel may ask you other questions which will not be shared in advance, including follow-up questions, and those about your experience, abilities, strengths, and technical abilities.

Selection and Feedback

Expertise in strategic communications with a strong track record of delivery. (Lead Criteria)

Experience of working collaboratively, building effective relationships with colleagues and senior decision makers, and delivering in partnership with other organisations or departments with related goals or responsibilities.

Strong effective leadership, in addition to building relationships with stakeholders both internal and external. You take a lead in making People Safetys mission and vision well known across the business.

Identification, Implementation and Translation of strategies into action. Development of new approaches and setting of a clear and compelling vision of health and safety in DWP.

Ability to balance and prioritise multiple competing and changing demands whilst remaining resilient and highly motivated.

You must be comfortable excelling at in person communication as there will be an expectation to lead on roadshows on various health and safety topics.

Strong written and verbal communication skillsincluding proof-reading and editing content, and the ability to produce high-quality written content for an internal audience for engagement purposes.

An ability to convey important health and safety information to a diverse audience.

Ability to utilise new technologies including digital and audio visual to reach and inspire our colleagues, to explain health and safety topics.

You must show a passion andenthusiasm for H&S leadership and will have demonstrated acommitment to your Continuing Professional Development.

You must be willing to learn at pace to undertake a relevant qualification in health and safety at Level 6 if qualification not already held. In addition, you will become a member of a professional body within health and safety if not already a member. This will be paid by DWP subject to line manager approval.

If based in Wales, the ability to speak Welsh is desirable., Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend an interview. This will be a video interview. The interview panel will be a minimum of two people. The interview will assess: Behaviours and, Strengths The interview aims to be more of a conversation exploring the candidates capability for the role. You will be expected to perform a 5-minute presentation on the behaviour Leadership. Further details will be given to candidates when they are invited to interview.

You will be assessed against the following behaviours

• Leadership (Tested via the presentation)


• Communicating and Influencing


• Working Together


• Seeing the Big Picture


• Making Effective Decisions, Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.


People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.


• 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 average employer contribution of 27%, UK nationals


• nationals of the Republic of Ireland


• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK


• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)


• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)


• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020


• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service


Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window) .

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window) .