Job description

Locations: London, Croydon, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Solihull, Bristol, Glasgow with regular travel expected to London, and across the country as required.

Advertised working pattern: Full-time

Why this role matters

The National Returns Progression Command (NRPC) is the pivotal Home Office capability whose mission is to maximise the return of immigration offenders (illegal entrants, overstayers, failed asylum seekers) whilst ensuring individuals are dealt with in a dignified manner, utilising a strong set of safeguards to identify and manage vulnerabilities.

This work includes leadership of 4 strands of work to maximise returns for immigration offenders.

The on-going and core elements of the role involve the following:

Leading on detained returns – ensuring that return is progressed for individuals from point of detention through to removal, effectively clearing barriers to removal, and identifying and managing any vulnerabilities.

Leading on the detained asylum casework process – ensuring the progression of individuals who claim asylum whilst in detention, including consideration of their asylum claim.

Leading on Non-Detained case progression – ensuring the progression of individuals without permission to stay in the UK to an appropriate conclusion, either by removing barriers to return or by signposting to other parts of the Home Office to regularise their status.

Leading on third country returns, returning individuals to a country other than their country of origin.

Job description
Key accountabilities

You will:

Managing and building relationships with a wide range of delivery partners including uniformed enforcement teams, Returns Assistance and Engagement Operations, Foreign National Offender Returns Command, Commnity Harm Prevention Command, International Returns Services Command, Detention Services, Migration and Borders Policy, Asylum and Human Rights Operations and Customer Services.
Line management of three Grade 6s and leadership and management of approximately 500 staff within the command, over 12 different locations.
Providing wider leadership support to Immigration Enforcement and Returns Directorate as a whole and contributing to wider Home Office objectives.
Managing a budget of just under £22m.

Person specification
Essential Criteria

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate:

Strong track record of leading large and complex operations at scale.
Working with Ministers and political stakeholders or similar to drive and deliver public service transformation under intense political scrutiny; operating at pace in a relentless delivery environment; leading from the front amid uncertainty; and using strong communication skills to frame realistic, tangible proposals in the highly complex asylum and returns landscape.
Excellent written and oral communication skills, with confidence engaging Ministers and senior officials when clearly framing transformation plans, remaining persuasive where further rationale is required, and being responsive to feedback at all levels.
The ability to plan, implement and monitor the delivery of stretching goals; identifying innovative utilisation of resource to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
Possess the ability to deliver results in a highly contentious environment; balancing delivery of hard-edged results with a wider set of equally important criteria (for example, managing vulnerability and wider reputational factors), as is the case where individuals are detained for removal
Desirable Criteria

Experience of leading work within the migration and borders and international cooperation landscape is desirable but not essential.
Familiarity with complexities of managing individuals in the detained environment.