Vice Consul EO at British High Commission Nairobi

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)

Main purpose of job:

Deliver and manage consular services and assistance to British nationals in Kenya in line with our public guide Support for British nationals abroad and the Consular Charter. You will be expected to manage both straight-forward and multiple complex cases with appropriate oversight but largely without direct supervision. You will be required to deliver services to British nationals, including issuing travel documents and visiting those detained in Kenya.

You will be based at the British High Commission in Nairobi and will work closely with the other Vice Consul for Kenya to deliver consular assistance, prevention activity and consular services across Kenya, with a particular responsibility for Mombasa and other coastal areas.  You will provide cover for team members to help maintain service delivery during periods of leave and absence. You will also collaborate with colleagues across the Horn of Africa and Indian Ocean Consular Network, providing advice and remote support to neighbouring countries when needed. There will also be opportunities to provide occasional in-person support in other countries within the wider Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) Regional Consular Network.

You will lead on specific prevention projects in Kenya, writing preventative online guides, organising engagement and networking events and lobbying stakeholders to help minimise risks to British residents and visitors to Kenya. The aim of this activity is to try and prevent them from getting into difficulty or, if they do, understanding how to provide appropriate assistance. You will also support on crisis preparedness and response and will be expected to fulfil the deputy consular manager role in a crisis.

Roles and responsibilities:

Consular assistance

Leading on complex/high profile cases involving vulnerable British Nationals. This might involve supporting families of people who have been bereaved, including giving welfare assistance to destitute British people; supporting victims of crime (including rape and sexual assault) and people who have been hospitalised; as well as visiting British prisoners and responding to a host of other issues. Please note this could require visiting mortuaries and other challenging environments; and some cases will have media/parliamentary interest. Personal resilience is important.

Supporting and advising consular colleagues in the Horn of Africa and Indian Ocean region on complex assistance cases and where needed.

Prevention

Leading on prevention projects and initiatives that support British nationals on the most relevant risks and issues that affect British people. This could include hosting workshops, organising events and generally working on themes such as complex death cases, mental health, addiction and recovery, tourism safety, victims of crime (including Rape & Sexual Assault) and homelessness/destitution.

Identify and lobby stakeholders and national/local government authorities on key consular issues, with support from colleagues. Build and maintain productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders through regular engagement and outreach.

Prevention fundamentals – research and draft online guides (e.g. bereavement and prisoner guides) for UK government web pages.

Crisis

In a crisis, or when supporting on a complex case, you may be expected to travel at short notice or work outside of normal contracted hours. This could include being asked if you can provide regional resilience in the region.

Support crisis preparedness and response at post. This includes contributing to the CMP, planning the consular aspects of crisis response, and acting as deputy consular manager in a crisis.

Consular services

Managing Consular Services, such as issuing Emergency Travel Documents to British nationals.

On occasion, organising and officiating at Citizenship Ceremonies for new British nationals.

Managing people, operations and information

Meeting consular business targets and ensuring cases are updated promptly on the management system. Delivering in line with agreed Key Performance Indicators, promoting compliance, and analysing statistics to produce reports and identify trends.

Corporate

As part of the British High Commission team you will be expected to contribute to the corporate life of the mission. There are many different ways that you will be able to do this and specific roles will be discussed/agreed once you have settled into the role/mission.

You should be aware that consular work involves difficult conversations with distressed individuals and may require visiting challenging environments, such as prisons and hospitals, so emotional intelligence and personal resilience are essential.

You can expect to travel regularly to Mombasa and surrounding areas in order to build and maintain consular contacts.  You can also expect to travel a few weeks per year more widely within the SSA region and occasionally to the UK.

Essential qualifications, skills and experience

Possess excellent all-round communication skills to manage customer expectations and deliver difficult messages;

Ability to remain calm and professional under pressure when dealing with emotive subjects and distressed people;

Skills to research and follow guidelines and to plan and prioritise effectively.

Experience working in a customer facing environment and working with vulnerable people is essential.

This is a rewarding and often challenging role. You will be well supported by your line manager, wider team, and colleagues in UK, but you must have high levels of personal resilience to succeed.

Desirable qualifications, skills and experience

Experience of consular and/or crisis work or similar

Experience working in an international organisation.

Experience working in with Kenyan authorities and support organisations.

Experience delivering projects and hosting/organising events and/or workshops

Required behaviours

Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace, Making Effective Decisions, Managing a Quality Service, Working Together

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