Animal and Plant Health Agency
Senior Project Support Officer
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Do you have the leadership skills to guide project support teams and drive consistent, high-quality delivery across complex portfolios?
Are you motivated by influencing senior decision-making, coordinating multi-project delivery, and embedding best practice to strengthen programme outcomes?
If so, please complete your application to join us at Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).
About APHA
Here at APHA, we are committed to fostering an environment where everyone feels valued, has a voice, and can bring their authentic selves to work. Difference and diversity are at the core of our innovation and decision-making processes.
We are dedicated to being an inclusive employer, offering equitable opportunities for all, with a focus on building a diverse workforce. Flexible working arrangements—including full-time, job-sharing, and part-time options—are supported for our employees.
Senior Project Support Officer
APHA is seeking to recruit two Senior Project Support Officers:
- 1 x Permanent position
- 1 x 18-month Fixed-term appointment
Roles Summary
You’ll play a key role in supporting and coordinating complex projects and programmes across central portfolio management. Your responsibilities include:
- Leading project support teams, providing governance and reporting oversight.
- Acting as a connector between project and programme teams, governance bodies, and stakeholders.
- Developing and ensuring consistent application of project management standards.
- Line-managing Project Support Officers, enhancing team performance and driving continuous improvement.
- Driving best practice, improving delivery, and embedding lasting organisational change.
Where You’ll Work
Central Portfolio Management Office (CPMO) – Permanent position
Your role will sit within APHA’s Central Portfolio Management Office (CPMO), responsible for:
- Coordinating standardisation, governance, reporting, and assurance across the Projects and Change Portfolio.
- Working with programmes delivering APHA’s Sustainable Futures Strategy, including:
- Borders and Trade (B&T) Programme
- Priority Policy (PP) Programme
- Digital & Operational Services (DOS)
- Delivering Sustainable Futures (DSF)
You’ll provide professional leadership, update portfolio-wide standards, and ensure the effective functioning of Programme Management Offices (PMO) infrastructure across those programmes.
Borders and Trade Programme – Fixed-term 18-month position
This role will be embedded within APHA’s Borders and Trade Programme (B&T), focusing on enabling Italy-Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreements. You will:
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- Support actions to strengthen UK-EU trade logistics and biosecurity systems.
- Work under the direction of the Senior PMO Lead to deliver changes aligning APHA’s border systems and processes.
- Collaborate with cross-departmental teams to prepare for a new commercial relationship, ensuring safe trade and food safety compliance.
Key Responsibilities
Leadership and Management
- Provide strong leadership, setting priorities, direction, and performance expectations for your team.
- Act as a role model for next-generation project management practices.
- Coach and mentor individuals to enhance delivery capabilities.
- Support teams through change and growth challenges.
- Escalate risks and issues effectively while managing stakeholders effectively.
Governance and Reporting
- Lead governance activities, ensuring adherence to agreed PMO standards, templates, and reporting procedures.
- Develop governance arrangements aligned with APHA, Defra, and government-level quality requirements.
- Intelligently produce reports, dashboard analyses, and insights for senior executives.
Planning and Scheduling
- Manage integrated project delivery plans, ensuring alignment of timelines, dependencies, and stakeholder priorities.
- Track programme and project progress, protecting deliverability using robust baseline plans.
- Forecast resource demands and inform capacity planning.
Stakeholder Engagement
- Serve as the central governance touchpoint for projectائد boards, delivery teams, and external partners.
- Build trust and strong relationships as a consistent interlocutor for senior leadership.
- Experientially support challenge resolution, issue tracking, and escalation.
- Ensure transparency in reporting—progress, risks, decision-making impacts—as a vital enabler of informed strategic choices.
Continuous Improvement
- Champion new ways of working and cross-programme collaborative collaboration.
- Foster a culture of lessons learned and embed them to advance programme capability.
- Actively advocate for digital initiatives and evolution, ensuring real-time adaptability.
- Promote knowledge sharing and organisational learning.
Financial and Resource Stewardship
- Maintain accurate data on allocations and utilisation, positively influencing capacity allocations and prioritisation decisions.
- Assist in resource forecasting, workforce planning, and management.
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Risk, Issue, and Dependency Management
- Consolidate and lead risk issue tracking, escalation and mitigation across portfolios.
- Ensure clear risk identification and management framework.
- Support continuous iteration in programme planning to address emergent risks.
Person Specification
Our ideal candidate will have:
Experience and Skills: ✅ Proven experience in project, programme, or portfolio PMO roles, preferably in governance, assurance, or reporting. ✅ Demonstrated track record of leading and managing teams, including goal-setting, mentorship, and capability development. ✅ Strong organisation, planning, and multi-tasking skills, capable of applying impactful analysis across competing challenges. ✅ Excellent written and verbal communication skills, adaptable to engaging stakeholders at all levels, explaining concepts and providing decision-making support. ✅ Proficiency in project management: operational knowledge of PMO functions, governance design, and up-to-date delivery tools and processes.
Qualifications Required
- An internationally recognized portfolio, programme, or project management qualification (e.g.: ⭙ APM PMQ/PFQ ⭙ PRINCE2 Practitioner ⭙ MSP ⭙ MoP)
- Or equivalent, combined with commit to future professional development activities.
Why Join APHA?
APHA is more than a place to work; it’s an opportunity to contribute to public service with purpose.
Our offering includes:
- Competitive salary: £42,665 per annum, complemented by an agency-supported pension contribution of £12,360 per year.
- 25 days’ annual leave, gradually increasing to 30 days after 6 years of service.
- Tailored professional learning programmes supporting career growth.
- Valuable financial and lifestyle employee discounts, health/salary sacrifice schemes.
- Flexible working policies (full-time, part-time, job-sharing, and remote options).
For detailed information, visit **Senior Project Support Officer - Civil Service Jobs - GOV.UK.
➢ Diverse, inclusive, and welcoming environment. ➢ Worklife balance focus and flexible working options. ➢ Opportunity to contribute to critical public health and biosecurity initiatives.
Apply today to shape the future of AU-EU agricultural collaboration, sustainability, and government delivery excellence!
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