The British Embassy in Rabat invites applications for the position of Pro Consul, job grade Administrative Officer (AO).

The jobholder will report to the Vice Consul/ Head of Morocco Consular Network and work as part of a 5-person Consular Team within the British Embassy in Rabat. You will deliver high-quality consular services to British people in Morocco, ensuring they receive professional, high-quality service and that advice provided is accurate, timely, and consistent, and offered in a sensitive manner and in line with Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) guidance.

In addition to providing consular assistance to British people in need, the jobholder will build partnerships with the British community, Moroccan authorities, and other stakeholders, and work to maintain high levels of consular and crisis preparedness.

In response to local or regional crisis, the jobholder will play a key role in the section’s response and deployment and must be willing to deploy temporarily and at short notice to other countries if required.

Consular work can sometimes be stressful, distressing and of a sensitive nature. The successful applicant will therefore be expected to demonstrate high levels of personal resilience and maintain absolute consular confidentiality and impartiality, keeping in line with the FCDO Consular Strategy, consular guidance and Customer Charter, business targets, and local procedures. 

Duties and responsibilities:

– Consular assistance (50%): Provision of consular assistance to distressed or vulnerable British Nationals (BNs). This will include

• Advising and assisting victims/ families following the hospitalisation or bereavement of British people by liaising with local police, hospitals, funeral directors, courts, insurance companies, and other local authorities, and offering help and advice where required.
• Assisting BNs (and their families) following their arrest and detention by liaising with courts, prisons, lawyers, and other local authorities. Conducting periodic prison visits.
• Advising and assisting BNs and their families in distress, including procedures for dealing with missing persons.
• Providing consular assistance by telephone, e-mail, in person, or by visiting customers, sometimes (though very rarely) out-of-hours/ at weekends if there is an emergency which requires local action.
• Providing timely and accurate written records of case actions taken and written and verbal updates to senior embassy and HQ staff in the UK.
• Administrative work, e.g., filing, completing consular returns, and updating consular information.

– Consular services (25%)

• Process requests for notarial services, e.g., marriage documentation.
• Process requests for Emergency Travel Documents (ETDs) and Emergency Passports.

– Prevention communications and outreach (15%)

• Working to help to deliver high quality local prevention and communications work, working closely with the Embassy’s Press/ Communications Team and other senior stakeholders. Producing materials, using social media, and attending events.
• Monitor changes in local procedures and practices, ensuring that all information and guidance for BNs reflects changes and is up to date, e.g., service providers, lawyers list, travel advice, web pages.

– Crisis planning and response (10%)

• Contribute to crisis planning work within Morocco, including helping to maintain consular elements of the Crisis Management Plan.
• Maintain readiness to respond to a declared crisis.
• Provide prompt and professional assistance to BNs caught up in a crisis, including working outside of normal office hours and deploying to the scene of the incident where appropriate.
• Provide regional crisis cover, both remotely and through deployment to other countries where required.

The above list is not exhaustive, and the jobholder will be required to be flexible as specific responsibilities could change in the future and this would be at the discretion of the line manager. The job description may be reviewed to meet changes in business needs. The jobholder may also take on other ad hoc tasks as required.

Key behaviours required:

• Delivering at Pace – Take responsibility for delivering timely and quality results with focus and drive.
• Managing a Quality Service – Deliver service objectives with professional excellence, expertise, and efficiency, taking account of diverse customer needs.
• Changing and Improving – Seek out opportunities to create effective change and suggest innovative ideas for improvement. Review ways of working, including seeking and providing feedback.
• Working Together – Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources, and support.

Eligibility:

Applicants must have the right to work and live in Morocco.

• Confident and clear communicator, fluent in English, French, and Arabic/ Darija languages, both verbal and written. Able to express ideas and messages clearly and concisely and adapt communication so others can understand.
• Proven experience in a customer-facing role, meeting the needs of a wide range of customers.
• Flexibility and patience to deal with often difficult and demanding situations, including the ability to sometimes work unsocial hours in a consular emergency or crisis.
• Excellent interpersonal and active listening skills. Proven track record of developing and maintaining a range of external contacts.
• A team player who is capable of working on their initiative and who is adaptable to changing priorities. Must be able to work and act without close supervision.
• Willing and able to travel, sometimes at short notice, in response to operational needs.
• IT literate, and well versed in Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams) and other common IT software to improve team communication and delivery.