Animal and Plant Health Agency
Team Leader
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Job Summary
Do you have the leadership skills to guide your team through change, ensuring high performance, accurate delivery, and continuous improvement?
Are you motivated by managing workloads, supporting your team to meet targets, and maintaining high standards while responding flexibly to changing demands?
If so, we would love to hear from you!
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves. We value difference and diversity, because it helps us be more innovative and make better decisions.
We are dedicated to being an inclusive employer, offering equitable opportunities for all individuals. Our goal is to build a diverse workforce, and we hope to attract applications from all backgrounds and underrepresented groups.
Job Description
We have two exciting opportunities for a team leader to join our Wales Field Operations team. You will lead an administration team to deliver targets accurately and effectively, in line with regional commitments. This role involves embedding new administrative processes and procedures, while guiding your team through periods of change and ensuring work is managed consistently. You will take responsibility for team performance, working collaboratively with colleagues and peers to maintain a supportive and effective working environment. You will also contribute to regular office management and Delivery Group meetings, providing insight and updates as needed. In addition, you will monitor resources against demand, ensuring your team is deployed effectively and offering support to priority work areas where required.
The role involves a wide range of work including, but not limited to, the following:
Team Leadership
- Lead and manage the team’s performance, taking overall responsibility for outputs and delivery.
- Support team capability through coaching, development and training activities.
- Identify and address poor performance in a timely manner, applying appropriate measures.
- Recognise and reward good performance to maintain engagement and motivation.
Target Delivery
- Ensure work is delivered on time and to the required standard, in line with agreed targets.
- Monitor progress against targets and identify any risks to delivery.
- Escalate issues as appropriate and work with management to resolve them.
Leading Change
- Communicate changes to processes clearly, ensuring the team understands the reasons behind them.
- Support the team to adopt new ways of working, including developing the skills needed to implement changes effectively.
- Contribute to and support wider organisational priorities, demonstrating commitment to APHA objectives.
Administrative Support
- Oversee the delivery of administrative services for the team and, where required, the wider team.
- Ensure records are maintained accurately and kept up to date.
- Monitor compliance with procedures and ensure work is completed within required timescales.
- Provide guidance and support to colleagues and stakeholders on administrative processes and best practice.
Responding to Emergencies
- Coordinate the team’s response to urgent or unexpected situations, ensuring work is prioritised appropriately.
- Allocate resources flexibly to support priority areas and emerging demands.
- Provide clear direction and support to the team during periods of increased pressure or changing requirements.
Person Specification
We are looking for candidates who can demonstrate the following skills and experience:
- Applies sound leadership skills, including experience of performance management, to support team development and maintain high standards of delivery.
- Demonstrates a positive and proactive approach to change, with the ability to adapt quickly and support others through new ways of working.
- Works effectively within a team environment, leading projects and managing teams to deliver objectives successfully through to completion.
- Communicates clearly and confidently, both verbally and in writing, tailoring messages to suit a range of audiences.
- Shows strong planning and organisational skills, with the ability to prioritise work, manage competing demands and maintain attention to detail.
- Able to work to targets and deadlines, maintaining quality and accuracy under pressure.
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Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Communicating and Influencing
- Developing Self and Others
We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:
Leadership
Alongside your salary of £30,681, Animal and Plant Health Agency contributes £8,888 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).
Further Benefits Offered Also Include
- A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
- An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities tailored to your role.
- Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
- Staff bonuses and recognition, salary sacrifice benefit options, and an employee discount scheme.
- Three days special leave with pay, per year, for volunteering (pro-rata for part time employees).
- Making it work for you - With so many flexible options, most people can find a work schedule to suit their circumstances.
These are just a few of our benefits we offer. To find out the full range of what we offer refer to the Information Pack attached for more detail.
Learning and Development
Everyone in APHA is supported to develop their skills and capabilities. When you join the Directorate, you will be welcomed into your new team through an induction programme that will provide you with helpful information on the civil service, our work and our policies. Your line manager will also work with you to establish your priorities for the year, developing a performance, learning and development plan tailored to you and your role.
In return for your dedication, we will support your ongoing personal development through appropriate training. Inclusion, support and the development of our people matter to us. We aim to support the career and personal wellbeing of everyone in APHA.
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.
Stage 1
Application Process
As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete:
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- A CV submitted through an on-line tool accessed through the Civil Service Jobsite; there is no requirement to upload your personal CV.
- A 750-word Personal Statement.
- A Behaviour statement of 250-words for the lead Behaviour, Leadership, following the Behaviour criteria outlined in the Success Profiles: Civil Service behaviours - GOV.UK framework for the grade of the role.
CV Guidance
Your CV should consist of your career history, including any key achievements and your main responsibilities in each role and be no longer than 2 pages. Your CV will be used to provide further context on your Personal Statement. The CV will not be scored but will be used to support your application.
Personal Statement Guidance
When completing your Personal Statement, please read and understand the Person Specification thoroughly, as this is what your written evidence will be assessed against. Please ensure you evidence the key personal qualities and experiences that align with the criteria. Consider the Person Specification and look to demonstrate how your previous experience may align with the expectations and be applicable to the role. The written evidence you provide must relate to your own experiences. Your layout is entirely your preference; you may choose narrative, bullets, etc.
We encourage you to use the full word allowance of the Personal Statement but not to exceed.
You may choose to address each criteria separately, however, one narrative example may cover and evidence several criteria.
Should a high volume 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 and/or progressed straight to interview.
Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.
For further guidance and information on how to construct your application (CV, Personal Statement and Behaviours), you are encouraged to visit the Civil Service Careers website. How to write your CV, Civil Service Careers
Stage 2
Preparing for the interview
During The Interview You Will Be Assessed Based On
- Your previous experiences relevant to the role requirements outlined in the advert following the Success Profiles: Experience - GOV.UK framework.
- The Behaviours specified in the Job Advert, following the Behaviour criteria outlined in the Success Profiles: Civil Service Behaviours - GOV.UK framework for EO positions.
- A selection of Strength based questions related to the role requirements. Following the Success Profiles: Strengths - GOV.UK framework. There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well.
If you are selected for interview, you will receive an electronic notification to your Civil Service Jobs account.
Upon receiving the interview invitation, please log into the system to schedule your interview slot in advance.
Your interview will be conducted via MS Teams, and a link will be provided in your interview invitation.
The interview
The interview will follow a blended approach and will last approximately 45 minutes.
A blended interview aims to be more of a conversation at interview, offering a more inclusive approach.
The Strength and Behaviour based questioning explores what the candidate can and has done, but also their potential.
Behavioural questions will explore what you have done in previous jobs or experiences as well as what you have achieved and/or
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