External Affairs Officer

Overview

The External Affairs Officer is responsible for managing and delivering the external affairs functions within Specialist Military Units (SMU), focusing on strategic communications, media relations, parliamentary affairs, and secretariat duties. This role ensures that all external communications align with Defence’s operational and national security priorities, enabling timely and coherent responses to parliamentary inquiries, media interactions, and public oversight.

Key Responsibilities

• Collaborate with Policy Advisers and leadership to convert policy goals into clear, consistent external messaging.
• Support in drafting and validating Parliamentary Questions (PQs), Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, ministerial correspondence, tribunal submissions, and ministerial briefing notes to ensure precision and timely delivery.
• Coordinate both proactive and reactive media management related to SMU activities, crafting communication lines, responding to emerging issues, and safeguarding operational security alongside Defence’s reputation.
• Develop and maintain robust internal communications channels to guarantee unified messaging throughout SMU organizations and relevant stakeholders.
• Provide secretariat and coordination services for high-profile processes such as inquiries, inquests, and major reviews, including information management, task oversight, and delivering high-quality support to senior leadership in complex environments.
• Contribute to Branch resilience by performing quality assurance of outputs, assisting in cross-portfolio assignments, and sustaining performance standards under scrutiny.

Candidate Profile

• Experience working in fast-paced, sensitive, and scrutiny-intensive settings involving media, communications, or parliamentary affairs is highly desired.
• Strong judgment, attention to detail, and the capacity to handle multiple priorities simultaneously.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills with the confidence to collaborate across various government departments and specialist organizations.
• Exceptional written, oral, and presentation abilities for producing clear, accurate, and structured materials intended for senior and public audiences.
• Ability to distill complex or sensitive content into accessible language effectively.
• Organized, disciplined, and collaborative team member adept at managing secretariat tasks, meeting deadlines, and overseeing multiple workstreams in a dynamic environment.
• Desirable experience includes parliamentary business knowledge and secretariat functions.
• Resilience, situational awareness, and capacity to work within secure and disciplined surroundings under continuous scrutiny.

Behaviors Assessed

• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace
• Making Effective Decisions

Additional Information

• The position is 37 hours per week based in London.
• Salary is £46,040 per year with an additional MoD pension contribution of £13,337 under the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme.
• Benefits include tailored learning and development opportunities, flexible working environment, and a culture promoting inclusion and diversity.
• Relocation expenses are not provided.
• External new hires undergo a six-month probation period.
• Travel expenses for interviews are not reimbursed.
• Applicants should be aware of ongoing pay-related allowance reviews that may impact current allowances.
• Transitioning to MoD may affect childcare voucher eligibility, but other government schemes like Tax-Free Childcare may be available.
• The MoD enforces a Smoke-Free Working Environment policy applicable to all personnel and visitors.
• A recruitment satisfaction survey may be conducted to improve applicant experience, with strict data privacy adherence.
• Use of artificial intelligence in applications must be truthful and fact-based; plagiarism or fraudulent use may lead to disqualification or disciplinary actions.

Application Process

• Applicants must submit CVs that include employment history, qualifications, skills, and a 500-word statement of suitability.
• Candidate evaluation will focus on behavioral competencies and experience aligned with the Success Profiles framework.