If you're interested in making a difference to people's lives, the Treasury can offer you an exciting opportunity to influence decision making that affects the whole of the UK. Working at the heart of government, we collaborate across government to promote responsible public spending and drive strong and sustainable economic growth.  

Our work ranges from protecting customers through the regulation of the financial sector, helping to reduce carbon emissions and creating a greener economy, to promoting British trade around the world and supporting people across the country on jobs, growth and more.  

We are part of the Darlington Economic Campus, a pioneering new cross-government hub which brings people together to play an active role in the most important issues of the day whilst working closer to the communities we serve. The campus provides the opportunity for people from all over the UK to help shape the future of the country, and our flexible working practices ensure you can collaborate effectively with our partners. It's central government, made more accessible to you! 

About National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA)

The Prime Minister has called for reform of the British state, seeking to go further and faster on renewal, and to ensure a more active government. To support these aims, the government has established the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) as its centre of infrastructure expertise, harnessing the policy and strategy insight of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) and the delivery specialism of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) and bringing them together to create a new, stronger and more powerful organisation capable of delivering these goals.

NISTA has five primary objectives:

1) Overcoming Barriers and Accelerating the Delivery of Major Government Projects

2) Developing and implementing a 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy

3) Setting Standards and Enhancing the Government's Project Delivery Capabilities.

4) Providing Assurance and Supporting the Delivery of Major Government Projects and Programmes

5) Leading Expertise on Private Finance

About the Team

This post will be based in the Infrastructure Policy and Strategy Directorate (formally the NIC secretariat) leading on workstreams within and across the core sectors of economic infrastructure. It will be central to shaping the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy and supporting its delivery once published.

We aim to be a diverse, friendly directorate and operate in line with Treasury's values:

• We exist to set long-term agendas, answer hard questions and have impact
• Our broad remit means working on interesting and important subjects and with different types of people
• The Commissioners - independence means we are free to follow the evidence
• We work together intensively in project teams and are small enough to be able to join up across issues
• We are genuinely committed to giving people the skills and knowledge to do an excellent job and progress their careers
• We are less anonymous than Whitehall civil servants and can represent the Commission's views publicly
• We get senior engagement and experience not available in larger organisations, which has routinely seen people promoted internally or get good jobs elsewhere
• Hybrid working gives flexibility to manage personal commitments and do the job
• Our work is rigorous and based on evidence, not opinions or interests
• We know our stuff and subject our work to robust challenge at every stage 
• We are official independent advisors to government, not a think tank - our work must be brilliantly written, timely and salient
• We encourage teams to challenge ideas and ways of doing things, but once decisions are taken, we commit to them fully.
  
  

About the Role

This role will be based in the environment team. The team develops policy in relation to water, flood and waste infrastructure. It also develops cross cutting environmental policy including the planning regime and climate resilience. This post will focus on water policy.

NISTA is working with the Treasury to develop the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy for June. After the strategy is published we will focus on working with stakeholders on the delivery of the strategy and developing the strategy further to improve the way government manages major infrastructure delivery. We will also need to identify and develop policy to address long term challenges.

In this role you will coordinate evidence based policy making and recommendations but also evaluate and track progress on the delivery of the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy.

You will develop and execute a strategic approach to policy development, working closely with other policy and analytical colleagues to provide joined up, high-quality analysis and advice. You will have in depth experience of being able to drive forward policy work using appropriate project management to deliver high quality products.​​

You will also be expected to establish strong working relationships and collaborate across the organisation, alongside the willingness to build-up expertise on infrastructure issues. You will work with other policy advisers and analysts in a range of government departments, external stakeholders within academia and industry, and develop international links where appropriate.

You will be an effective communicator, able to manage stakeholders with different points of view, at different levels of seniority and able to effectively represent NISTA to a variety of audiences.

The role requires an analytical and inquisitive mind and someone that is not afraid to change how things are done. The successful person will run robust and broad-ranging policy development programmes and deliver high quality and evidence-based advice. NISTA is looking for someone who enjoys getting into the detail but knows how to distil this down into succinct advice and is comfortable with analysing both quantitative and qualitative information.

The successful candidate will be expected to:

1. Conduct research that identifies, scopes and supports delivery of policy projects that are aligned to NISTA's objectives and builds its reputation.

2. Analyse and summarise numerical and potentially complex data that will support NISTA's understanding across various sectors.

3. Provide rigorous assessment of the large volumes of information on various policy topics and have an eye for what is important to NISTA and what is not.

4. Project manage the delivery of your own work and the work of others on the team and/or external consultants. This will include making use of project management tools such as milestone plans, risk registers and engagement plans.

5. Build and manage relationships with stakeholders so that NISTA keeps on top of the policy landscape and use these relationships to shape and drive forward NISTA's priorities.

6. Communicate clearly to a range of audiences including presenting your work to government stakeholders and seeking opportunities to share the NISTA's work with external audiences at industry meetings and conferences.

7. Produce high-quality written material that succinctly summarises the detailed research conducted. Audiences for such material will include the senior management team, Council of Expert Advisers and our external stakeholders.

Candidate Drop-In Session 
 
The hiring manager will be running a candidate drop-in session for this role to give you greater insight about the role as well as the chance to learn more about HM Treasury and ask any questions you may have. If you would like to join us, then use the appropriate link below to join the call at the right time. 

Wednesday 7th May 10am

Join the meeting now

If you would like to speak to the hiring manager informally prior to the closing date for applications to find out more about the job, please contact [email protected].

We are looking for the below skills, experience and behaviours and we will ask you to demonstrate these in your application form. Please review the Candidate FAQ document that is attached to the advert for guidance on how to complete your application form.  

1. Communicating and Influencing - Communicate with purpose and direction with clarity, integrity and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses and opinions of others.
2. Seeing the Big Picture - Understand how your role fits with and supports national objectives. Recognise the wider Civil Service priorities and ensure work is in the national interest.
3. Working Together - Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources, and support.
4. Technical Skill - Strategic Policy Making - Ability to identify policy problems and objectives, develop practical solutions based robustly on complex technical evidence and analysis, and respond to the broader political and strategic context.
   
   

The lead criterion is: Communicating and Influencing - Communicate with purpose and direction with clarity, integrity, and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses, and opinions of others.

If we receive large volumes of applications, we will conduct an initial sift on the lead criterion only.

Candidate Guidance Support Session

We will be running an overview of Success Profiles and the STAR approach including top tips for the application and interview process and an opportunity to ask general questions around our recruitment practices. Please note that this session is not role specific, so we will be unable to answer specific questions about roles we are advertising. If you would like to join us, please use the link below to join the call at the right time.

Thursday 15th May 12:30 - 13:15

Join the meeting now

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

• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Working Together
  
  

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

• Strategic policy-making skills - ability to identify policy problems and objectives, develop practical solutions based robustly on complex technical evidence and analysis, and respond to the broader political and strategic context.

• 25 days' annual leave (rising to 30 after 5 years), plus 8 public holidays and the King's birthday (unless you have a legacy arrangement as an existing Civil Servant)  
• Flexible working patterns (part-time, job-share, condensed hours)  
• Generous parental and adoption leave package. 
• A Civil Service Pension which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and average employer contributions of 28%  
• Onsite restaurant and coffee bar. The London office also offers a gym, showers and prayer room  
• Access to a cycle-to-work salary sacrifice scheme, season ticket advances and payroll giving  
• Access to a retail discounts and cashback site  
• A Rental Deposit Advance Scheme to help meet the total costs of deposits for privately rented homes  
• A range of active staff networks, based around interests and diversity
  
  

Flexible Working Arrangements

HM Treasury views flexible working as essential in enabling us to recruit and retain talented people, ensuring that they can enjoy a long-lasting career with us. All employees have the right to apply for flexible working and there are a range of options available including; part-time, compressed hours and job sharing. Additionally, we operate flexitime systems, allowing employees the flexibility to adjust their working patterns throughout the week which is subject to operational needs and line management approval.  

At HM Treasury we have an incredibly broad remit; our work touches every citizen of the country. So, it's important our employees come from the widest possible range of backgrounds, bringing us the widest possible range of perspectives and ways of thinking. We are committed to ensuring that all staff can realise their potential and achieve a healthy work-life balance. 

HM Treasury operates an office based working approach across all Treasury sites - Darlington, London, and Norwich, and along with the rest of the Civil Service, has an expectation of a minimum of 60% attendance in the office, along with working remotely. This blended working approach allows you to work collaboratively, meet stakeholders face to face, support others and promotes a healthy work life balance (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone's circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review. All our offices have been recently modernised and designed to collaborate and connect with colleagues as well as desk and quiet space to allow a range of ways to work.

The office working expectation is linked to the location of the role. If you apply to a post in a single location, then you will not be able to meet this expectation at any of our other sites or move your role to another location. 

Job contact

• Name: Ed Beard
• Email: [email protected]
  
  

Recruitment team

• Email: [email protected]