Deputy Receiver of Wreck

Maritime and Coastguard Agency

https://www.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/jobs.cgi?jcode=1839620

We are looking for an organised individual to join us as a Deputy Receiver of Wreck within the HM Coastguard Directorate at the MCA.   

The Deputy Receiver of Wreck will work with their fellow deputies to support the Receiver of Wreck to fulfil the duties specified in Part IX of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995.  This includes administering cases of voluntary salvage, determining ownership of wreck, determining and administering salvage awards, enforcing wreck  and salvage law and responding to wreck related incidents.

The Deputy will have all the powers afforded to a Receiver of Wreck by the legislation and will be warranted to act in this capacity.

The successful applicant will also support in managing the disposal of deceased Royal Fish (whales, dolphins, porpoises, and sturgeon) on behalf of the Crown.

The Receiver of Wreck team undertakes outreach activities to engage with and educate key stakeholders on their legal responsibilities in relation to wreck and salvage, and Royal Fish.

This is a unique and interesting role which provides plenty of opportunity to learn and develop.  The successful applicant will enjoy a variety of work and stakeholder engagement and will be involved in the improvement of service.    

Responsibilities

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Administering cases of voluntary salvage and handling wreck reports appropriately.
• Determining legal ownership of wreck and documenting the decisions appropriately.
• Investigating and enforcing wreck related crime, including execution of search warrants, the seizure of property, interviews under caution, giving statements, taking witness statements and court appearances.
• Being responsible for the management of salvage awards, sale of wreck, contractor payments and general Receiver of Wreck expenses, including the raising of requisition requests, purchase orders and ensuring payments are made promptly. Recovering costs incurred by the Receiver of Wreck.
• Assisting with outreach and education programmes working with the Communications team and other Maritime and Coastguard Agency stakeholders where appropriate.

Please see the attached Role Profile for more detailed information about the role and responsibilities.

This role will be based in the Southampton HQ. MCA supports flexible working and operates a hybrid working model between home and office for this role, giving you greater flexibility over where and when you work. Details of the arrangement will be discussed further with your line manager.

The Deputy Receiver will be part of the out of hours on-call rota. This may be as often as fortnightly. The on-call Receiver of Wreck may be required to attend the scene of a maritime incident.

Due to the nature of the role and because the Receiver of Wreck’s jurisdiction is UK wide, the role may involve some travel and overnight stays within the UK, this could be at short notice.

The role includes occasional evening and weekend working.

A full driving licence valid for driving in the UK is required

Person specification

To be successful in this role you will come to us with experience of applying Part IX of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 and a good understanding of other relevant maritime and heritage legislation in order to successfully assist in all areas of administration relating to matters of wreck and salvage within UK waters and respond to incidents involving wreck and salvage throughout the UK. 

You are proficient in utilising Microsoft office and work well as part of a team, agile in your approach and able to support and work with others to achieve successful outcomes.

You will have strong communication skills with the ability to converse and quickly build rapport with individuals at all levels of seniority from various communities.  You will be confident speaking publicly when representing and highlighting the requirements of wreck and salvage law in a variety of public and Government fora, including at conferences and other events.   

You have good judgement and problem solving skills and are able to make sound evidence based decisions, backing these up where required.

Excellent organisation and attention to detail is key in this role and you are able to balance and prioritise tasks in order to meet deadlines which is important in many aspects of this role such as when leading in the enforcement of relevant legislation, gathering evidence as part of the investigation and prosecution process, preparing material for court and providing evidence in court.