Food Standards Agency
Performance Manager
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We offer great flexible working opportunities, and have offices in Belfast, Cardiff and York.
Please be aware that this role can only be worked within the UK and not overseas.
Travel within the UK will be required on an occasional basis, possibly with overnight stays.
Job Summary
Could you use your expertise in official food and feed controls to help protect public health and strengthen consumer confidence?
The FSA is a non-ministerial department of over 1600 people. We play a critical role in protecting public health and consumers’ wider interests in food across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Our vision is an important one - to drive change, delivering “food you can trust” and working towards a healthier and more sustainable food system.
As a Performance Manager in our Regulatory Compliance Division, you will help provide assurance that local authorities and other delivery bodies are meeting the required standards when delivering official controls.
Joining the Performance Management Team, you will work in a collaborative and influential role at the centre of the UK’s food and feed regulatory landscape. This is an opportunity to apply your front-line experience, regulatory knowledge and sound judgement to support effective oversight and meaningful improvement.
Job Description
You will analyse performance evidence from sources including local authority data returns and the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, identifying emerging concerns and reporting your findings clearly. You will help develop key performance indicators and use data analytics and management information to support robust decision-making, evaluate options and make practical recommendations to senior colleagues.
Building constructive relationships across the FSA and with external delivery partners will be central to your work. You will influence stakeholders, communicate challenging messages and work with local authorities to secure sustained improvements, following agreed escalation procedures where necessary. You will also prepare briefings and presentations for senior leaders, the FSA Board and Ministers, contribute to performance reports and business planning, help shape team procedures and provide support across wider divisional priorities.
You will be joining a supportive team that values collaboration, learning and continuous improvement. If this sounds like the opportunity for you, we look forward to hearing from you.
Working pattern guidance
If applying as a job share partnership you should both complete separate application forms on Civil Service Jobs but should make it clear that you are applying as job sharers. Further details on job sharing can be found here JSF – What is the recruitment process for job sharers?, Civil Service Careers (civil-service-careers.gov.uk)
Applicants who wish to work compressed hours are welcome to apply - however your preferred working pattern may not be available and you should discuss this with the vacancy holder before applying.
Person specification
Please read the attached Candidate Pack to discover further details about the role, who we are looking for and the criteria we will assess against during the selection process.
We look forward to receiving your application and wish you every success.
Qualifications
Lead criteria 1: Applicants must hold one of the qualifications listed in Chapter 3 (3.2.3.1 and 3.2.3.2) of the Food Law Code of Practice.
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Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Communicating and Influencing
- Making Effective Decisions
- Delivering at Pace
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
Technical Criteria: Lead criteria 1: Applicants must hold one of the qualifications listed in Chapter 3 (3.2.3.1 and 3.2.3.2) of the Food Law Code of Practice.
Alongside your salary of £42,592, Food Standards Agency contributes £12,338 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).
Please take a look at the Working for the Food Standards Agency, Civil Service Careers to find out about the benefits the FSA has to offer
Please also refer to the Terms and Conditions statement attached to this advert.
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 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, Experience and Technical skills.
Full details of the selection process can be found in the attached candidate pack.
Application and shortlisting
You will be asked to provide personal details (not seen by the Panel) and to confirm your eligibility to apply for the role.
Technical: You will be asked a question to confirm that you meet the Technical requirements of the role.
Lead criteria 1: Applicants must hold one of the qualifications listed in Chapter 3 (3.2.3.1 and 3.2.3.2) of the Food Law Code of Practice.
If you cannot answer yes to this question – you will not be able to proceed further with your application.
You will then be asked to complete an application which will be used to assess you against the following essential criteria.
Essential Criteria
Technical
Lead criteria 1: Applicants must hold one of the qualifications listed in Chapter 3 (3.2.3.1 and 3.2.3.2) of the Food Law Code of Practice.
Experience
Lead criteria 2: Proven front-line experience of delivery of official food and/or feed controls within local authority setting. Extensive knowledge and understanding of the regulatory and delivery landscape for food and feed in the UK. Proven experience of using influencing skills to communicate difficult messages to key stakeholders. Experience of using KPIs, data analytics and management information to monitor, assess and support performance and inform effective decision making.
Lead Criteria: An initial sift will take place on Lead criteria 1. If successful, your application will progress to lead criteria 2 sift. If successful at this stage, your application will be assessed against all remaining criteria.
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In the event that we receive a large number of applications, the minimum pass mark for the Lead Criteria may be raised at shortlisting stage. Candidates who apply under the DCS, GPTW or RIS schemes and meet the minimum requirements will be unaffected by the pass mark raise.
Interview
If successful at shortlisting stage, you will be invited to a final interview in which we will assess you against the following Experience requirements of the role and Civil Service Behaviours.
Experience
Proven front-line experience of delivery of official food and/or feed controls within local authority setting.
Behaviours
- Communicating and Influencing
- Making Effective Decisions
- Delivering at Pace
Full details of the positive indicators being assessed for each Behaviour can be found in the Candidate Pack.
Expected Timeline
Advert closes: 20 September 2026 (23:55)
Sift: Expected to take place from 21 September 2026
Final panel interview: Expected to take place during week commencing 5 October 2026
Interviews will be held remotely via MS Teams. (If you do not have the Microsoft Teams application installed on your computer, you can join on the web without installing the application).
Please note that indicated dates may be subject to change.
Childcare Vouchers
Any move to the Food Standards Agency from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare.
Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk
Reserve List
A reserve list will be held for a period of up to 12 months from which further appointment may be made.
Candidates that do not pass the interview but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.
Visa Sponsorship
Please note that the FSA does not offer visa sponsorship and cannot provide advice on visa applications
Making a complaint
The law requires that selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles.
If you feel your application has not been treated fairly in accordance with the principles, and you wish to make a complaint, you should email the FSA’s Director of People at jo.bushnell@food.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response, you can contact the Civil Service Commission.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.
Nationality requirements
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
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