Administrative Officers

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office pursues our national interests and projects the UKs role in the world. We promote the interests of British citizens, safeguard the UKs security, defend our values, reduce poverty and tackle global challenges with our international partners. We employ more than 17,000 staff in 179 countries and territories, across our diplomatic and development offices worldwide, which consists of 282 officially designated Posts. Our UK-based staff work in King Charles Street, London, Abercrombie House in East Kilbride and Hanslope Park in Milton Keynes.

We are looking to recruit talented and enthusiastic individuals to join the FCDO at Administrative Officer (AO) level. You will have excellent organisation skills, take responsibility for your own work, and be committed to high standards of customer service. The positions are Home Civil Service roles based in King Charles Street (London), Hanslope Park (Milton Keynes) or Abercrombie House (East Kilbride) providing administrative support and corporate services to the rest of the FCDO in the UK and overseas. These tasks are essential for the FCDO to deliver its departmental strategic objectives and to support its global network.

Administrative Officers provide professional office administration and support on transactions processing, projects, budgets, customer services functions, and internal and external communications.

Wewill configure roles to meet specific business needs, but they will typically include:

• Professional Office Administrative/Support: Creating and maintaining electronic filing systems; databases and distribution lists; dealing with telephone and email enquiries; organising meetings/events and taking notes in meetings; maintaining stationery supplies; a corporate role such as fire warden or first aider, for which training will be provided.

• Project Management Support: Monitoring progress against objectives; ensuring projects remain on schedule; anticipating and managing risks; maintaining accurate records.

• Budget Management: Budget monitoring, requisitioning, and raising purchase orders, and manipulation of data using spreadsheets; assisting with budget forecasting; understanding commercial and procurement policies.

• Customer Services: Providing guidance to customers, dealing with them professionally and resolving queries within agreed timeframes

You must be a British Citizen at the time of application and, if invited to interview, you will need to bring proof of identity (British Passport/Driving Licence etc.) with you.

This role requires you to attain Developed Vetting (DV) security clearance.

For more information about this process, click here. Attaining DV will require you to have been resident in the UK for five of the last ten years. At least one year of this must have been a consecutive twelve-month period. Serving overseas with HM Forces, in some other official capacity as a representative of His Majestys Government or having lived overseas as a result of your parents or partners Government employment counts as UK residency for the purposes of security clearances.

Essential Criteria

• Strong literacy, numeracy, and IT skills.

• Competent using IT packages, including Microsoft Office, Outlook, Excel, and knowledge of Windows 11.

• Good interpersonal, team-working, and communication skills (both oral and written).

• Good organisational, analytical, and planning skills with the ability to work to tight deadlines.

• Ability to make effective decisions, identify problems, and propose solutions, to maintain a quality service.