Company:
National Audit Office
Location: London
Closing Date: 29/10/2024
Hours: Full Time
Type: Permanent
Job Requirements / Description
Press Officer
Contract type: Permanent
Location: London
Salary: c£41,000 plus an out of hours call allowance £5,000 (higher base salaries may be considered for exceptional candidates) plus Civil Service Employer Pension Contribution of 27.1%
Main responsibilities
Promote NAO reports and work to external audiences via traditional and social media:
Write press notices, pitches to journalists, op-eds and blog posts to explain our work
Draft social media posts to promote our outputs, working alongside the design team to develop content for multimedia posts
Brief journalists and producers on NAO reports to help secure in-depth, accurate and positive media coverage
Arrange and participate in press briefings and media interviews
Engage with stakeholders, including Parliament, government departments and audited bodies’ press offices
Support audit teams and NAO spokespeople to communicate our work externally
Develop communications plans that establish measurable, achievable and realistic objectives for our outputs, including achieving media coverage, engaging with audiences on social media and influencing our key stakeholders
Help prepare spokespeople for media engagements by conducting practice interviews and developing support materials
Accurately respond to time-sensitive, high-profile enquiries from journalists by drafting lines to take
Brief NAO spokespeople and the media to protect the NAO’s reputation
Respond appropriately to questions and comments on social media about our work
Build relationships with press journalists (national, local and trade) and broadcast journalists and producers across all sectors of our work
Be part of a rota with other team members for out-of-hours press office operations
Work with press team colleagues to help deliver a range of tasks:
Support the senior press officers in compiling and sharing media coverage
Assist in delivering internal media training for colleagues
Maintain media databases compliantly
Maintain and update documents and folders relating to reactive lines to take
Compile internal reporting statistics
Essential skills
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:
Excellent communication skills and the ability to convey messages to a range of audiences using various techniques
Knowledge of the UK media landscape
Excellent writing skills and the ability to deliver accurate information effectively and on time
Ability to translate complex and sensitive information and data into simple language
A good grasp of digital and print media and the ability to pick up new tools quickly
Ability to work well under pressure and respond to issues at short notice and out of hours
Strong teamwork skills, with an understanding of other communications disciplines
Proficiency in traditional and social media monitoring
Experience working as a journalist, or in a press office or communications team
Desired skills
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:
Interest in and understanding of how government works
Additional information
The application deadline is 23:59 on Sunday 10 November. In-person interviews for shortlisted candidates will take place the week commencing 18 November. We will be in touch with exact times and dates once the shortlist is confirmed.
Candidates shortlisted for interview will be sent a pre-interview written task to complete 24 hours in advance.
How To Apply
Please upload a CV and a covering letter of no more than 2 pages of A4 clearly outlining how you meet the job requirements based on your knowledge, skills and experience. We will only accept completed applications via our careers site.
Contact
For any questions or queries on the application process please contact Kevin Carey ([email protected]).
Disability and Reasonable Adjustments
Applicants with a disability who wish their application to be considered under the Disability Confident scheme should confirm this when submitting their application. Under this scheme we guarantee an interview to an applicant with a disability who meets the minimum requirements for the role. You should also let our HR team know if you wish us to consider any Reasonable Adjustments at any stage of the process ([email protected]).
Applicants will not be discriminated against on the grounds of any protected characteristic or any other extraneous factor.
We are open to considering candidates who wish to fill posts on a part-time basis or as a job share. Part-time candidates should indicate their proposed availability, and any flexibility they would either want to have or be able to offer.
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National Audit Office