Main Purpose of Job:

We are seeking a dynamic and customer-oriented Vice Consul, Head of the Consular Section to join and manage the consular team based in the British Embassy Bogota, Colombia. The team is also part of the Americas Consular Network. The Americas Consular Network provides high quality, professional, empathetic services to British nationals, providing tailored support to the most vulnerable, encourages British nationals to take personal responsibility, works with stakeholders to reduce risks and is ready to scale and flex our response in a crisis.

The successful applicant will lead day-to-day consular operations, manage and deliver a targeted consular prevention programme and ensure the provision of high quality consular support to British nationals in Colombia.

The role will involve interaction with members of the public, local, regional and UK authorities and organisations, as well as colleagues across the Americas Consular Network and London in order to fulfil the delivery of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office’s (FCDO’s) Consular Strategy. As a Head of Section, the role will also require collaboration across the Embassy, including engagement with senior management on a regular basis, the line management of one staff member and of the Honorary Consuls/Consular Agents network in Colombia.

The Vice-Consul will report to, and be managed by, the Consular Regional Operations Manager (CROM) based in Bogota, Colombia.

Roles and Responsibilities:

•    Oversee and provide guidance to the Consular team in Bogota, and to the wider network of Honorary Consuls and Consular Agents around Colombia;
•    Ensure service delivery, audit requirements, and case management exceed the minimum expected standards and are in line with the Consular Strategy, Consular Charter and FCDO Consular Guidance;
•    Conduct a strategic review of active consular casework; liaising with UK, Post and regional stakeholders as appropriate to effectively manage high profile and/or complex cases;
•    Monitor casework trends, making recommendations and adjustment to casework management and/or prevention activity as appropriate in consultation with key stakeholders;
•    Provide consular assistance in accordance with current guidelines including, but not limited to, visiting British nationals in hospital, jail or mortuary, providing support following bereavement, child custody matters, sexual assault, and cases involving mental health issues. Provide reports and coordinate strategy discussions with senior leadership on high profile cases. And ad hoc notarial and Emergency Travel Documents production.Work with senior leadership to ensure accurate travel advice for Colombia;
•    Proactively identify, manage, deliver and evaluate prevention activities; working in conjunction with political and other internal teams. This will include representation at events, public speaking duties and project management;
•    Develop and maintain positive relationships with local authorities (e.g. police, prison service, immigration, Ombudsman, hospitals, ministries and children’s services), key stakeholders (e.g. travel and tourism industry, support groups, NGOs) and other diplomatic missions; 
•    Resolving customer concerns effectively and fairly, pre-empting these where possible; reviewing the consular service offering at Post and the customer journey utilised on case management;
•    Bid for and manage the consular budget ensuring that resources are profiled accurately, used effectively and in accordance with published guidance. Highlight concerns and leverage opportunities to maximise spend in a timely manner; 
•    Lead on Consular aspects of the whole of mission crisis response. Ensure the Consular team is fully trained and assist the Honorary Consuls in ensuring they take relevant training and understand their role in a crisis. Respond to crisis events as necessary; 
•    Work with  colleagues in the Americas Consular Region contributing as necessary to help shape the development and application of consular strategy and policy in the network, provide resilience when necessary and share best practice;
•    Provide out of hours assistance to emergency consular cases as appropriate.

Resources Managed:

Staff: Line management of 1 x AO(L) Pro-Consuls and management of 9 Honorary Consuls/Consular Agents
Budgets: Manage the Consular section budget for travel and prevention activity (approx £10,000 yearly).