Pharmacy and Eye Care - Policy Manager

In the Department of Health and Social Care, we are proud of our purpose – to enable everyone to live more independent, healthier lives for longer. To achieve this, and create a great place to work, we have four values: we are inclusive, we constantly improve, we challenge, and we are agile. If this sounds like an environment you would like to work in, we would love to hear from you.
The Community Pharmacy, Eye Care and Controlled Drugs team is a small friendly team responsible for maintaining and driving transformation and innovation of services that are widely available to millions of people, and which have a real-world impact.
The recent strategic direction of travel for community pharmacy and eye care is to move care away from hospitals and closer to communities and employ technology to streamline patient pathways. In community pharmacy this is about fully utilising pharmacists’ broad clinical skills to treat common conditions and take pressure off other parts of the NHS.
In eyecare this is about the interaction between primary and secondary care eye services to improve patient care and make sure services are fit to reduce waiting lists and meet future demand. The advertised roles will support government policy and help manage the legislative framework that underpins the delivery of these vital services in England., We are recruiting for three Policy Managers to support policy leads and manage discrete pieces of work across community pharmacy and eye care.
You will be expected to support priority areas in the team relating to community pharmacy and eye care. This will include developing policy, providing advice to Ministers, including providing briefings, drafting speeches, answering parliamentary questions and correspondence. You will need to be flexible and resilient to changing demands and priorities and be willing to work as part of a team.

Person specification
Role responsibilities
2 x Community pharmacy posts
+ You will work closely with the NHS England and other Arm’s Length Bodies (ALBs), other Government Departments and Regulators on policy development and implementation concerning NHS pharmaceutical services and regulation of pharmacy professionals.
+ You will work with government lawyers to make any necessary changes to legislation underpinning the delivery of NHS pharmaceutical services, medicines supply and regulation of pharmacy professionals.
+ You will coordinate with NHS England on the development of workforce strategies concerning the expansion of initial education and training and post registration training of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.
+ You will support the development of policy around the safe management and use of controlled drugs in the health system and policy on medicinal cannabis in the UK.
+ You will support other priority areas in the team relating to pharmacy which will include developing policy, providing advice to Ministers and supporting policy leads on an ad- hoc basis.
1 x Eye Care post
+ Working closely with NHS England to keep eye care legislation under regular review, leading on developing policy proposals as necessary and working with government lawyers to make any necessary changes to the legislation underpinning the delivery of NHS eye care services.
+ Working with strategic finance, NHS England and others you will support the annual review of General Ophthalmic Services fees and optical voucher values to advise Ministers and taking the lead on discreet areas of work to underpin this process and decisions.
+ Working with senior managers and NHS England’s National Clinical Director for Eye Care Services looking at how the Department can best support NHS England’s National Eye Care Recovery and Transformation Programme, taking the lead on discreet projects as necessary.
+ Building and maintaining positive relationships with other policy colleagues, ministers’ offices, analysts and externally with other government departments, ALBs, devolved administrations and eye care stakeholders.
+ Providing the secretariat for the National Eye Health Forum, which is made up of representatives across the profession, alongside colleagues from NHS England.
+ Managing the contract which provides the data source for the eye care indicators within the Public Health Outcomes framework., Applicants who are appointable but were not successful in appointment to this vacancy, may be held on a reserve list for up to 12 months, and contacted if similar vacancies become available.
Any move to DHSC 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
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf.
However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.
A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
Please be aware that some travel may be required across the DHSC estate.
Please note that applicants will require BPSS clearance.
Terms and Conditions
Candidates should note that DHSC’s Terms and Conditions of employment changed from 1 October 2013. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful.
New Entrants to the Civil Service
New entrants appointed in grades AA to G6 will receive DHSC’s modernised terms and conditions:
+ Annual Leave: 25 days on entry rising by one day for each completed year of service to a maximum of 30 days and pro-rata for part-time staff
+ Privilege Leave: 1 day - for the King’s birthday
+ Hours of Work: 37 hours (net) per week for full time staff in all geographical locations, including London and pro rata for part-time staff
+ Occupational Sick Pay (OSP): one month full pay/one month half pay on entry, rising by one month for each completed year of service to a maximum of five months’ full pay and five months’ half pay
+ Mobility: Mobility clause in contracts allow staff to be mobile across the Civil Service
+ Probation: 6 month probation period
Existing Civil Service staff transferring from another Government department, on either level transfer or promotion
All staff moving to DHSC will transfer onto DHSC’s modernised terms and conditions (as outlined above).
Existing DHSC staff, appointed on promotion
If DHSC’s modernised terms and conditions are already held, the employee will retain those terms and conditions. If DHSC’s pre-modernised terms and conditions are held, the employee will transfer onto DHSC’s modernised terms and conditions (as outlined above).
This role is being advertised on a permanent basis. If preferable, Loan or Secondment options will also be available for existing Civil Servants (Loan) and applicants from accredited NDPBs or any other employer (Secondment). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a 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 the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
+ individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
+ Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

+ Ability to work flexibly at pace, maximising the contribution of the team and effectively prioritising between reactive and planned programmes of work to maintain delivery.
+ Ability to build strong relationships and network across boundaries, delivering great outcomes collaboratively.
+ Ability to engage, influence, secure trust and manage a wide range of stakeholders.
+ Excellent written and oral communication skills with the ability to present complex technical issued simply and effectively.
+ Ability to analyse and interpret data, understand its limitations and provide clearer commendations to support the development of evidence-based policy.
+ Ability to formulate, develop, communicate and lead policy in existing and new areas.
Desirable:
+ Experience in a primary health care environment.
+ Experience of working on primary or secondary legislation., + Delivering at Pace
+ Working Together
+ Communicating and Influencing
+ Making Effective Decisions

Alongside your salary of £41,026, Department of Health and Social Care contributes £11,885 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
+ 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%
Your normal place of work will be your contractual primary workplace, usually either London or Leeds. (delete/add as appropriate) Within DHSC we offer non-contractual hybrid working. The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time spent in the office, enabling in person interaction and collaboration, and enhancing team working, learning, and support.
You will be asked to express a location preference during the application process. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas and some travel may be required across the DHSC estate.
Opportunities for some working from home may be available; other flexible working options may be discussed with the hiring manager in line with individual circumstances and business need.
There are a limited number of DHSC colleagues who have existing agreed homeworking contracts resulting from Our Future Estate Programme 2023-2024. Colleagues covered by these arrangements are eligible to apply for this role whilst continuing their agreed existing home working arrangement. Occasional travel to DHSC offices or other locations may still be required according to business need. Travel and subsistence will be provided in line with the pre-agreed homeworker arrangements.