Customer Service Advisor Out of Hours (part time) in Lincoln

This 12-week contract role within the Customer Service Centre serves as the first point of contact for emergency and out-of-hours enquiries across various Lincolnshire County Council services. The successful candidate will manage sensitive and urgent calls related to Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Housing, Highways, Libraries, and other local authority services. Responsibilities include gathering information, assessing urgency, recording details accurately, and ensuring enquiries are directed appropriately. This role demands excellent communication skills, emotional resilience, and the ability to remain calm and professional when dealing with vulnerable individuals and emergency situations.

Responsibilities

• Act as the first point of contact for out-of-hours enquiries.
• Respond to calls from the public, professionals, and partner agencies.
• Deliver a professional, efficient, and customer-focused service.
• Handle all enquiries sensitively and appropriately.
• Process emergency calls for Adult Social Care and Children's Services.
• Handle enquiries from police, health services, social care professionals, and the public.
• Gather relevant information accurately and efficiently.
• Escalate urgent safeguarding concerns to appropriate teams.
• Manage calls related to housing repairs, district council services, library services, heritage services, highways services, and registration services.
• Provide information and support in line with agreed procedures.
• Record enquiries accurately on relevant systems.
• Maintain confidentiality at all times.
• Ensure information is input correctly and shared with relevant teams.
• Follow procedures for referrals, incidents, and emergency situations.
• Use customer service systems and databases effectively.
• Maintain accurate records and case notes.
• Produce and update records as required.
• Ensure compliance with information governance and data protection requirements.
• Collaborate with colleagues and partner organisations.
• Participate in training and development activities.
• Support service continuity across all out-of-hours functions.
• Contribute positively to team objectives and service standards.

Requirements

• Qualifications
• Essential: Good standard of education including English and Mathematics (or equivalent).
• Desirable: Customer Service qualification, Business Administration qualification, Contact Centre or Call Centre training.
• Knowledge
• Essential: Excellent customer service principles and practices, knowledge of confidentiality and data protection requirements, understanding of safeguarding and dealing with sensitive information, good IT literacy.
• Desirable: Knowledge of local authority services, understanding of Adult Social Care or Children's Services, knowledge of emergency call handling procedures.
• Experience
• Essential: Previous customer service experience, experience handling telephone enquiries in a busy environment, experience working with computerised systems and databases, experience dealing with sensitive or confidential information.
• Desirable: Previous contact centre or call centre experience, local authority experience, experience supporting social care, housing, or public sector services, experience working out of hours or emergency response services.
• Skills & Competencies
• Essential: Excellent communication skills, strong listening and information-gathering abilities, ability to remain calm under pressure, strong customer service skills, good attention to detail, ability to prioritise and assess urgent situations, competent in Microsoft Office and Windows-based systems, ability to work independently and as part of a team, professional and resilient approach to challenging situations.

This is a 12-week temporary contract. Rate: £16.49 per hour (Umbrella). Location: Lancaster House, Lincoln, Lincolnshire (LN1 1XX). 25 hours per week. Out of Hours shift-based working. Shifts include evenings, nights, weekends, and public holidays. Overnight shifts may include 12:00am – 8:00am. Pay is provided on a bi-weekly basis. Previous customer service or contact centre experience is highly desirable. Local authority or social care experience is advantageous. Must be eligible to work in the UK.