This occupation is found in:
public, private and not-for-profit sector, usually in the Civil Service, Local Authorities and non-governmental organisations. However, they may also work in charities, unions and private businesses. Policy officers work in varied environments including in an office, onsite, or remotely. On occasion they may work with other stakeholders at their sites or overseas.
The broad purpose of the occupation is:
to help shape or influence public policy. Public policy involves enacting solutions to improve the health, welfare, and prosperity of citizens.
Policy officers are responsible for the development, implementation or evaluation phases of policymaking. They also develop and implement strategies to shape and influence public policy within the remit of their organisation. They may specialise in a specific policy area, such as healthcare, housing, employment, transport, trade, the environment, national security or international relations, or work across several policy areas.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with:
interacts with a range of internal stakeholders. This includes members of their own team and other departments such as IT, legal, HR, marketing, senior management, and the board of directors. They interact with external stakeholders such as subject matter experts or specialists (e.g., in communications, public affairs, finance, legal or operations). They also interact with customers, members of the public, service providers, the media, think tanks or research institutes, local and central government, regulators and international bodies.
Policy officers work with their stakeholders towards joint goals. They build partnerships with other organisations and bodies with similar interests. They may facilitate conferences, forums, roundtable discussions and events to discuss policy issues, strengthen their own knowledge and build their network.
An employee in this occupation will be responsible for:
providing support and advice to decision-makers, such as senior managers, board members, ministers, or other stakeholders. They assist them in developing options for responding to an issue or creating a change. They work to implement policy interventions by creating a set of actions and working with partners to deliver them.
Policy officers research the political or organisational environment in order to support the development of a policy, or to influence policy decisions. They gather evidence to contribute to policy making processes such as policy formulation or monitoring policy developments and lobbying accordingly.
They manage sensitive information and keep accurate records of policy history that will inform the evaluation of past and present policies. Policy officers obtain input from key stakeholders whilst they prepare and draft submissions, reports, briefings, or options papers for senior managers. They may deal with external customer, stakeholder and formal correspondence, working within set deadlines and adhering to processes, escalating issues not within the remit of their role. They support the development and delivery of training or coaching on new or existing policies to their stakeholders.
Policy officers work on their own and in a range of team settings. They work within agreed budgets and available resources. On occasion they may work without high levels of supervision, for example, when conducting research and analysis. They will work as part of the wider policy team on other duties, for example, when gathering information and providing briefings to senior colleagues and managers. They may occasionally be responsible for decision making, but more often will guide or influence the decisions of others. Policy officers may manage a small team and contribute towards budget management.
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Duty 1 Conduct research and analysis on the relevant policy area. |
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Duty 2 Use evidence and data to present arguments and recommendations for policy interventions to senior colleagues and stakeholders. |
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Duty 3 Develop materials or products that explain the policy area to stakeholders. |
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Duty 4 Manage and respond to formal and informal information requests concerning the policy area. |
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Duty 5 Implement agreed policies by contributing to business cases, supporting the management of contractors, managing discrete workstreams within larger projects, and engaging with external partners. |
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Duty 6 Manage projects within agreed timescales and budget. |
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Duty 7 Track, monitor and report on the progress of policy interventions against key milestones, following established governance and scrutiny processes. |
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Duty 8 Contribute to the evaluation of policy interventions using measures such as effectiveness, efficiency, customer satisfaction, and value for money, either at set stages or continually, depending on stakeholder requirements. |
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Duty 9 Manage and coordinate engagement activities with professional networks and stakeholders. |
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Duty 10 Provide technical and administrative support to policy decision making forums such as boards, committees, project groups, and steering panels. |
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Duty 11 Manage sensitive information and keep accurate records of the evolving policy landscape, including evidence used to make policy decisions, to inform evaluation of past and present policies. |
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Duty 12 Support the design, development and delivery of team training or coaching. |
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Duty 13 Monitor identified risks to policy delivery plans, and take appropriate mitigating actions. |
K1: The history, priorities, aims, issues and risks associated with their policy area.
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K2: The wider organisational environment the policy area sits in and how policymaking typically operates within it.
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K3: The political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors that impact on the policy area and the opportunities and challenges they each present.
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K4: The principles of project management tools and techniques and the importance of reviewing and maintaining plans.
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K5: The importance of achieving value for money.
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K6: The core stakeholders within the specific policy areas and how to engage with them.
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K7: Communication techniques and approaches to interact with a range of key internal and external stakeholders.
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K8: Technology and software used to present data in agreed formats for publication.
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K9: Regulatory and legislative requirements such as data protection and confidentiality, which affect practical processes such as the handling and processing of data and its application.
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K10: Policy implementation tools and processes to ensure delivery meets desired policy aims.
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K11: Evaluation methods through which policy interventions can be reviewed and improved, including cost benefit analysis and impact assessments, and their advantages and disadvantages.
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K12: The importance of horizon scanning for future changes and developments in relation to policy interpretation.
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K13: The value of a diversity of skills and expertise within teams, as well as an inclusive environment.
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K14: The organisation’s structure, strategy and priorities of organisational leaders or decision makers, and how their role supports these.
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K15: The purpose of engagement and consultation.
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K16: Different levels of engagement (from passive informing through to active co-production with those impacted by policy interventions) and methods used to achieve engagement.
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K17: The importance of monitoring and reviewing processes, including identifying and managing risks (e.g. operational, budgetary, reputational, legal).
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K18: How to measure the success of a policy, including the use of measures for progress, success, and impact.
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K19: Sources of evidence available in the relevant policy area and their strengths and weaknesses (e.g., operational data, research from charities acting in the area, academic research).
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K20: Negotiation methods and factors to be considered when conducting negotiation.
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K21: The legal, judicial and political context within which the relevant policy area is situated and how this influences policy development.
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K22: The support requirements and training needs of their team.
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S1: Undertake research and data collection from a range of primary and secondary sources to determine quality, accuracy, reliability, cognitive bias and trustworthiness of data sources.
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S2: Use analytical techniques on research and data, making use of stakeholder expertise in the policy area.
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S3: Demonstrate problem solving ability and evidence-based decision-making.
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S4: Prepare documents and present findings, making use of evidence to underpin arguments.
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S5: Adapt communication style to different audiences.
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S6: Apply project and risk management tools and techniques across the policy lifecycle.
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S7: Manage conflicting priorities to ensure work is completed within deadlines and budgets, setting own milestones to manage workload.
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S8: Manage joint work with other organisations through tasks such as creating reference documents and records of policy decisions.
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S9: Demonstrate networking and stakeholder management skills.
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S10: Facilitate events such as conferences, forums, or roundtable discussions on policy issues.
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S11: Keep accurate records of relevant information such as key data, identified trends, critiques, commentary, media attention and topical issues.
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S12: Evaluate data related to current and previous policy interventions.
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S13: Work with specialists from outside of the policy function. For example specialists in research, communications, commercial, legal, and science.
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S14: Looking beyond immediate role to larger trends which may impact on the relevant policy area, utilising big picture thinking to support organisational strategy.
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S15: Support the development and delivery of materials and activities to train their team.
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B1: Seeks learning opportunities and continuous professional development.
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B2: Works collaboratively with others.
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B3: Role models ethical behaviour and practices.
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B4: Works flexibly and adapts to different circumstances.
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B5: Has accountability and ownership of their tasks and workload.
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B6: Remains motivated and resilient under pressure.
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English and maths qualifications must be completed in line with the apprenticeship funding rules.
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