Senior Crown Prosecutor (September 24)

As a senior crown prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), you work on some of the most complex and challenging cases – from fraud and firearms offences to public order and corporate manslaughter.
Senior crown prosecutors are highly trained, experienced lawyers with excellent people skills and a passion for delivering justice. This role is largely office-based. You’re responsible for reviewing evidence and making decisions on whether a case should be prosecuted – in line with our Code for Crown Prosecutors. You’re based in one of three units – magistrates’ court, Crown Court or rape and serious sexual offences – depending on your experience level.
You represent the Crown Prosecution Service on the frontline, collaborating closely with colleagues and other criminal justice agencies, including the police and judiciary. You play a vital role in maintaining public confidence in our work.
You benefit from a structured induction four-month training plan and opportunities to shadow colleagues across the organisation. Once you gain further experience, you have options to progress into legal manager and crown advocate roles.
Find out what our senior crown prosecutors say about working at the CPS by visiting cps.gov.uk/careers/prosecutor., + To advise police and other investigators on casework and evidence requirements for a wide range of offences.
+ To review case files and charging decisions, providing legal advice and making the final decision, based on evidence, on whether prosecutions should proceed on cases for the magistrates’ and Crown Court.
+ To undertake advocacy in relation to serious and sensitive cases in the magistrates’ courts including Youth Courts, not guilty anticipated plea court lists, and multi-day trials.
+ To explain our decisions clearly to stakeholders including magistrates, counsel, victims, witnesses and the police.
+ To work effectively as part of a multi-skilled team and maintain up-to-date knowledge of criminal offences.
Each CPS area has a Crown Court, magistrates’ court, and a rape and serious sexual offences (RASSO) team. As a senior crown prosecutor, you’re expected to be able to work in any of these teams although we do take into account your experience and, where possible, your personal preference before placing you in a team.
Whichever team you join, you’re supported with a detailed training and induction plan to cover your first four months with CPS.
Working in our Crown Court team, you have a personal caseload of serious casework. You give charging advice to the police on cases to be heard in the Crown Court, working with our paralegal officers and with counsel to prepare cases for court.
In our magistrates’ court team, you are an advocate dealing with the full range of courts including trial courts. You have a personal caseload, giving pre-charge advice to the police on magistrates’ court cases and you prepare cases for court. You may work on a specialist team such as a domestic abuse or youth team.
In our RASSO team, you have a personal caseload comprising rape and serious sexual offences. You give charging and early indicative advice to the police on RASSO cases, working with our paralegal staff and counsel to prepare cases for court., We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
+ Making Effective Decisions
+ Communicating and Influencing
+ Delivering at Pace, If you meet the eligibility criteria, you’re invited to an online Microsoft Teams meeting to complete a legal-based assessment, present your answers and respond to follow-up questions. You’re given general research pointers in advance.
+ Final interview ( dates from w/c 18 November - 29 November 2024)
If you pass the legal assessment, you’re invited to a Microsoft Teams meeting where you’re interviewed by a CPS panel to assess your suitability for the role.
These dates may be subject to change and it’s not always possible to offer alternative dates.
You book your own assessment and interview slot through Civil Service Jobs. Once you’ve selected your preferred time slot, we send you a Microsoft Teams link.
Diversity at the Crown Prosecution Service is about inclusion, embracing differences and ensuring our workforce truly reflects the communities we serve. We want you to feel that you belong and can thrive, whatever your background, identity or culture. As a Disability Confident employer, we're happy to support requests for reasonable adjustments and improve your recruitment experience. If you'd like any reasonable adjustments made to our recruitment process, let us know within your application or contact nationallawyerrecruitment@cps.gov.uk
Making offers
You can choose three office location preferences from the list provided. If you’re successful, we aim to offer one of your choices in the first instance. Whilst every effort is made to accommodate your location preferences, the CPS is a national organisation with differences in operational recovery, vacancy levels and caseloads around the country – which means you may be offered a role in another CPS area outside your stated preference.
If you’re invited to interview, you are assessed and interviewed by an appropriate panel and offers are made in merit order.
Please note that the lead behaviour at interview stage is Making Effective Decisions. We may use this to determine merit order where candidates have the same overall score.
Other
This is a full-time post. However, requests for flexible, part-time working and job share are considered – bearing in mind the operational needs of the department.
This role is a mixture of home working, office working and travelling to courts. How this is split depends upon the business needs.
You must consider if the commute from your home to the office is a feasible distance to travel before making an application. If you are successful, we will discuss this before you take up the post.
The Crown Prosecution Service is based in England and Wales. If you’re applying for this role and live in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you must let us know when accepting this offer as you need permission to work from your home address if hybrid working is part of your role. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that this approval will be granted.
The job you are applying for is covered by Article 3(a) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, consequently Section 4(2) of that Act does not apply. For the reasons outlined above you are required to disclose all previous convictions and cautions, including spent convictions. Failure to make a full declaration will result in the withdrawal of an offer of employment if our checks reveal convictions that have not been disclosed.
Reserve list
If all the posts are filled for your preferred location(s), you’re put on a reserve list. You may be approached about an opportunity at a location outside your initial preference. Offers are always made in merit order.
There may be instances where you’re offered the opportunity to work on a central prosecution team – to complete work remotely for business areas around England and Wales. If offered, this would be for a minimum 12-month period with the possibility of an extension up to 24 months. Once completed, you then return on a permanent basis to a CPS area.
The reserve list expires 12 months after the interviews take place and positions for your first preference can’t be guaranteed.
Timeline
Please refer to the candidate pack for the scheduled timeline. Dates advertised are subject to change and it may not be possible to accommodate alternative requests for interviews and assessment.
If you meet the eligibility requirements, you’re invited to an assessment with at least five working days’ notice. If you can’t make this date, please let us know as soon as possible and we try to rearrange – although we can’t guarantee it.
Meet and engage sessions
We’re holding an online question and answer session whilst the vacancy is live. This is your chance to ask any questions about the role or the recruitment process. You can register for this now.
+ Wednesday 25 September, 1pm – 1:45 pm - https://meetandengage.com/alzwqu82x
Fair Processing Notice
The CPS provides a Fair Processing Notice to all new applicants after they’ve been successful at interview. These candidates are informed that, as one aspect of pre-employment screening, their personal details – name, National Insurance number and date of birth – are checked against the Internal Fraud Database. Anyone included on the database is refused employment unless they can demonstrate exceptional circumstances.
The CPS, on behalf of the vacancy holder, informs applicants when they are refused employment because they’re included in the IFD.
Civil Service Commissioners
If you’re dissatisfied with the recruitment process and wish to make a complaint, please contact strategic.resourcing@cps.gov.uk with your concerns.
If you remain dissatisfied and wish to make a further complaint, you can do that through the Civil Service Commission complaints page.
Here are our Civil Service Commissioners recruitment principles.
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).

+ You must be a qualified practising lawyer with criminal law experience.
+ You must demonstrate your commitment to public service, making a difference to the communities we serve and our CPS values.
+ You’re focused on personal development and career progression., Legally qualified: You must be a qualified practising solicitor or barrister holding a valid Practising Certificate for England and Wales.
Academic: You must have a law degree, Common Professional Examination and/or Graduate Diploma in Law.
Professional: You must have completed a Legal Practice Course, Solicitors Qualifying Exam or Bar Professional Training Course and the relevant pupillage and training contract – or have received full exemption from the relevant professional regulatory body, either the Solicitors Regulation Authority or the Bar Standards Board.
or
CILEx: You must be a Fellow of CILEx and a CILEx Advocate/Litigator holding all three advocacy certificates providing you with a ‘general qualification’ within the meaning of s.71 (3) (c) Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. You must have a right of audience in relation to any class of proceedings in any part of the Senior Courts, or all proceedings in county courts or magistrates' courts in order to meet the requirements for a Crown Prosecutor specified by section 1 Prosecution of Offences Act 1985. If you don’t hold this CILEx qualification, you’re not eligible to apply for this vacancy. If you’re unsure whether you have qualified through CILEx, contact us to establish your eligibility for this role.
If you apply and are found not to possess any of the above, any offer of employment will be withdrawn, or contract terminated., The eligibility criteria must be met by Monday 2 December 2024. If you’re able to obtain a valid Practising Certificate and will be fully qualified by this date, you’re eligible to apply.
Should there be any restrictions or special arrangements regarding your Practising certificate, we would ask you to inform us at the earliest opportunity, via email., + You must have a law degree, Common Professional Examination and/or Graduate Diploma in law.
+ You must have completed a Legal Practice Course, Solicitors Qualifying Exam or Bar Vocational Course/Bar Professional Training Course and the relevant pupillage or training contract.
+ You must be a qualified barrister or solicitor.
+ You must demonstrate motivation.
+ You must demonstrate sufficient legal intellect

Birmingham, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Cambridge, Canterbury, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Chippenham, Eastleigh, Exeter, Guildford, Hull, Ipswich, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Mold, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Sheffield, St Albans, Stoke-on-Trent, Swansea, Swindon, Truro.

• Please note for Wessex – Offices are based in Eastleigh, Portsmouth or Swindon and deployment will be to all courts in Dorset, Wiltshire and Hampshire/Isle of Wight
  
  Alongside your salary of £51,260, Crown Prosecution Service contributes £14,850 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

We want to ensure our employees can thrive at work and home, and offer a range of support to achieve a balance. This includes flexibility of working hours, flexibility to support caring responsibilities and a flexible approach to deployment. We have a hybrid working policy. From September 2024, you must spend at least 40% of your contracted hours over a four-week period at court, in an office or another official workplace depending on business need and the kind of work you're doing.
Delivering justice is a complex pursuit with work that is sometimes emotionally challenging, which is why we offer a range of benefits including:
+ a Civil Service contributory pension of up to 27%
+ 25 days’ leave, increasing to 30 days after 5 years
+ an extra privilege day to mark the King's birthday
+ competitive maternity, paternity and parental leave
+ flexible working and a family-friendly approach to work
+ a Cycle2Work scheme, employee savings
+ a range of learning and development activities, an individual learning account, and central and local development opportunities.