LEIII Pro Consul Officer British Embassy Brussels

The British Embassy in Brussels is looking to recruit an LEIII Pro Consul to start as soon as possible. The British Embassy in Brussels provides consular advice and services to British residents and over 882,000 annual British visitors that travel to the country. The consular team in Brussels is part of the wider Northern and Western European consular region that encompasses 20 countries across the region and works closely with the consular team in Luxembourg. Our customers rightly expect high levels of service and we aim to deliver an excellent and efficient service to them. Consular work is very rewarding - you have the chance to make a direct difference to someone’s life often in very challenging situations. The successful candidate will be working in a busy consular assistance team often under pressure and sometimes dealing with extremely sensitive cases. There will be the opportunity for the right candidate to travel within the role. 

You may not have had direct experience of dealing with consular work - it is a unique area of work. If you are interested in the position and can fulfil the requirements we want to hear from you.

Main duties and responsibilities include:

• Providing consular assistance casework in Belgium and occasionally Luxembourg. Visiting prisoners, dealing with people in hospital, victims of crime, distressed British nationals etc. Handling correspondence, telephone enquiries, and counter enquiries and services. Making sure that cases are being handled in line with consular guidance and according to standards set out in the consular guide;
• Working on crisis planning, and responding to actual events. Responding to mass casualty incidents, crises, preparing for and responding appropriately to football matches and other large-scale events. Developing working-level contacts in Belgian ministries, other diplomatic missions, and other outside stakeholders;
• Taking part in the consular counter roster, including preparing notarial documents for signature, fee-taking and cashing-up. Accepting emergency travel document applications and processing emergency travel documents;
• As webmaster for consular areas of the Embassy website, keep consular information up to date and accurate. Ensure out of hours information and lists available to British Nationals in Belgium, e.g. lawyers list, sworn translators etc is kept current;
• Working as a team to assess and improve the quality of our services;
• Standing in for other colleagues during absences including notarial work, assistance work, and on the counter.

Essential skills and experience required:

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills;
• Excellent time management and organisational skills. A proven record of delivering results and the ability to work well under pressure;
• Fluent English language skills, both oral and written;
• Strong customer focus and previous experience in a customer facing role;
• Ability to cultivate and maintain a range of contacts at all levels;
• Excellent team working ability, including the ability to understand your personal impact;
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Office, especially Word and Excel. Knowledge of SharePoint would be an advantage;
• Flexibility, resilience, patience, and the ability to deal with difficult situations, including the ability to work unsocial hours in an emergency or crisis;
• Ability to travel within Belgium and Luxembourg and on occasion elsewhere in Europe;
• Ability to display a high level of discretion and responsibility;
• Ability to successfully undergo security clearance procedures;
• Drive and initiative to get things done, adaptability, and a positive mindset towards change and working as part of a wider team;
• Strong French and/or Dutch language skills, both oral and written, which will be tested at interview.

Desirable Criteria:

• Knowledge of the Belgian administrative system, including the justice system, laws and regulations, and social services.

This position will be filled on a 4 year fixed term contract. Applicants must be legally entitled to work in Belgium. 

Gross monthly salary: €2286.10 

Applications with a full CV and cover letter in English should be sent to the Recruitment Officer, Corporate Services Benelux, British Embassy, Avenue d’Auderghem 10 B- 1040 Brussels or brussels.recruitment@fco.gov.uk by 4pm on Tuesday 26 March 2013. If applying by email, you should include your full name in the message title and your email and attachments must not exceed 300kB in size. 

We expect to hold interviews on Monday 15 April 2013, with a view to the successful applicant starting as soon as possible, subject to vetting, references and administrative processes. 

Please note that, due to the large volume of applications we receive, only those applicants called for interview will be contacted. 

The British Missions in Benelux are an equal opportunities employer. Applications are welcome from all suitably qualified applicants regardless of age, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation or disability. We aim to reflect the diversity of society.