Rural Payments Agency
Information Rights Team Support Officer
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Bridgwater, Bristol, Cambridge, Carlisle, Crewe, Exeter, Leeds, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nottingham, Reading, Worcester, Workington, York
Job Summary
Are you confident in managing a varied caseload and delivering high-quality, compliant responses under tight deadlines?
Do you want to play a key role in upholding information rights by handling requests under UK GDPR, DPA, FOIA, and EIR while providing expert guidance and support across a dynamic and fast-paced team?
If so, why not join the Rural Payments Agency and be part of our Information Rights and Data Protection Team, supporting the delivery of vital information rights services and ensuring compliance across key legislation?
The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is an executive agency of Defra and delivers more than £2 billion each year to farmers, landowners and rural businesses. As an Operational Delivery organisation, most of our people work directly with customers and stakeholders to provide essential services that support a healthy and sustainable rural economy.
Further information about the RPA and our work can be found at Rural Payments Agency - GOV.UK
Job Description
We are looking for a highly motivated and confident individual who enjoys a challenge and works well under pressure.
The Information Rights Team (IRT) logs, processes, coordinates, and drafts responses to requests under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act (DPA), Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and Environmental Information Regulations (EIR).
The Data Protection team support all parts of the business in understanding the requirements of legislation, the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (DPA), and how it is applied while identifying potential risks and how to mitigate them ensuring compliance.
Support Officers are responsible for the day-to-day management of their own caseload, providing support, advice, and guidance across a range of information rights/data protection activities.
Responsibilities:
- Provide effective operational and business support by assessing incoming requests, determining applicable legislation, and managing their progression within statutory deadlines
- Provide expert guidance to business areas on Data Protection requirements, supporting them in completing and maintaining required documentation. Offer practical advice on identifying potential risks and implementing effective mitigation measures to ensure compliance with relevant data protection regulations
- Build collaborative, professional relationships, liaising with stakeholders at all levels to coordinate and obtain accurate information and responses
- Work flexibly and at pace, managing a varied caseload, identifying complex or voluminous requests, and escalating where appropriate
- Communicate effectively using a range of methods, including acknowledging requests, managing business queries, and facilitating case conferences to resolve issues
- Make evidence-based recommendations on how to proceed with requests, exercising sound judgement and supporting informed decision-making
- Handle sensitive information with care, ensuring all information is reviewed for suitability of release in line with legislation, policy, and guidance
- Produce high-quality outcomes by preparing clear, accurate final responses and recommendations within legislative deadlines and maintaining detailed case records
- Provide advice and guidance to the business on information rights and data protection matters, supporting compliance and promoting understanding across the agency
- Identify risks and challenges, maintaining oversight of case progress, supporting administrative activity (including supervisory access), and ensuring timely resolution
- Lead by example by developing subject matter expertise, delivering awareness sessions, contributing to guidance materials, and engaging in continuous professional development (CPD)
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Person Specification
You must be able to demonstrate the following skills and experience listed in the essential criteria
Essential Criteria:
- Excellent oral and written communication skills, with the ability to manage and de-escalate challenging situations
- Experience of building and maintaining stakeholder relationships, with the ability to negotiate and influence outcomes
- Ability to work effectively at pace and remain resilient under pressure
- Proactive and self-motivated, with the ability to use initiative
- Ability to set and work towards personal targets while managing tight deadlines
- Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret complex information, make recommendations, and draw sound conclusions
- Good working knowledge of information rights and data protection legislation, including EIR, FOIA, UK GDPR, and DPA
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Making Effective Decisions
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Communicating and Influencing
- Delivering at Pace
We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:
Making Effective Decisions
Alongside your salary of £29,715, Rural Payments Agency contributes £8,608 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).
- 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 employer contribution of 28.97%
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.
Application Process
After submission of the first stage of your application, you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Caseworker Skills Test. If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the final stage of the application.
Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the tests and application is 23:55 on 22nd July 2026 If you fail to complete the online test before the deadline your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the Civil Service Jobs website.
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Do not leave completing the tests until the last minute in case you experience any access or technical issues. There may not be technical support available after business hours and after 2pm on the closing date of 22nd July 2026.
While the tests should work on most operating systems and modern browsers with a good internet connection, we cannot guarantee that every combination will work. At the beginning, the test will check which browser you are using, and alert you if it is likely to be incompatible.
It is highly recommended that you complete the online tests on a desktop computer, not a mobile phone or tablet.
Please note that online tests associated with this vacancy are not subject to time limits; for further information visit the Reasonable adjustments for online tests - a candidate guide.
There will be maintenance for online tests on Sunday 19 July - 4pm to 7pm.
This means you will be unable to access the online tests. Your progress will be saved, and you will be able to continue once the tests are available again.
Where a test is not available due to maintenance, candidates will see a message advising them to try again later. Candidates who are interrupted in the middle of a test will be able to pick up from the same point when the test becomes available again.
If you are in the middle of a test when the maintenance begins, your progress will be paused. You will be able to resume your test from where you left off via your application centre once the downtime has ended. Please note that you will not be able to launch any new tests while the system is offline.
If you are successful in the test, you will be asked to complete the following:
- A 500-word personal statement demonstrating how you meet the person specification and essential criteria detailed in the advert
- A 250-word statement on the behaviour Making Effective Decisions
Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form
Sift
Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the Personal Statement.
Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview.
Interview
If successful at application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed on Behaviours and Strengths.
Behaviour Questions
During the interview, you will be asked questions based on the behaviours below:
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Communicating and Influencing
- Delivering at Pace
For more information on behaviours and to help you prepare please click here.
Strengths
You will be asked a number of strength-based questions. These explore what you do well, do regularly and what motivates you. The questions are shorter, and the panel will be interested in your first reaction to the questions and the information or reasoning to support this.
For more information on strengths including the strengths dictionary to help you prepare please click here.
Interviews will take place via MS Teams.
Sift and Interview dates to be confirmed.
Location
As part of the pre-employment process for this post, successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those
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