Debt Team Leader

Citizens Advice Caerphilly Blaenau Gwent is one of the largest Citizens Advice services in Wales and across the Citizens Advice network. It delivers multiple services across the counties of Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent and a smaller number further afield. Over the last six years it has developed a contact centre in Caerphilly which now accounts for over half its business. Our main office is in Bargoed and it offers a range of service delivery channels including drop in sessions, appointments, telephone, letter and home visits when feasible. We also run weekly outreach services across Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent.

We provide a range of specialist services to help people resolve their debt and welfare benefits problems and provide advice on energy issues. Help to Claim assists people with new Universal Credit claims. Other services target those experiencing mental health issues, or living with learning disabilities. Our Caerphilly office is a 150 seat contact centre that provides a number of services under contract to national Citizens Advice.

What we give our Staff

• Generous annual leave package
• Hybrid Working (following completion of a successful probationary period)
• Ongoing personal training and development
• 24/7 access to our Employee Assistance Programme, which also offers perks such as high street shopping discounts
• Pension scheme
• Contractual sick pay
• Casual dress code
• Eye care voucher
• Healthy work/life balance

Role Profile

We are looking to recruit a highly motivated and experienced leader to manage, train, develop and motivate a team of debt advisers to deliver multi-channel debt advice services to people across Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent. Working with a team that provides advice on a range of debt issues, your knowledge, skill and enthusiasm for working with people will help your team achieve their potential and provide an excellent client experience whilst meeting our contractual requirements and quality standards.

Supervision of Debt Team

• Coach and support team members to ensure they deliver a high quality debt advice service in line with Quality of Advice Assessment in Wales, FCA regulations and case management requirements
• Promote a continuous improvement and best practice approach across the team liaising with the Service Manager, Quality Supervisor and Training Officer, as appropriate, to support team members development
• Inspire and foster a spirit of teamwork and a positive working environment in which staff are enabled to achieve their full potential
• Ensure that the requisite recording systems are used accurately in order to meet agreed standards set by funders, as well as to ensure that reliable performance monitoring reports can be produced
• Promote and manage an office culture that is energised with effective, open communication
• Encourage and coach staff to be proactive, accountable and responsible for their development and performance
• Undertake regular one to one meetings and appraisals within set deadlines
• Drive performance, ensuring delivery against targets, KPIs and advice quality standards
• Keep track of team members’ performance against targets and address under performance, issues or training needs as they arise
• Ensure team members are supported to receive and act upon feedback about quality, including sharing constructive feedback or challenge unfair results
• Participate in regular one to one meetings and appraisals within set deadlines

Relationship Management

• Develop and maintain effective, positive relationships with funders and partners
• Support the management team in producing weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly performance reports relating to the performance of debt advice services in the LCA
• Attend meetings and provide reports to the service manager as required
• Manage day to day queries (from staff and partners) on referral and signposting protocols and processes and elevate issues to the Debt Service Manager as appropriate
• Ensure that KPIs in relation to external stakeholders are met

Personal Development and Training

• Identify your own development needs and attend training opportunities whilst contributing towards the organisation’s training and development plan
• Attend regular support and one to one meetings and annual appraisal as required
• Keep up-to-date with legislation, policies and procedures and undertake appropriate training including annual GDPR training
• Develop an in depth understanding of all debt projects to include recording, feedback, reporting and outcome/output requirements to training and manage staff
• Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of advice areas and advice practices

Research and Campaigns

• Ensure that CACBG fulfils its responsibilities with regards to research and campaigns, encouraging advisers to contribute to local and national research and campaigns activities alongside the Research & Campaigns officer
• Communicate current research and campaigning priorities, initiatives and plans to the advice team
• Monitor staff contributions to local and national campaigns

Policies and Procedures

• At all times, promote the aims, principles, policies, interests and wellbeing of the organisation and to protect its integrity and reputation, and to ensure that the service complies with Citizens Advice policy
• Maintain confidentiality and professional boundaries at all times
• To have due regard to health and safety issues in performing your role and to effectively report on health and safety issues when they arise
• Create a positive working environment in which equality and diversity are well-managed, dignity at work is upheld and staff can do their best
• Adhere to good practice with regard to acceptable ICT use

Other duties

• Carry out other tasks that may be within the scope of the post to ensure the effective delivery and development of the service
• Demonstrate commitment to the aims and principles of Citizens Advice
• Abide by health and safety guidelines and share responsibility for own safety and that of colleagues

Person specification

Essential

• Experience of managing a high performing team to achieve project and client outcomes and goals
• Effective communication and interpersonal skills with particular emphasis on negotiating, representing and preparing reports and correspondence
• Effective people management skills, including the ability to coach team members to achieve their best, with the ability to create a positive working environment in which equality and diversity are celebrated

Desirable

• Experience, within the last five years, of providing debt advice to a recognised quality standard
• Accredited by Citizens Advice (or another competent authority) as an Approved Intermediary for Debt Relief Order purposes
• Experience of working within an advice and information organisation within the third/charity sector
• Understanding of, and commitment to, the aims and principles of the Citizens Advice Service in which equality and diversity is embedded throughout

In accordance with Citizens Advice national policy we may require the successful candidate to be screened by the DBS. However, a criminal record will not necessarily be a bar to your being able to take up the job.