Army - Discipline and Service Complaints Advisor

The Ministry of Defence employs over 50,000 Civil Servants. Within that, the Army Top Level Budget (TLB) employs around 12,000 MOD Civil Servants located at over 300 locations. Ours is a diverse workforce, with roles ranging from trainers, human resources, teachers, and psychologists to storekeepers, financiers, project and programme managers, and policy secretariat staff. There are many different functions and professions delivering key outputs for the Army.

As the UK’s Light and Airborne Division, the 1st (UK) Division acts on an operational level to provide agile, lethal and versatile response options globally, being ready to fight when necessary. Put succinctly 1 UK Division is: “the UK’s light and airborne warfighting division. We make up the majority of the Army’s high readiness Reaction Forces and will be first to the fight. Our purpose is to fight and win battles on and from the land”. There are 29,000 Regular and Reserve military personnel and 670 Civil Service and permanent contractor personnel in the Division spread over more than 180 UK sites based in the Division’s headquarters, nine subordinate brigade/command headquarters or its 80+ units.

Working within the Division Headquarters (HQ), our civilian staff deliver crucial outputs and play a meaningful part of the team. When you see our service personnel being reported on in the media whilst out on operations around the world, providing support and help to others overseas and at home, or out training so they can be the best at what they do, you will have immense pride knowing you played some part in making it happen.

1 (UK) Div HQ is looking for an outgoing and motivated individual, with strong inter-personal skills and an eye for detail, to be part of an innovative and high-performing team with a focus on providing outstanding customer service.

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week

This role is the focal point within the Division for advice to Service Personnel, line managers and the chain of command on military personnel discipline and Service complaints with specific responsibility for the oversight, monitoring and staffing of cases to the senior leadership.

Key responsibilities:

• Providing technical direction, training and advice to the formation command staff, subordinate headquarters and commanding officers on all discipline matters.
• Representing the General Officer Commanding’s (GOC) intent and the views of formations under command in the development of army discipline policy and ensure timely promulgation of policy direction
• Ensuring the correct compilation of discipline statistics required by Deputy Chief of Staff (DCOS)/GOC
• Monitor and supervise the progression of discipline case work, acting to reduce delay and provide timely notification of potentially high-profile cases to Command Staff and Superior Headquarters in accordance with the Divisional Plan
• Preparing Service Law (SL) and Warning and Sanctions (WS) casework for determination by the GOC including Unacceptable Sexual Behaviour (USB) cases where the Chain of Command (CoC) are seeking a sanction less than termination of Service
• Acting as line manager for the Discipline Executive Officer, 1st Reporting Officer (RO) for the Division Discipline Warrant Officer (WO) and 2nd RO for the Administrative Officer - Discipline
• Appointing bespoke Commanding Officers (CO) for disciplinary purposes within the Division
• Exercising GOC’s authorising powers with respect to Army General Administrative Instruction (AGAI) 67 Action, extended powers and authorising casework delays
• Monitor and supervise the progression of USB cases acting to ensure cases are allocated to bespoke CO's in a timely manner and that cases are progressed according to policy and recognised process
• To establish and maintain effective working relationships with key stakeholders in the Discipline chain of command

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• 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)

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

• CV including your career history
• A personal statement of no more than 500 words demonstrating your relevant skills and experience in line with the essential criteria listed on this advert.
• Behaviour - Making Effective Decisions

Where a large number of applications are received, an initial sift may be conducted against your CV only. The remaining evidence submitted at the application stage will be assessed only if you are successful at this initial sift.

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following criteria, listed in priority order:

Behaviours:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working together
• Changing and Improving
• Seeing the Big Picture

Application sifting will be scheduled to take place within 7 days of the application closing date. Interview dates are to be confirmed and will be held in person. We endeavour to keep to these time frames, but these are subject to change around business needs.

Further information:

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.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system.

Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.