Mate, Woolwich Ferries

Job Description

Organisation – Woolwich Ferry
Job – River Services
Position Type – Full Time

Due to the expected high response to these vacancies we reserve the right to close this campaign once we have a suitable pool of applicants, which could be prior to the published application closing date.

For this recruitment campaign, as part of TfL’s continuing commitment to be an inclusive and equal opportunity employer we will be removing personal identifiable information from your application that could cause discrimination.

Mate – Woolwich Ferry

Location: Woolwich Ferry

Salary: £43,373 + 10% non-consolidated allowance

Apply for this role here

The role

The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry service across the River Thames in East London. The ferry service links Woolwich in the Royal Borough of Greenwich on the south bank, to North Woolwich in the borough of Newham on the north bank. It also links two ends of the inner London orbital road routes, the North and South Circulars. In excess of two million passengers use the ferry service each year.

There has been a Thames ferry service at Woolwich since the 14th Century. The original small open hand powered vessels and thereafter paddle steamers, are a long way from the two-diesel electric battery hybrid vessels which entered service early in 2019, accompanied by the intelligent docking and locking systems (IDLS) at the north and south terminals.

The Woolwich Ferry Service is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm of Transport for London (TfL). Following the Mayor of London’s announcement on 10th February 2020 the service has been transferred in house to Transport for London full technical and operational management.

The transition programme to facilitate this is well under way and as part of this transition we are recruiting for Mates.

As the Mate, you will be responsible for the safe and efficient management of the Woolwich Ferries and crew under the direction of the Captain, and in whose absence you will act with the full responsibility and accountability for the safe operation of the vessel, the welfare of the crew and passengers, the protection of the marine environment; and in so doing will assume the full responsibilities as outlined in the Captain job description.

You will be working as part of a roster which includes night shift working.

Key Accountabilities:

· Ensure WF services meet or exceed the TfL/WF KPI’s at all times.

· Ensure full compliance with WF Safety Management System, and other regulatory authority requirements, at all times particularly in respect of vessels and crew.

· Monitor all vessel operations, berthing, navigation, passenger and vehicle transfer systems are functioning correctly, and report defects and abnormalities in a timely way to the Engineering manager or Engineer on board as appropriate.

· Maintain all on board equipment including machinery, engines and safety equipment and ensure regular inspections are carried out on such.

· Investigate any damage to the vessel, personal injuries to the crew, and any marine environmental incidents, and to assist the Captain in liaison with the Emergency Services or regulatory authorities in emergency situations.

· Supervise the safe mooring and unmooring of the vessel at all times.

· Uphold TfL and WF standards of customer service for passengers, and to be responsible for the passenger count protocols and reporting for every voyage.

· Managing staff including crew and car park, including but not limited to rostering, training or development, toolbox talks on changes in the operational or regulatory environments.

· Ensure that the North and South terminal car parking areas are adequately resourced at all times. Maintain and manage communications across the operation.

· Any reasonable management requests and flexibility to support the operation..

Knowledge:

· Must hold a current, valid, Level 1, Tier 2, Boatmasters License for category D, UK inland waterways and Local Knowledge Endorsement for are of vessel operation, or minimum STCW 2/1 OOW or 500t Master. (Essential)

· In all cases relevant STCW basic safety certificates. (Desirable)

· In depth and in date maritime regulatory knowledge and application.

· Expert knowledge of crewing and WF Safety Management System, competent crewing, vessel and auxiliary machinery operation. (Desirable)

Skills:

· Competent in the use of vessel control systems.

· Strong literacy and numeracy skills.

· Efficient crew rostering and operational cover requirements.

· Ability to write detailed investigative reports.

· Excellent verbal and written communications.

· Leadership skills.

Experience:

· Experience of watchkeeping, either at sea or on inland waterways, on board a passenger/freight/vehicle ferry, including knowledge of crewing arrangements and practices.

· Overarching accountability for vessel maintenance and upkeep.

· Promotion of safe operating procedures.

· Management of crew and car park staff performance and conduct.

· Experience of enforcing high level competency standards and working practices.

· Taking command in emergency situations including the effective management of crew and liaison with regulatory authorities and emergency services.

This is a safety critical role; therefore, Occupational Health Clearance will be required.

Application Process

Please think carefully about the skills, knowledge and experience outlined in the job description and ensure your CV and cover letter reflects the requirements of the role you are applying for. Short listing will be carried out on the basis of answers to any pre-screening questions and the information on your CV and covering letter.

As part of the application process for this position, you are required to upload both a CV and a Covering Letter to your application before submitting. Applications with either CV or Covering Letter missing will be classed as incomplete and will not be progressed.

To be compatible with our anonymisation software, these must be in Microsoft Word doc.x format. Failure to upload documents in this format means that they may not be processed.

Assessment Process

The recruitment process consists of 2 stages. You will need to pass each stage to progress onto the next:

Stage 1: Online Application on Taleo and screening questions

Please apply using your CV and a one-page covering letter. Word format preferred and do not include any photographs or images.

Stage 2: Assessment centre consisting of a group exercise and scenario-based interview.

Outcomes

You will receive your outcome once the wash up has concluded with the business, which will be within 1 week of the final assessments.

Appointment to post

In order to be appointed to a post, candidates must successfully pass a basic criminal records check, employment referencing, medical screening and a drug & alcohol test.

Although you may be successful and offered the role – you may not commence employment in the role or start training immediately. There may be a requirement to delay your start date until you are required.

Campaign Timetable

The campaign is running to a very specific delivery timescale as determined by the business and there will only be enough slots for the number of candidates invited. Dates for the Assessment Centre will be opened at the same time for you to book into. You are therefore encouraged to schedule into an assessment event as early as possible. If you do not book an assessment, you will be withdrawn from the campaign. Please note that no further dates will be made available as we have provided you with notice of when the assessment centres will be held.

Attending an Assessment Event:

You will receive an email request inviting you to book into an assessment event.

You will receive confirmation of your booking together with any relevant information required for your assessment at the time of booking.

Please ensure:

1. You have an active email address on Taleo where correspondence, invitations to assessment events and practice material can be sent. Please note emails can sometimes appear in spam/junk.

2. All your contact details including phone numbers, address and email are updated and current on your application.

Candidate Charter:

You can download a copy of the Candidate Charter here. This outlines our commitment to you as a candidate by providing insight into our recruitment process. It also outlines our expectations with regards to your engagement with us, to ensure that you receive the best recruitment experience possible, as we believe you should know the standards of service you can expect from us. You must read this document prior to submitting your application in order to understand every aspect of the process.

Reasonable Adjustment Process:

If you require reasonable adjustments, you must notify the recruitment team at least 48 hours (excluding weekends) prior to your scheduled assessment event to allow us to accommodate your requirements. You will then be sent a confirmation email which you will need to bring to your assessment. If you fail to bring this on the day your adjustments will not be granted, and you will be unable to re-book.

We will consider that you are the expert regarding your own requirements, and we will consider all requests fairly within the context of the role.

Please take the time to read the Disability Charter here.

Notice of Cancellation

We require you to give a minimum of 48 hours’ notice of cancellation or re-schedule. Non-attendance at your Assessment Event may lead to your application being withdrawn.

Please note: Your assessment may be rescheduled once only and reschedules will only be granted if there are assessment slots available, so please make sure you check you can make an appointment before booking. Subsequent cancellation may lead to your application being withdrawn. If you do not follow the process outlined in the Candidate Charter you risk being withdrawn from the campaign.

TfL Benefits

In return for your dedication and expertise, you will enjoy excellent benefits and scope to grow. Rewards vary according to the business area and role, but may include:

· Free travel for you on the TfL network

· A 75% discount on National Rail Season Ticket and interest free loan

· 30 days annual leave plus public and bank holidays

· Private healthcare discounted scheme (optional)

· Tax-efficient childcare payments

· Tax-efficient cycle-to-work programme

· Retail, health, leisure and travel offers

· Discounted Eurostar travel

Diversity statement

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. We want to represent the city we serve, which will help us become a more innovative and efficient organisation. Our goal is to make our recruitment as inclusive as possible. We are a disability confident employer who guarantee an interview to any disabled candidate who meets all of the essential criteria. We also use anonymising software that removes identifying information from CVs and cover letters to make the process fair.

Contacting Us

If at any time you need to speak to anyone within the Recruitment Team, then please contact us on 0203 005 1680 (local rate charges from all phones including mobiles) or email HighVolumeCampaigns@tfl.gov.uk