RAFAC - Administration Officer

The Royal Air Force Air Cadets (RAFAC) is a voluntary youth organisation within the Royal Air Force (RAF), sponsored by the Ministry of Defence (MOD). The organisation consists of the Air Training Corps and the Combined Cadet Force (CCF) RAF Sections, representing close to 48,000 cadets and 10,000 adult volunteers and plays a vital role in developing young people’s leadership, practical, and teamwork skills.

Central and East Region comprises nearly 10,000 cadets and 2,000 adult volunteers who regularly meet at close to 200 Squadrons and schools across: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland and Suffolk.

The Region permanent staff deliver a variety of vital support functions to the cadets and adult volunteers with our Administrative Officer roles providing an opportunity not just to work for the Civil Service and MOD, but enabling the post holder to enjoy a role that has a direct positive impact on young people and volunteers in delivering the full cadet experience.

The position is advertised at 37 hours per week.

Administrative Officers in the Central and East Region Headquarters undertake a variety of roles to ensure the delivery of the full cadet experience in a safe, efficient and cost-effective manner. Working collaboratively to ensure best practice is shared and developed whilst communicating effectively with colleagues across Defence and with external stakeholders and service providers.

The Region operates as three specialist hubs; Infrastructure and Logistics, People Operations and Training Support respectively. Despite the hub operating model, Administrative Officers will be expected to provide support across hubs to colleagues during peak times or periods of annual leave and sickness utilising digital methods – you will not be required to travel to another location. The vacancy currently available will be assigned to the People Operations hub based at RAF Wyton.

The Infrastructure and Logistics hub works collaboratively with the stakeholders who manage our estate to ensure buildings are safe and compliant. They provide a logistics function to ensure our people can wear the correct uniform, insignia and badges of which they are entitled to and the inventories that support this happening. They operate our dedicated travel hub that supports our cadets and volunteers being able to attend events be that by motor vehicle or rail.

The People Operations hub provides a human resources style function across the Region supporting tasks like; volunteer onboarding and position management to resignations and promotions whilst managing the honours and awards process brings immense pride and satisfaction to the role. Most importantly, the hub manages Disclosure and Barring Service checks and security vetting for the Region, ensuring the safety of our young people and affiliated organisations.

The Training Support hub plays a vital role in activity delivery, ensuring they are compliant, assured and provide value for money. The team ensure that cadets and volunteers can fully exploit the wide range of activities available to them, especially UK and overseas camp opportunities. The team have overarching responsibility for ensuring our people are renumerated for travel and subsistence as required and that the uniformed Volunteer Allowance is managed robustly.

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.

Candidates will be required to provide a statement of suitability (500 Words).

At sift, candidates will be assessed against their Statement of suitability and the following:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions
• Managing a Quality Service
• Working Together

Applications will be sifted on all Success Profile elements, but in the event of a high number of applications, the sift will be conducted on your Personal Statement and Managing a Quality Service Only.

At interview, candidates will be assessed against the following:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions
• Managing a Quality Service
• Working Together

The selection process will consist of a face-to-face interview at RAF Wyton, virtual interviews will not be offered. RAF Wyton operates a strict access policy requiring photographic identification being provided prior to interview along with any visa and right to work documents.

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.