Department for Work and Pensions - Non-Executive Member of Audit and Risk Assurance Committee

Non-Executive Member of Audit and Risk Assurance Committee - Department for Work and Pensions

Body: Department for Work and Pensions
Appointing Department: Department for Work and Pensions
Sector: Business, Finance & Skills
Location: Predominantly London (for meetings), with occasional travel in the UK
Skills required: Accountancy, Audit and Risk, Business / Commercial, Change Management, Major Projects, Procurement, Regulation, Transformation
Number of Vacancies: 1
Remuneration: £15,000 per annum
Time Requirements: Approximately 20 days (per annum), including a minimum of 5 committee meetings

Vacancy Description

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is seeking to fill a Non-Executive Departmental Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (DARAC) position.

Background

DWP provides services and support to over 22 million people and is responsible for over 730 million benefit payments each year totalling nearly £180 billion. At the same time, it is engaged in delivering a once in a generation programme of welfare reform to:

• Encourage people into work and helping people to progress in work;
• Run an effective welfare system that enables people to achieve financial independence by providing assistance and guidance into employment;
• Tackle poverty and welfare dependency through a simplified welfare system that encourages people to find work and protects the most vulnerable;
• Promote high levels of employment by helping people who are out of work, including people in disadvantaged groups move into work;
• Help people meet the challenges of an ageing society and maintain standards of living in retirement; and
• Provide opportunity, choice and independence to help disabled people to take an equal role in society.

The role of Non-Executive Member:

Non-Executive Members provide advice and bring an external perspective to the business of government. They bring independent oversight, support and constructive challenge to the Executive Team and Departmental Board, through expert influence and advice. Non-Executives may also be involved in working groups or offer advice and support to individual directors, in addition to ad hoc pieces of work across the Department.

The Non-Executive will attend the Audit and Risk Committee, which will generally meet five times a year. The post holder reports to the chair of the Audit and Risk Committee, who is also a member of the Departmental Board, chaired by the Secretary of State.

The Audit and Risk Committee is a sub-committee of the Departmental Board and its purpose is to provide an independent view as to the appropriateness, adequacy and overall value for money of the governance, risk, control and associated assurance processes that are in place in DWP by:

• Reviewing the comprehensiveness of assurances in meeting the Board and Accounting Officer’s assurance needs;
• Reviewing the reliability and integrity of these assurances;
• Advising the board and Accounting Officer about how well assurances consequently support them in decision making and in discharging their accountability obligations.

Key Responsibilities

• To act as an independent advisor, challenging the department on its audit and risk management processes.
• To advise the Departmental Board and Accounting Officer on the adequacy and efficacy of governance, risk, control and related assurance processes.
• To make recommendations to the senior team on potential risks and vulnerabilities and support the department to improve.

Person Specification

Essential Skills and Experience for this Non-Executive role:

• Ability to bring a fresh, external view to decision making at board level;
• Experience of best practice approaches to Audit and Risk Management in a range of private, public or third sector organisations;
• An understanding of the key challenges faced by the public sector (particularly around the efficiency agenda) and the ability to bring their experience to bear on these challenges;
• The ability to contribute and inspire confidence with a wide range of stakeholders both in formal environments (such as DARAC meetings) and in less formal environments (such as one-to-one meetings with Executives);
• Sound judgement and a high level of integrity (including when dealing with confidential or sensitive issues) and a commitment to the seven principles of conduct in public life (http://www.public-standards.gov.uk/about-us/what-we-do/the-seven-principles) and,
• An engaging collaborative working style, able to adapt to a wide range of political and non-political partners.

How to Apply

Please send your CV and covering letter to [email protected]

If you would like further information, please contact the same address.

The vacancy closes on 27/05/2020

Attachments

• Disability Confident Form

This post is NOT regulated by The Commissioner for Public Appointments.