Business Officer

Posting date:	08 January 2026
Salary:	£29,715 to £34,435 per year
Additional salary information:	National: £29,715-£30,705 London: £33,350-£34,435 For details of our pay on appointment policy, please see below under the heading ‘Salary’.
Hours:	Full time
Closing date:	21 January 2026
Location:	London
Company:	Government Recruitment Service
Job type:	Permanent
Job reference:	443521/2

Summary

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is the UK government department responsible for safeguarding our natural environment, supporting our world-leading food and farming industry, and sustaining a thriving rural economy. Our broad remit means we play a major role in people's day-to-day life, from the food we eat, and the air we breathe, to the water we drink.

Who are you?

We are Strategy Group Business Management Team. We provide resourcing, finance, corporate, business improvement and Senior Leader support to two of Defra’s six core operating groups. It’s fair to say our senior leaders do amazing things because of the work we do in the background.

We’re looking for a Business Officer in our Senior Leader Support team. You’ll be enabling two Deputy Directors (DDs) to deliver their jobs as effectively as possible by prioritising their time and shaping their agenda.

As part of this you will join a cross-cutting team providing important services and support to the Group.

Encouraging diverse applicants

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups.

What you’ll be doing:

Hope you’re up for a challenge because there’ll be all the admin bits like supporting with the day-to-day management of their diaries, inboxes, logistics, note- and minute-taking. Beyond that, you’ll be their voice and their ears on the ground, heading off problems before they happen, and making sure your DDs know what they need to know when they need to know it. In short, you’ll be the hero they didn’t know they needed. You’ll also be rubbing shoulders with senior stakeholders and leaders at the top of the civil service tree.

You’ll be brimful of great ideas and creative solutions. If you can think of a way to work better and add genuine value to your DDs’ teams then that’s what we’re here for.

Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme

About Disability Confident

A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.