Roles and responsibilities / what will the jobholder be expected to achieve?

Providing assistance and services to distressed British people in Taiwan (70%)

• Advise and assist British people and their families following  hospitalisation,bereavement, arrest, detention, missing persons cases, rape and sexual assault or other serious welfare issues,  including by liaising with local police, prisons, detention facilities, hospitals, funeral directors, courts, insurance companies, and other local authorities and offering help and advice where required.
• Manage a busy and varied portfolio of consular casework, including a significant volume of arrest and detention cases, ensuring cases are prioritised appropriately and handled in line with FCDO guidance, safeguarding considerations and local procedures.
• Assist British people (and their families) following arrest or detention by liaising with courts, prisons, lawyers, and other local authorities. Undertake regular prison visits, including travel within Taiwan.
• Assess risk and vulnerability in individual cases, escalating appropriately and seeking guidance where needed, while maintaining professional boundaries and confidentiality.
• Communicate complex or unwelcome information clearly, sensitively and professionally, including explaining the limits of consular assistance and managing expectations of British nationals, their families and other stakeholders.
• Provide timely and accurate written records of case actions, and prepare written and verbal updates for internal teams, regional colleagues and HQ staff in the UK.
• Provide assistance by telephone, email, through visits or in person at the British Office Taipei. Sometimes (though rarely) you may be required to work out-of-hours or at weekends if there is an emergency which requires local action.
• Issue Emergency Travel Documents (ETDs) and providing other documentary services in line with guidance.

Communication, Outreach and Prevention (20%)

• Cultivate and maintain effective working relationships with key external partners including Taiwanese authorities, detention facilities, police, hospitals, service providers and others.
• Assist in producing and developing prevention campaigns aimed at tackling the causes behind British people requiring assistance.
• Lead on outreach for an area of assistance work, including developing local knowledge and contacts.
• Lead in maintaining accurate, regularly updated public information on GOV.UK.
• Manage customer bookings using the FCDO’s automated booking system.
• Manage and drive improvements to service delivery, including responsibility for accurate information and service provider lists for inclusion into published documentation and guidance.

Business Continuity, Crisis Management and Corporate Objective (10%)

• Provide coverage and support to the section during periods of leave and essential training.
• Contribute to and participate in crisis management, including helping to maintain and test consular elements of the Crisis Management Plan.
• Contribute to the wider consular network across Asia Pacific, including supporting regional teams, engaging with regional conferences and ongoing learning and development.
• Provide prompt and professional assistance to British people caught up in a crisis, including working outside of normal office hours and deploying to the scene of the incident where appropriate.

All staff will be expected to make a corporate contribution to the smooth running of the British Office Taipei, either through committee membership or another voluntary role that supports the vision and values of the office.