Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Freedom of Information caseworker
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Job summary
The Ministerial Support Team (MST) is responsible for providing replies to FOI requests, government write rounds for prospective new legislation and handling enquiries and complaints.
MST is a friendly and support-focused team mostly based in London and Manchester. We help each other to get the work done. We are part of the wider ministerial private office which sits at the heart of the department. Our work is crucial to the department’s operations.
The nature of our work provides a valuable opportunity to get an insight across the span of the department’s policy work. You will also develop an understanding of how ministers work with government, stakeholders and the public, and how you can help that happen.
The team’s main responsibility is to produce high quality FOI replies. We have a flexible attitude as we need to deliver other responsibilities including reporting performance and we pick up ad-hoc tasks like working with Number 10 on the Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games.
Job description
DCMS receives a wide variety of requests under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 for information related to policy and operational matters. We work closely with ministerial private offices and policy colleagues to deliver high quality FOI responses on behalf of the department.
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You will process FOI requests and will be required to draft accurate, plain English and high quality responses. Your responsibilities will include:
- Advising officials and ministers on how the FOI Act applies to them
- Drafting timely and high quality responses to FOI requests
- Organising and managing your caseload and making decisions on when to follow up on issues yourself or when to escalate to your manager
- Establishing and maintaining relationships across the organisation
- Taking on other ad-hoc tasks as required
- Contributing to the overall running of the wider team, including taking responsibility for things like correspondence
We are also interested in identifying candidates for future vacancies within the Ministerial Support Team. Therefore, for suitable candidates, you may be offered a similar position within the team or added to a reserve list for future vacancies.
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Person specification
The ideal candidate would have the following key skills and experience:
Essential requirements:
- You must be highly organised and be able to meet deadlines daily, while handling competing priorities.
- An eye for detail. The role is centred around the FOI Act meaning there is a prominent legal component to the job.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Good at building working relationships and stakeholder management skills as you need to interact confidently with a range of stakeholders of varying seniority, including ministers.
- Enthusiasm and willingness to take on additional work to deliver the team’s priorities.
Desirable Skills:
- Previous experience of case work.
- Familiarity with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Making Effective Decisions
- Changing and Improving
- Delivering at Pace
- Working Together
We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:
- Making Effective Decisions
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