16575 - Senior Disclosure Specialist - Clearance & Appeals

Manages its information so that it knows what is held and where it is held.
Holds its information in compliance with legislation and is accessible.
Is clear who owns the information and that they understand their responsibilities.
Holds its information securely.
We are one of the busiest information access teams in government, overseeing the timely, accurate, legal and proportionate processing of around 8,000 FOI and data protection cases a year.

Overview of the Disclosure Team

The Disclosure Team has overall responsibility for requests that fall under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), Environmental Information Regulations (EIR), Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and UK General Data Protection Regulations 2018 (GDPR). This includes subject access requests (SAR) from non-offenders.

We offer expert advice and support to a network of Knowledge and Information Liaison Officers (KILOs) across MoJ. We also provide administrative support to ensure the MoJ fulfils its statutory obligations.

The Clearance & Appeals section of the team manages high profile and complex information requests. This involves reviewing and escalating cases as required before a response is issued. It is also responsible for the allocation, handling and management of internal reviews and the MoJ's responses to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

Role Summary

As a Senior Disclosure Specialist in Clearance & Appeals you will be responsible for making sure that high profile and sensitive disclosure activity is lawful and well handled. The work covers information requests for the whole of the department including high-profile offenders, security matters, and the work of Ministers. You will need to work closely with External Communications (Press Office), Private Office and the Senior Civil Service, providing advice on the handling of complex cases.

You will also contribute to the department's transparency agenda and the development of the new, innovate technology solutions to help manage the division's business. You will have line management of three direct reports. This is a stretching role that will allow you to lead a team and deliver a quality service to internal and external customers.

Responsibilities, Activities and Duties

The job holder will be required to carry out the following responsibilities, activities, and duties:
Advise and case manage complex sensitive disclosure requests, assisting other members of the team in the same endeavour. You will produce accurate, timely and succinct advice on disclosure matters in short timeframes and to an excellent standard.
Coordinate information rights litigation across ISD, working in collaboration with the Government Legal Directorate (GLD).
Managing and developing the team's relationships with Press Office, Private Office and Special Advisors in relation to requests and ensuring the processes are reviewed and fit for purpose.
Oversight of internal reviews and ICO cases ensuring these are timely and of a high standard.
Carry out analysis of performance to show trends and highlight areas for improvement, being measured and considered with solutions to combat any concerns.

Leadership: Strong leadership skills to support the team through change. This role requires significant interaction with key stakeholders and therefore your ability to influence and persuade their strategic direction and gain agreement and/or collaboration should be of a high level.
Communication: Demonstrate excellent written and verbal communication skills, providing guidance to colleagues and members of the public.
Collaborative approach: Able to build strong relationships across boundaries, within team, across an organisation and with external stakeholders.
Flexibility: Work flexibly across all parts of the team, undertaking tasks to meet short deadlines and respond to business needs. Ability to work to tight deadlines in a busy environment.
Continuous Improvement: A strong commitment to delivering a high-quality service and regularly reviewing processes to identify opportunities to innovate and streamline approaches.