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This Vacancy has closed.

Welfare Benefits Adviser

  • Employer: Coventry City Council
  • Reference: coventrycc/TP/68618/8556
  • Published: Mon 13/11/2023, 16:26 PM
  • Closing on: Mon 27/11/2023, 23:59 PM
  • Working Pattern: Full Time
  • Hours: 37.0 hours per week
  • Salary: £24496 - £30151
  • DBS Check: Yes
  • Location: Coventry One Friargate, Station Square, Coventry

We value diverse perspectives and experiences and are striving to create a workplace culture that is inclusive, is accepting of all and is free from discrimination and bias.

Customer Services is one of the largest departments in Coventry City Council and are the front face of the organisation.  We are usually the first port of call for customer enquiries across the council.  Our fast-paced telephone teams deal with thousands of calls and emails a week, we have a dynamic Customer Service Centre with around 2500 visitors a week approaching us for a wide range of enquiries from paying their council tax to seeking help to access services and dedicated support teams who process bookings, timesheets and general administration work for the whole organisation.

You may be based in one of several locations, we have a Customer Service Centre right in the heart of the city; Friargate – a large purpose built office by the train station along with several reception points across the city.

Joining Customer Services is a really good stepping stone into a long term career with the Council, depending on the role you are offered you will learn about other parts of the organisation

We want every single customer to have a positive experience when approaching the council and would welcome you being part of the team.

Our Values

It’s great to know that you are interested in working with us at Coventry City Council. As a prospective employee, it is important that everyone who works for us is committed to our One Coventry values and shares our commitment to becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation. 

 

Our Values are:

What is the job role?

Welfare Benefits Adviser Full Time permanent role

Passionate about people and really want to make a positive contribution to helping people in the local community?  

Do you have excellent people and communication skills along with some benefits experience?  

Yes …. You might be just who we are looking for.  

You will identify and contact low-income families to understand whether they could be supported to apply for additional benefits and to prevent homelessness.  You should have a good knowledge of income benefits and have the skills and ability to help customers resolve complex difficulties.

Duties will include:  

  • Pro-active outbound contacting of families identified as on a low-income or at risk of crisis to discuss welfare benefits and possible avenues of support.  Assisting with applications and appeals  
  • Using the benefit and budget calculator to support families to claim benefits that they may be entitled to  
  • Using the LIFT dashboard to target support to people who need it most now and uncover hidden pockets of poverty. Identify families who are struggling and who may never have engaged with is before.   
  • Responding to people and their specific circumstances, gaining their trust and understanding when issues may be deeper than the original request, so you’ll need to have excellent communication and problem-solving skills   
  • Using your network of contacts both within the Council and across the voluntary network to assist with enquiries and identify opportunities to help people, including working with partner organisations in community sites 

There will be times when you’ll need the ability to deliver difficult messages and manage expectations, while we try our best there aren’t always straight forward solutions to the challenges that people face. Resilience is important in this equally challenging and rewarding role.  

Assessments will consist of an interview and Welfare Benefits knowledge test.   

If you would like to find out more about the role or have any questions, please approach Nicole Lane on 02476 977 524 during office hours.  

Closing date for applications is 27th November 2023 at midnight with assessments to take place shortly after.

Previously unsuccessful applicants need not apply.

This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

Who are we looking for?
  • Care about delivering an excellent service to every internal and external customer
  • Excellent communication skills, confident in face to face, telephone and written activity
  • Ability to support a diverse customer base
  • Ability to deliver in a fast-paced environment
  • Ability to respond to change positively
  • To Be Flexible to the needs of the service
  • Good IT skills
  • An understanding of the range of services provided by the council.

For full details on the application process please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'

About Coventry

Coventry has a proud, innovative and creative spirit that throughout its history has seen communities come together to tackle problems and bring about real social change.

We are cutting-edge, challenging, youthful, vibrant and diverse.

At Coventry we are committed to excellence in everything we do. With around 4800 staff from a range of different backgrounds, our aim is to recruit and develop talented people who will focus on our customers, take responsibility, work together and find better ways of doing things.

To deliver the best services to our residents, we need the best people working for us to make a difference to our communities.

If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards and benefits package - to find out more please visit https://www.coventry.gov.uk/council-vacancies

  • Employer: Coventry City Council
  • Reference: coventrycc/TP/68618/8556
  • Published: Mon 13/11/2023, 16:26 PM
  • Closing on: Mon 27/11/2023, 23:59 PM
  • Working Pattern: Full Time
  • Hours: 37.0 hours per week
  • Salary: £24496 - £30151
  • DBS Check: Yes
  • Location: Coventry One Friargate, Station Square, Coventry

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