Associate Serjeant at Arms - Expression of Interest (Additional Responsibility)

Purpose of the Post

An opportunity is available to undertake a prominent role as an Associate Serjeant at Arms (ASAA) in addition to your current role. This is an exciting development opportunity that will place the successful candidate into a high-profile and symbolic role. It will involve experiencing the work of the Serjeant at Arms (SAA) team, complementing and building on your existing skills and experience in a different setting and providing benefits to both your substantive team and the SAA team.  

As an Associate Serjeant at Arms you will cover sittings of the Chamber as the duty Serjeant, maintaining security and order within the Chamber, as well as supporting during ceremonial events and visits.  

Eligibility

Applications are invited from House of Commons, Parliamentary Digital Service and R&R Client Team staff at grade B2 or above who have been recruited through fair and open competition. Interested staff should discuss their application with their line manager before applying and agree that the applicant can:

• Can fit these additional duties into your current role, effectively managing your other priorities to ensure you can commit to your rota. 

In terms of time commitment, the minimum expectation would be a sitting day every two weeks, but ASAAs are likely to be required more frequently and sometimes at short notice (e.g., cover for Sitting Fridays or as result of unforeseen operational changes). 

• Will commit to undertake this role regularly and for a period of at least 2 years. 

Application and selection process

As part of the application process, you will be asked to submit a supporting statement of no more than 500 words setting out how you meet the essential criteria under the skills and knowledge section.  

Successful candidates will be required to complete training and pass a practical assessment of Chamber emergency procedures before conducting duties.  

Your application should be submitted via the recruitment portal.

Final selection will be made following informal interviews for those shortlisted.

More Detailed Information of Post

When undertaking the ASAA role you will: 

• act as Duty Serjeant in the Chamber, taking control of emergency situations when directed by the Speaker, and ensuring good order and security is maintained. 
• be the ‘go to’ House Official for Members with all types of issues and make sure requests and actions are passed to those responsible within the House Service. 
• support ceremonial functions, where required, including Mace processions 
• cover Chamber duties on a rota basis, alongside continuing to carry out your current role
• be responsible, when on duty (and in uniform) for resolving Member queries, addressing issues of order and day to day assistance of operations of the Commons Chamber, Westminster Hall, Division Lobbies and Galleries. 
• support the Serjeant during Ceremonial events such as the State Opening of Parliament and official State Visits. 

Full training will be provided, particularly on taking control of emergency situations in the Chamber.  

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Essential experience of providing leadership in a high-pressure environment, upholding the values of equality, diversity and inclusion. 
• Ability to work reliably and flexibly as part of a team within a high-profile, Member-facing and complex environment. 
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with a proven track record of influencing effectively and communicating clearly and diplomatically with a wide range of people, including Members. 
• Demonstrate sound judgement and tact.
• Demonstrate one or more of the following (the Serjeant at Arms is selecting a team of Associate Serjeants who best cover all the following between them):
• understanding of the Speaker’s office
• understanding of the Chamber, Committees and procedure 
• understanding of security and incident management 
• understanding of how the House of Commons Service works 
• experience of collaborating with HoL, PSD, Maintenance, PDS to resolve issues for Members
• events management capability including ceremonial 
• project management capability 

Additional information regarding the post

The successful candidate will continue to be paid at their current level. In addition, they will also receive unsociable hours payments, as a combination of an annual allowance to cover the rostered commitment to work evenings and an hourly rate for hours worked after both 6pm and 8 hours worked that day.  

Please note that pay arrangements may differ for Part-Time staff and can be clarified separately if required. 

The appointment is for two years minimum with the possibility of extension.   

A full specially tailored Serjeant at Arms uniform will be provided.  

Further information

Applicants who wish to find out more about the role of Associate Serjeant at Arms can contact the Deputy Serjeant at Arms, Chris Rust (rustc@parliament.uk) to have an informal chat either in person or on Teams.