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Appointment details

South West Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committee (VAPC) Members

Summary

• Organisation: Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committees
• Sponsor department: Ministry of Defence
• Location: South West
• Sectors: Defence
• Skills: Communication, Media, Marketing, Technology / Digital, Major Projects, Regulation
• Number of vacancies: 6
• Time commitment: Adhoc
• Length of term: 3 Years with the possibility of 1 further 3 year appointment subject to satisfactory performance and Minister’s agreement.
• Application deadline: 11pm on 19 September 2023

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Timeline for this appointment

1. Opening date

   31 July 2023

2. Application deadline

   11pm on 19 September 2023

3. Sifting date

   20 October 2023

4. Interviews expected to end on

   10 November 2023

Timeline dates are only an estimate and can change

About the appointment

Additional introductions

Sponsor Team Message to Candidates

The Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committee (VAPC) serves and supports ex-servicemen and women, their widows or widowers and their immediate family members. They are an independent voice, here to help whenever or wherever a veteran served, whether in World War 2 or Afghanistan.   

 The VAPC is an advisory non-departmental public body, sponsored by Veterans UK, a department of the Ministry of Defence, its Chairs and Members are all appointed by the Minister for Defence People Veterans and Service Families (MinDPVSF). In November 2021, the VAPCs' new supplementary Terms of Reference were endorsed by, the Minister. He stated:  

“I believe that these TORs will enable the VAPCs to deliver a structured contribution to better understanding the support the whole of the veteran’s ‘family’ are receiving in your regions. I hope you now feel that you now have a real opportunity to assist in shaping and informing the strategy for our veterans and to provide a regional picture of successful delivery of the soon to be announced Veteran Strategy Action Plan. 

I look forward to reading your first report in May 2022 and again in November 2022 after which, further discussion can take place regarding potentially formalising your broader role in Statute.”  

These Terms of Reference (TORs) reflect the fact that the VAPCs, given their independence and regional set-up, aim to make a useful contribution to the Government’s drive to make the UK the best place in the world to be a veteran. 

Following the formation of the Office for Veterans Affairs and the mandate to make the UK to be the best Country in the World to be a veteran there has never been a better time to set the pace for veterans’ affairs. As a VAPC Member you will have the opportunity to ensure that veterans issues in your region are considered in line with the rest of the UK. If you believe that you can work with a team of like-minded volunteers to enhance the quality of life for veterans, we would be delighted to hear from you.

A Personal Message From the SW Team

First and foremost; we are a close knit group, and keen to socialise where possible, as well as make a difference to Veterans. We are a very collegiate team, and innovation is applauded and mistakes learnt from. There is a place for those who seek influence and  delegated responsibility; and equally one for those who wish to stay in lane. Natural networkers are valuable, but we equally respect those who have an eye for detail: in truth, we are a diverse but successful mix. We believe the SW often leads the national way and are proud of this perception.

Who do we need? Passionate capable people, diverse of course and young minds most welcome.  Perhaps surprisingly, we military types need like to have our ideas challenged.  Previous rank plays no part in our hierarchy or decisions. 

Specific skills that would be valuable attributes include a ‘data analyst’; we need to interpret and measure official analytics and design our own ‘more valuable’ datasets. Marketing skills are an asset, maybe even at a national level as our new strategy evolves; and our ‘footprint’ expands considerably.  Medical and legal specialisations are a great asset; as are those of an IT and/or comms specialist to improve our cross region efficiency.  Finally, for those with an organisational bent, we need a Coordinator/secretary: this post is particularly involved and influential across the entire team. All that said, no one needs these specialist skills to be a SW VAPC asset. and we welcome those already immersed or employed in the veteran, military sector.

Appointment description

The VAPC Members will play a central role in promoting the interests and welfare of Veterans and their families. Suitable candidates may come from a wide range of backgrounds. While knowledge of service life would be useful, what is most important is that the applicant should have a real commitment to supporting veterans and their dependants.  

The successful candidates must abide by the Seven Principles of Public Life and the Code of Conduct for Board Members.  

Organisation description

The Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committees (VAPCs) serve and support ex-service personnel, their widows or widowers and their immediate family members. They are an independent voice, here to help whenever or wherever a veteran served, from World War 2 to the recent campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq, in full time service or as a reservist.   

Board composition

The South West VAPC currently has 1 Chair and 13 Members.

Regulation of appointment

This post is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. For more information, please refer to the Commissioner’s website 

Person specification

Essential criteria

Candidates must demonstrate all the following essential criteria at interview: 

·       an ability to contribute to a committee setting by bringing fresh ideas to the table and by actively and constructively contributing to discussions in meetings. 

·       good all-round communication skills and the ability to consider complex issues.

·       an ability to look ahead and work with others to develop practical plans in response to changing strategy and its policy implementation.  

·       an understanding of and a real commitment to supporting Veterans and their Families with issues relating to the administration and delivery of services to veterans and their families via the Armed Forces Covenant and the War Pension and Armed Forces Compensation Schemes. 

Application and selection process

How to apply

In order to apply you will need to create an account or sign in.

1. https://apply-for-public-appointment.service.gov.uk/create-account 2. https://apply-for-public-appointment.service.gov.uk/auth/sign-in

Once you are logged into your account, click on 'apply for this role' and follow the on-screen instructions. To apply, all candidates are required to provide:

a Curriculum Vitae (CV)

a Supporting Statement

-          This should include details of 2 references; full names and email addresses. By providing your referees details, you are giving us consent to approach them should you be successful at the shortlisting stage.

We will ask you to check and confirm your personal details to ensure your application is accurate.

You will also have the opportunity to make a reasonable adjustment request or apply under the disability confident scheme before you submit your application.

The Advisory Assessment Panel reserves the right to only consider applications that contain all of the elements listed above, and that arrive before the published deadline for applications.

Overview of the application process

Public appointments are made on merit following a fair and open competition process which is conducted in accordance with the Governance Code for Public Appointments. We will deal with your application as quickly as possible and will keep you informed at key stages. We aim to conclude the appointment process within three months of the deadline for applications – this is in accordance with the Governance Code.

The assessment process

1. Ministers are responsible and accountable to Parliament for the public appointments made within their department. As a result, they must be consulted at every stage of the appointments process.

2. An Advisory Assessment Panel (“Panel”) is appointed by Ministers to assist them in their decision making. The role of the Panel is to decide, objectively, which candidates meet the eligibility criteria for the role.

3. At the shortlisting meeting the Panel will assess applications against the eligibility criteria and decide which candidates have best met the criteria, who should be recommended for interview. Ministers will then be consulted on the Panel’s recommended shortlist. If you have applied under the Disability Confident Scheme and you meet all the essential criteria, then you will also be invited for an interview.

4. Once the shortlist has been agreed by Ministers, you will be advised (by e-mail) whether you have been shortlisted. Those shortlisted will be invited to an interview.

5. The Panel will meet again to interview candidates and determine who is appointable to the role. The Panel may invite you to make a brief presentation at the start of the interview and will go on to question you about your skills and experience, including asking specific questions to assess whether you meet the criteria set out for the post. The Panel will also explore with you any potential conflicts of interest or any other issues arising from your personal and professional history which may impact on an appointment decision.

6. Details of the panel’s assessment of interviewed candidates are provided to Ministers, including whether they have judged a candidate to be appointable to the role. It is then for Ministers to determine merit and decide who should be appointed. In some circumstances, Ministers may choose not to appoint any candidates and re-run the competition.

7. Ministers may choose to meet with candidates before deciding the outcome. Candidates should therefore be prepared for a short time gap between interview and a final appointment decision being made. Candidates who have been interviewed will be kept informed of progress.

8. Once the decision on the appointment has been made, interviewed candidates will be advised of the outcome of their application, including whom they may approach for feedback. Successful candidates will be issued with their Terms & Conditions and a letter of appointment should they agree to take up the position.

Further information about appointments, including tips on applying, can be found on our guidance pages on gov.uk.

Advisory Assessment Panel (AAP)

Panel Chair and Representative of the Organisation

Jeff Spencer – South West VAPC Chair                                

Departmental Official

Chantelle Lord – DBS Armed Forces and Veterans Services Chief of Staff

Independent Panel Member

Jane Allen - Commander Royal Naval Reserve (Retd)  

Advisory Assessment Panels (AAP) are chosen by ministers to assist them in their decision-making. These include a departmental official and an independent member. For competitions recruiting non-executive members of a board (apart from the Chair), the panel will usually include a representative from the public body concerned.

AAP’s perform a number of functions, including agreeing an assessment strategy with ministers, undertaking sifting, carrying out interviews in line with the advertised criteria and deciding objectively who meets the published selection criteria for the role before recommending to ministers which candidates they find appointable. It is then for the minister to decide who to appoint to the role.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for this role, you must be a UK National.

In general, you should have the right to work in the UK to be eligible to apply for a public appointment.

There are a small number of specialist roles that are not open to non-British citizens. Any nationality requirements will be specified in the vacancy details.

The Government expects all holders of public office to work to the highest personal and professional standards. 

You cannot be considered for a public appointment if:

• you are disqualified from acting as a company director  (under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986);

• have an unspent conviction on your criminal record;

• your estate has been sequestrated in Scotland or you enter into a debt arrangement programme under Part 1 of the Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002 (asp 17) as the debtor or have, under Scots law, granted a trust deed for creditors.

When you apply, you should declare if:

• you are, or have been, bankrupt or you have made an arrangement with a creditor at any point, including the dates of this. 

• you are subject to a current police investigation.

You must inform the sponsor department if, during the application process, your circumstances change in respect of any of the above points. 

When you apply you should also declare any relevant interests, highlighting any that you think may call into question your ability to properly discharge the responsibilities of the role you are applying for. You should also declare any other matters which may mean you may not be able to meet the requirements of the Code of Conduct of Board Members (see Outside interests and reputational issues section below)

If you need further advice, please contact the Defence Business Services VAPC Sponsor Team by email: DBSVets-VAPC-SponsorTeam@mod.gov.uk

Security clearance

The successful candidate will be required to undertake Baseline Personnel Security Standard checks in line with the Civil Service guidelines. Additional Security Clearance may also be required for certain roles. However, where this applies, candidates will be notified during the appointment process. Further information on National Security Vetting can be found on the Gov.uk website here.

The level of clearance required for this role is BPSS.

Additional information for candidates

Equality and diversity

We encourage applications from talented individuals from all backgrounds and across the whole of the United Kingdom. Boards of public bodies are most effective when they reflect the diversity of views of the society they serve and this is an important part of the Government’s levelling up agenda.

We collect data about applicants’ characteristics and backgrounds, including information about people’s educational and professional backgrounds, so that we can make sure we are attracting a broad range of people to these roles and that our selection processes are fair for everyone. Without this information, it makes it difficult to see if our outreach is working, if the application process is having an unfair impact on certain groups and whether changes are making a positive difference.

When you submit your application, your responses are collected by the Cabinet Office and the government department(s) managing your application. The data is used to produce management information about the diversity of applicants. You can select “prefer not to say” to any question you do not wish to answer. The information you provide will not be seen by the Advisory Assessment Panel who review applications against the advertised criteria and conduct interviews.

Disability confident

We are a member of the Government’s Disability Confident scheme. We use the Disability Confident scheme symbol, along with other like-minded employers, to show our commitment to good practice in employing people with a disability. The scheme helps recruit and retain disabled people. 

As part of implementing the scheme, we guarantee an interview for anyone with a disability whose application meets the essential criteria for the role, set out in the advert, and who has asked that their application is considered under the scheme. Indicating that you wish your application to be considered under the scheme will in no way prejudice your application. By ‘minimum criteria,’ we mean that you must provide evidence which demonstrates that you meet the level of competence required under each of the essential criteria, as set out in the job-advert.

When you apply you will have the opportunity to select if you would like your application considered under this scheme.

Reasonable adjustments

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments to make sure applicants with disabilities, physical or mental health conditions, or other needs are not substantially disadvantaged when applying for public appointments. This can include changing the recruitment process to enable people who wish to apply to do so.

Some examples of common changes are:

• ensuring that application forms are available in different or accessible formats;
• making adaptations to interview locations;
• allowing candidates to present their skills and experience in a different way;
• giving additional detailed information on the selection / interview process in advance to allow candidates time to prepare themselves;
• allowing support workers, for example sign language interpreters;
• making provision for support animals to attend.

When you apply you will have the opportunity to request reasonable adjustments to the application process.

Principles of public life

Holders of public office are expected to adhere to and uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life. These are:

1. Selflessness - Holders of public office should act solely in terms of the public interest.
2. Integrity - Holders of public office must avoid placing themselves under any obligation to people or organisations that might try inappropriately to influence them in their work. They should not act or take decisions in order to gain financial or other material benefits for themselves, their family, or their friends. They must declare and resolve any interests and relationships.
3. Objectivity - Holders of public office must act and take decisions impartially, fairly and on merit, using the best evidence and without discrimination or bias.
4. Accountability - Holders of public office are accountable to the public for their decisions and actions and must submit themselves to the scrutiny necessary to ensure this.
5. Openness - Holders of public office should act and take decisions in an open and transparent manner. Information should not be withheld from the public unless there are clear and lawful reasons for so doing.
6. Honesty - Holders of public office should be truthful.
7. Leadership - Holders of public office should exhibit these principles in their own behaviour and treat others with respect. They should actively promote and robustly support the principles and challenge poor behaviour wherever it occurs.

Code of conduct for board members

The Government expects all holders of public office to work to the highest personal and professional standards. In support of this, all non-executive board members of UK public bodies must abide by the principles set out in the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. The Code sets out the standards expected from those who serve on the boards of UK public bodies and will form part of your terms and conditions of appointment.

Management of outside interests and consideration of reputational issues

Holders of public office are expected to adhere and uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life and the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. Before you apply you should consider carefully: 

• any outside interests that you may have, such as shares you may hold in a company providing services to government; 
• any possible reputational issues arising from your past actions or public statements that you have made; 
• and/or - any political roles you hold or political campaigns you have supported; 

which may call into question your ability to do the role you are applying for.

You will need to answer relevant questions in relation to these points when making an application. Many conflicts of interest can be satisfactorily resolved and declaring a potential conflict does not prevent you from being interviewed. If you are shortlisted for an interview, the panel will discuss any potential conflicts with you during that interview, including any proposals you may have to mitigate them and record that in their advice to ministers. Alongside your own declaration, we will conduct appropriate checks, as part of which we will consider anything in the public domain related to your conduct or professional capacity. This may include searches of previous public statements and social media, blogs or any other publicly available information. The successful candidate(s) may be required to give up any conflicting interests and their other business and financial interests may be published in line with organisational policies. 

Details of declared political activity will be published when the appointment is announced, as required by the Governance Code (political activity is not a bar to appointment, but must be declared).

Status of appointment

As this is an office holder appointment, you will not become a member of the Civil Service. You will not be subject to the provisions of employment law.

Appointment and tenure of office

Appointments are for the term set out in this advert, with the possibility of re-appointment for a further term, at the discretion of Ministers.  Any re-appointment is subject to satisfactory annual appraisals of performance during the first term in the post. There is no automatic presumption of reappointment; each case should be considered on its own merits, taking into account a number of factors including, but not restricted to, the diversity of the current board and its balance of skills and experience. In most cases, the total time served in post will not exceed more than two terms or serve in any one post for more than ten years

Remuneration, allowances and abatement

You can claim reimbursement for reasonable travel and subsistence costs which are properly and necessarily incurred on official business, in line with the travel and subsistence policy and rates for the organisation to which you are applying. However these payments are taxable as earnings and will be subject to tax and national insurance, both of which will be deducted at source under PAYE before you are paid.

All Committee posts are voluntary with reimbursement of travelling expenses and loss of earnings allowance payable if appropriate. The current rates are as follows:

Mileage: 45p per mile (Fully Comprehensive Insurance with business clause)

Subsistence: Re-imbursement of actual expenditure upto the following limits Over 5 hours - £5.00, Over 10 hours - £10.00, Over 12 hours - £20.00 (receipts required.)

Loss of earnings allowance: Payable to a maximum of 15 days per financial year.

£25.77 up to 4 hours absence

£51.54 over 4 hours absence

Pension and redundancy

This is an office holder appointment and does not attract any benefits under any Civil Service Pension Scheme. You will not be eligible for redundancy pay as you are not an employee. No other arrangements have been made for compensation upon the end of your term of appointment because an office holder who is appointed for a limited duration would have no expectation of serving beyond that period.

Application feedback

We will notify you of the status of your application. We regret that we are only able to offer detailed feedback to candidates who have been unsuccessful at the interview stage.

How to complain

We aim to process all applications as quickly as possible and to treat all applicants with courtesy.  If you feel that you have a complaint about the way in which your application has been handled, please contact in the first instance Defence Business Service (DBS) Civilian Personnel Public Appointments Team DBSCivPers-ResPublicAppts@mod.gov.uk . If you are not completely satisfied with the response, please contact the MOD Public Appointments Team at DSOP-PublicAppointments@mod.gov.uk . We will acknowledge your complaint upon receipt and aim to provide a response within 15 working days.

How to complain to Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA)

If you are not content with the appointing department’s response you may wish to further complain to the Commissioner at publicappointments@csc.gov.uk.Further information on how the Commissioner handles complaints can be found on the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ website https://publicappointmentscommissioner.independent.gov.uk/regulating-appointments/investigating-complaints/

Data protection

The Cabinet Office will use your data in line with our privacy policy.

The Ministry of Defence privacy notice can be found here

Contact details

An Independent Review into HMG’s veterans welfare services has been carried out and has now concluded and its report published.  It recommended that MOD and OVA should undertake work to properly define the potential future function of the VAPCs in their respective departments, taking into account the recommendations from both the QQR and the review of the VAPCs as an Arms’ length body, before Ministers take a view on the VAPCs’ future.  Given the ongoing Private Members Bill and the need for the Committees to become/remain quorate, the Department recognises the importance of continuing this annual recruitment campaign as planned.

The South West VAPC would particularly welcome applications from candidates with data analyst, marketing skills, medical, legal and IT and comms specialisations and those immersed or employed in the veteran/military sector. Candidates with strong organisational skills would also be welcome, with a view to becoming SWVAPC’s Secretary.

For further information, please contact the Defence Business Services VAPC Sponsor Team by email: DBSVets-VAPC-SponsorTeam@mod.gov.uk