Lead Regulatory Futures Specialist Advisor

Closing Date: 20 March 2023 | Salary: £41,150 - £46,147 (Grade 7) | Location: Flexible

Contract Type: Permanent

Work Pattern: Full time, 37 hours. However, part time, compressed hours or other flexible working arrangements will be considered - discussions at the interview stage are welcomed

Post Number: 203316

As an organisation we support flexible working. This role allows hybrid working (a mix of home and office working) and a working pattern suitable for you can be discussed on appointment if you are successful.

You will be contracted to the nearest NRW office to your home, of which you will be required to attend for regular meetings, training and for one-to-one meetings with your manager. These will be planned in advance.

Job description

This role is an exciting opportunity to lead on, learn about and conduct work across a broad range of Regulation and Permitting areas. As part of the Regulatory Futures team, you will play a crucial role in the team’s efforts to influence and lead NRW’s input on legislative and regulatory change by government, and to lead packages of work that help to translate these changes into practical regulatory approaches that support NRW to deliver effective regulation.

The postholder will provide expert advice and knowledge to a range of Welsh and UK Governments officials, to shape and inform regulatory reform, legislative change, government policy and stakeholder agendas. The role will also work with a wide range of internal policy, regulation and operational leads, and other regulatory bodies across the UK and internationally, to develop different projects that improve regulatory outcomes for our customers, stakeholders and natural resources.

Some of the work areas you might lead on include:

Testing new approaches of regulatory services, e.g., a scoping review of permitting.
Providing strategic, expert advice and steer on future regulation to the Regulatory Business Board.
Acting as a catalyst for change by supporting others to embed our Regulatory Principles into wider projects and roles.
Influencing and informing policy and legislation, by working closely with Welsh and UK Government officials.
Developing regulatory reform proposals and inputting in to wider priorities, i.e. retained EU law.
Developing an evidence strategy for regulation and increasing our use of horizon scanning.
Being a point of contact with other regulatory bodies across the UK and internationally, to share, learn from and embed best practice.

We’re looking for someone who might have experience of handling multiple projects at any one time, with experience of working within or across several regulatory regimes and have strong interpersonal skills that allow you to develop excellent relationships with NRW staff and key stakeholders. We’re looking for someone with good communication and ICT skills, an ability to confidently handle a varied workload and someone who can ultimately deliver successful outcomes. If you have relevant transferable skills not related to regulation, please tell us about them too.

Responsibilities

Your responsibilities include:

Being responsible for developing NRW advice to the Welsh Government and the UK Government on future regulation, strategic regulatory developments, ensuring it is fit to deliver the sustainable management of natural resources.
Being responsible for analysing regulatory data and interpreting evidence to effectively underpin the development of future regulation and subsequently develop and test policy options based on that evidence.
Having strong communication and organisational skills, as delivery of this work will require working closely with other UK and European environmental regulators to share knowledge and technical understanding.
Developing, reviewing and improving technical documentation, to enable consistent and appropriate understanding and application by staff in the business that enables effective service provision.
Establishing and maintaining working relationships with Welsh Government officials so that we enhance our position as a trusted advisor and are able to influence government policy and future legislation.
Specifically leading on the mentoring and coaching of other staff within the team to ensure that the team has sufficient technical and legislative resilience for your assigned areas of work.

Qualifications, experience, and knowledge

Knowledge and experience of the following:

Strong analytical skills and experience of managing or handling multiple projects at any one time. The successful postholder will be able and willing to confidently handle a varied workload.
Experience of working within or across several regulatory regimes relating to NRW’s work, and an associated knowledge of Welsh, UK, and EU legislation and policy drivers relevant to these.
Experience in informing and influencing government departments or regulators.
Strong interpersonal skills that allow you to develop excellent relationships with NRW staff and key stakeholders. Experience in forming and maintaining close links with internal and external partners or stakeholders to deliver the outcomes of a specific function, project or team, and a wider organisation.
Being innovative and demonstrating drive to achieve targets.
You will be expected to keep up to date with changing regulatory policy and proposed changes to legislation via membership of a relevant professional body or other equivalent means.

Welsh Language Requirements:

Essential Level 1 – Able to pronounce Welsh and use basic phrases

Please note if you do not meet the level 1 requirement i.e., ability to understand basic phrases and ability to pronounce Welsh names correctly, then NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Competencies

Please note - Applications to this role will be assessed based on the following competencies, both at shortlisting and interview. Please give examples of how you demonstrate these competencies when completing your application form.

Essential Knowledge and Skills	Able to undertake complex practical or technical tasks or work, requiring advanced specialist knowledge in the relevant subject matter. Able to provide objective advice to others on related issues based on their knowledge and experience, keeping up to date with advances and changes within their specialist field. Demonstrates relevant substantial experience. Able to demonstrate a high level of knowledge, and personal and professional credibility, for example, able to act as an expert witness in a public enquiry. Able to demonstrate good mentoring, knowledge sharing and supervisory skills as well as the ability to set strategic direction for themselves, their area and others.
Evaluation of Information	Able to interpret relevant delivery plans and understand their context in the wider national and NRW policy and strategy. Able to analyse and interpret a wide range of information, which may be of a technical nature, extracting key points and communicate them to individuals at all levels.
Decision Making and Autonomy Requirements	Ability to decide how best to achieve results, with the need for some judgment or creativity to alter priorities due to conflicting demands. Responsible for making independent decisions based on input from line management and peers; an understanding of NRW policy; the range of options available; and their potential implications for the business. Able to lead and project manage specific, complex and often challenging issues, that typically carry a high degree of reputational risk. An appreciation that decisions (which may relate to national policy) may be made, leading to changes in established procedures/practices within the post-holder’s area of work. Demonstrates an appreciation of the consequences of making wrong decisions and the adverse effect they may have on the organisation in relation to its external stakeholders, such as partner organisations, lenders, service users etc.
Impact	Demonstrates an awareness of how their decisions may encompass a broad range of matters and that the outcomes may not always be immediately clear or apparent. An appreciation that the impact of decisions made by the post holder are likely to be wider than the immediate function or department, and likely to be medium term and from an external perspective, may be at a national level.
Communication and Relationships with Others	The post holder will have considerable external stakeholder connections and may be expected to represent the organisation externally, conveying specialist knowledge. Able to interact and foster good working relationships with senior leaders internally and externally, at a national and UK level. Able to discuss policy issues with others, which may be highly technical, specialist or detailed in nature, tailoring the method, style and level of communication appropriately to the audience. The work will involve written and verbal communications; and leading key projects with a high degree of complexity, requiring excellent communication and persuasive skills. Able to facilitate and/or present at internal or external meetings, providing advice on complex technical or specialist issues, including legislative changes and steering the direction of discussion or activities. Able to foster and maintain good relationships and networks. Ability to produce moderately complex documents, reports, accounts, contracts etc., containing advice, guidance or opinion which the recipient will act upon or use, and would have detrimental consequences if incorrect or poorly drafted. Ability to source data and content from multiple locations requiring external research and professional judgment in how such research should be interpreted. The impact of such documentation is likely to be generally longer term in nature.

Benefits of Working for us

This role will offer a range of benefits, including:

Agile and Flexible working (role dependent)
Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 26.6% to 30.3%
28 days Annual Leave, rising to 33 days
Generous Leave entitlements for all your life needs
Health and Wellbeing Benefits and Support
Weekly Well-being hour to use at your choice

See full details for all the employee benefits you will receive.

How to apply

Please send a completed application form to: Applications@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk using the post number as the email reference

Before completing your application, please read our Guidance on completing a job application form

Application closing date: 20 March 2023

Interviews will take place week commencing 3 April 2023 through Microsoft Teams

If you have any queries about the role, please contact Martyn Evans at martyn.evans@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk

Natural Resources Wales embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunity. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition.

We welcome and encourage applications from groups currently underrepresented, including women, black and ethnic minority groups and people with a disability. We have a guaranteed interview scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

We put the principles of human rights, equality, fairness, dignity and respect at the heart of our values.

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