Civil Defence Officer

THE COMPETITION:

The Council is seeking applications from suitably qualified candidates with relevant experience for the position of Civil Defence Officer (Grade VI) from which fulltime, permanent and fixed-term contracts posts may be filled.

Civil Defence is a statutory volunteer based organisation. It currently has approximately 2,500 volunteer members nationally. There is a Civil Defence Unit in each local authority area. The Department of Defence, through its Civil Defence Branch, is responsible for the overall policy direction of Civil Defence.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE POST:

Character:

Each candidate must be of good character.

Citizenship:Candidates must, by the date of any job offer, be:

a)          A citizen of the European Economic Area (EEA). The EEA consists of the Member States of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway; or

b)          A citizen of the United Kingdom (UK); or

c)          A citizen of Switzerland pursuant to the agreement between the EU and Switzerland on the free movement of persons; or

d)          A non-EEA citizen who is a spouse or child of an EEA or UK or Swiss citizen and has a stamp 4 visa: or

e)          A person awarded international protection under the International Protection Act 2015 or any family member entitled to remain in the State as a result of family reunification and has a stamp 4 visa or

f)            A non-EEA citizen who is a parent of a dependent child who is a citizen of, and resident in, an EEA member state or the UK or Switzerland and has a stamp 4 visa.

Health

Candidates shall be in a state of health such as would indicate a reasonable prospect of ability to render regular and efficient service. Successful candidates will be required to undergo a medical examination carried out by the Council’s Occupational Medical advisor prior to appointment.

Education, training, experience, etc

Each candidate must, on the latest date for receipt of completed application forms –

(a)            possess a good standard of administrative experience including in the use of IT,

(b)            possess a good general standard of education,

(c)             possess a full, clean Class B driving licence, and

(d)            experience in the supervision and development of staff/volunteers.

Experience in Civil Defence or in other volunteer based emergency organisations is desirable.

DETAILS AND PARTICULARS:

The Civil Defence Officer, who is an employee of the local authority, is responsible for the day to day management of the Civil Defence Unit.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSBILITIES:

The duties of the Civil Defence Officer are as follows:

1.     To assist in the preparation and submission in a timely manner and in consultation with local authority management, of the three-year Civil Defence plan as required under Section 8 of the Civil Defence Act, 2023.

2.     To co-ordinate the arrangements necessary for the implementation of the Civil Defence plan,

3.     To represent Civil Defence on local emergency planning structures and to promote good relations with key personnel in the Principal Response Agencies,

4.     To provide support to the Principal Response Agencies in emergency and non-emergency situations in accordance with the 2015 White Paper on Defence, the Towards 2030 policy document and the Framework for Major Emergency Management,

5.     Where resources permit, to provide support for community, charitable and local authority events,

6.     To implement and comply with policies, circulars and guidelines (including the Civil Defence Act (Code of Practice) Regulations 2023) as set out by the Civil Defence Branch of the Department of Defence in consultation with their line manager,

7.     To liaise with the Civil Defence Branch of the Department of Defence on behalf of the local authority and to attend meetings for that purpose,

8.     To attend training provided by the Department of Defence and the local authority,

9.     To arrange for the recruitment, organisation and management of Civil Defence volunteers,

10. To ensure that Civil Defence volunteers are appropriately trained including mandatory training, to facilitate progression of training for volunteers, including completing an annual training needs analysis,

11. To follow instructions issued by the Department of Defence in relation to the processing of the annual operational grant and any other grants that are provided,

12. To follow instructions issued by the local authority/Department of Defence for the purchase, care, maintenance, issue and control of Civil Defence uniforms, vehicles and equipment,

13. To maintain adequate records, including ongoing completion of the Volunteer and Equipment Management System, in the manner required and any other reporting requirements as may arise,

14. To promote Civil Defence in the local authority area,

15. Such other Civil Defence duties appropriate to the office as the Chief Executive of the local authority and/or Department of Defence may assign, including emergency duties and duties in relation to the area of any other local authority.

Probation

The successful candidate shall be required to be on probation for an initial period, as determined by the Council. This period may be extended at the discretion of the Council.

Salary

Remuneration will be at the Civil Defence Officer of the national wage scales. The present minimum scale is €56,754 increasing to €69,337 per annum (including LSIs) with annual increments subject to satisfactory performance via PMDS. The rate of remuneration may be adjusted from time to time in line with Government pay policy.

Garda Vetting/Child Protection

This post may come within scope of the Local Authorities Garda Vetting Scheme. Accordingly, candidates may be requested to complete and sign a Consent Form to permit the required vetting to be completed, in respect of candidates to whom the position will be offered, prior to taking up duty.

Annual Leave

The annual leave entitlement for this post will be 30 days per annum.

Granting of annual leave, payment for annual leave and arrangement from public holidays will be governed by the provisions of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997.

Working Hours

The post entails a wide range of duties which require maximum flexibility and will be based on a 35 hour week, involving regular evening and weekend attendance where necessary. The Council reserves the right to alter the hours of work from time to time.

Pension:

The Local Government Superannuation Scheme applies.

Acceptance of Offer of Employment

Cavan County Council shall require persons to whom appointments are offered to take up

such appointments within a period of not more than one month and if they fail to take up

the appointment within such period or such longer period as the local authority in its

absolute discretion may determine, Cavan County Council shall not appoint them.

Communications:

Cavan County Council will contact you when necessary, at each stage of the competition by phone, post or email. It is strongly recommended that you do not change your email address or mobile phone number in the course of this recruitment competition, as any email will be sent to the email address originally supplied on your application form.

It is important to note that the email address you provide when applying must be one that you can access at all times. The onus is on the applicant to inform the Human Resources Department of any change in postal address throughout the recruitment and selection campaign. This can be done by emailing:

The onus is also on each applicant to ensure that she/he is in receipt of all communication from Cavan County Council. Cavan County Council does not accept responsibility for communications not accessed or received by an applicant.

CLICK THE APPLY BUTTON TO GO TO THEIR CAREERS PAGE WHERE YOU CAN CHECK THIS JOB AND ALL OTHER OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE.