Physical Security and Continuity Officer - MLC 2347

View Vacancy -- Physical Security and Continuity Officer - MLC 2347
Open Date
06/02/2024, 09:00
Close Date
29/02/2024, 23:55
Research Institute 1  
MRC Mary Lyon Centre
Research Institute / Unit Information 1  

The Mary Lyon Centre at MRC Harwell (MLC) https://www.har.mrc.ac.uk/ is located in an expanding science and innovation campus in Oxfordshire and is an internationally renowned centre at the forefront of genetics research.  As the hub of the new National Mouse Genetics Network, the specialist facilities and capabilities of the MLC support a number of research groups across the UK to accelerate our understanding of human diseases, such as cancer, developmental disorders and neurodegeneration.

The Medical Research Council (MRC) is a great place to work and progress your career.  The MRC encourages the integration of clinical and discovery research to elucidate both disease processes and potential new therapies. The MLC provides vital scientific support for the UK biomedical community and focuses on preclinical research using mouse models, which supports clinical research and therapy discovery. 

The MRC is an excellent place to develop yourself further and a range of training & development opportunities will be available to you, including professional registration with the Science Council.

UK Research and Innovation is a new entity that brings together nine partners to create an independent organisation with a strong voice for research and innovation, more information can be found at www.ukri.org
Band 1  
MRC - 3
Location 1  
Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire
Salary 1  
£43,116 - £49,891 per annum, dependent on skills and experience
Contract Type 1  
Permanent
Job Type 1  
Administration & Management
Full Time / Part Time 1  
Full Time
Job Description 1  

Overall Purpose:

The MRC is seeking a Physical Security and Continuity Officer to ensure that MRC’s strategic crisis management and resilience assurance activities are robust and exercised effectively. They will manage the MRC’s physical security and resilience requirements in line with the UKRI Security and Resilience Strategy to protect MRC assets (people, property, data information and services) from expanding threats, prevent operation disruption, and prepare MRC to respond and recover effectively from incidents. They will work closely with the functional and institute leads across our risk environment. 

The post-holder will be responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of MRC’s Business Continuity Management (BCM) in line with the UKRI BCM Framework, facilitating and helping to embed business continuity good practice, and for improving capabilities and building resilience across the MRC. They will ensure that risks connected to physical security and continuity are identified and escalated, and that action plans are agreed to reduce the identified risk. 

Main Duties/Key Responsibilities:

• Monitor the changing risk landscape that has the potential to impact MRC’s operational continuity and security and establish and maintain effective communication channels and protocols to ensure timely and accurate dissemination of information during a crisis or security disruption
• Ensure the effective use of emergency response and recovery plans and ensure appropriate interaction between strategic, tactical and operational responders
• Monitor and evaluate emerging trends, technologies, and regulatory changes related to Physical Security and Continuity Management and make recommendations for enhancements to the programme as necessary
• Support the undertaking of physical security audits and risk assessments as well as the delivery of continuous improvement in close coordination with UKRI Head of Physical Security, leveraging advice as required
• Lead the response and recovery efforts during incidents, ensuring that appropriate actions are taken to minimise the impact on the organisation's operations and reputation
• Prepare and present reports and recommendations to senior management and executive leadership on the status of the business continuity programme
• Support the Health and Safety (H&S) Manager and Business Continuity & Security (BC&S) Lead to help ensure MRC maintains a robust set of business continuity plans for each of its institutes and systems, in accordance with best practice (ISO 22301 and BCI GPG 2013)
• Provide input into the operational business continuity risk analysis and business impact analysis
• Provide support and assistance to maintain the physical security of our sites
• Undertake physical security audits, risk assessments and reviews of current procedures and practices, making recommendations for change or amendment as required
• Provide support for all MRC Risk and Assurance activities when the H&S Manager and BC&S Lead are absent
• Coordinate and facilitate regular training and awareness programs to enhance the organisation's preparedness and response capabilities
• Conduct thorough risk assessments to identify potential threats and vulnerabilities to the organisation's operations and, where necessary, the production of papers and reports, as well as updating and management of the MRC documents within the UKRI Security and BCM SharePoint repository
• Engage with all security representatives to maintain business continuity and physical security roles and responsibilities across the MRC and the wider organisation

Working Relationships:

The post-holder will report to the H&S Manager, who leads on the MRC Security and Continuity requirements. 

The post-holder will also liaise with the MRC’s Centres, Institutes and Units BCM Leads in order to provide support and guidance to develop and maintain an up-to-date business continuity program, including, where necessary, policies, procedures and plans, in alignment with industry best practices and regulatory requirements. 

The post-holder will be responsible for collaborating with cross-functional teams to ensure the development and testing of business continuity and disaster recovery plans for critical business functions and systems.

Equality & Diversity:

The MRC values the diverse skills and experience of its employees and is committed to achieving equality of treatment for all.  Our objectives are that all individuals shall have equal opportunities for employment and advancement on the basis of their skills, aptitudes and abilities.  The MRC is committed to the engagement and retention of the best possible talent and to creating an environment that encourages excellence in scientific research through good equality and diversity leadership and management. 

Corporate/Local Responsibilities & Requirements:

The post-holder must at all times carry out their responsibilities with due regard to the MRC’s:

• Code of Conduct
• Equality and Diversity policy
• Health and Safety policy
• Data Protection and Security policy 

Job descriptions should be reviewed on a regular basis and at the annual appraisal.  Any changes should be made and agreed between the post-holder and their manager.

The above lists are not exhaustive, and the post-holder is required to undertake such duties as may reasonably be requested within the scope of the post.  All employees are required to act professionally, cooperatively and flexibly in line with the requirements of the post and the MRC. 

Person Specification 1  

Education/Qualifications/Training Required:

Essential:

• Recognised Business Continuity Management qualification and/or membership of a professional related body (e.g., MBCI, MSyl) 

Desirable:

• Educated to degree level or have equivalent relevant experience
• Qualifications in Corporate Risk Management and/or IT Service Management

Previous Work Experience Required:

Essential:

• Experience of delivering BCM programs in keeping with Business Continuity Industry good practice 

Desirable:

• Experience in Corporate Risk Management and/or IT Service Management
• Experience in undertaking basic level physical security site audits

Knowledge and Experience:

Essential:

• Excellent presentation skills, with experience of facilitating meetings and workshops and delivering BCM training and exercises at all levels
• Self-sufficient in use of office IT systems, including Microsoft Office, especially Word, PowerPoint, Excel, SharePoint

 Desirable:

• Strong stakeholder engagement skills and the ability to influence, persuade and negotiate
• Proactive and creative approach to change and continuous improvement
• Broad understanding of UKRI and the MRC, its operations and its constituent parts

Personal skills/Behaviours/Qualities:

Essential:

• Effective communicator capable of engaging with management at all levels and influencing at senior management levels
• Excellent attention to detail, planning and organisation skills
• Excellent report writing skills

 Desirable:

• Resilience, multi-tasking and ability to work to deadlines

Further Information 1  

Additional Information:

The post-holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role.  UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.

The MRC is a great place to work and progress your career, be it in scientific research or the support functions.The MRC is a unique working environment where our researchers are rewarded by world class innovation and collaboration opportunities that the MRC name brings. The MRC is an excellent place to develop yourself further and a range of training & development opportunities will be available to you, including professional registration with the Science Council.
Choosing to come to work at the MRC (part of UKRI) means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme and excellent holiday entitlement to access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme, as well as the chance to put the MRC and UKRI on your CV in the future.
Our success is dependent upon our ability to embrace diversity and draw on the skills, understanding and experience of all our people. We welcome applications from all sections of the community irrespective of gender, race, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability or age. As "Disability Confident" employers, we guarantee to interview all applicants with disabilities who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy.
UKRI supports research in areas that include animal health, agriculture and food security, and bioscience for health which includes research on animals, genetic modification and stem cell research. Whilst you may not have direct involvement in this type of research, you should consider whether this conflicts with your personal values or beliefs.
We will conduct a full and comprehensive pre-employment check as an essential part of the recruitment process on all individuals that are offered a position with UKRI. This will include a security check and an extreme organisations affiliation check.  The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role.  UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.