Administrative Officers - DWP

Your responsibilities will include, but not be limited to:- To competently use the telephone as this is the primary means of customer contact through inbound and outbound calls. To help and support our diverse group of customers by delivering a quality service,communicating clearly and effectively, providing accurate information, influencing and negotiating to successfully resolve queries and/or action any changes to theirpersonal circumstances in what can be difficult and sensitive situations. Take personal accountability for every customer/stakeholder you have contact with. Consider each customerscase as a whole, makingthe right decisions at the right time. Give clear and explainable reasons for your decisions. Be polite and professional, treating customers with respect. Adapting your behaviour to meet the needs of our diverse customers. Maintaining clerical and electronic records. To listen, be honest, be empathetic and compassionate and always remain composed andprofessional in what can sometimes be a challenging environment. To protect Departmental and our customers personal information adhering to all securitypolicies and procedures. To ensure that all actions required to maintain the claimants digital account are completedpromptly and accurately. To work on your own and collaboratively, effectively, and flexibly within a team and contributetowards team expectations. Take responsibility for your own development to improve competency and skills, supportingand coaching others to do the same. Use a range of computer systems, telephony, and digital platforms.at the same time. Person specification Key Criteria To be successful you will need: A can-do attitude to deliver and do the right thing for the customer. Able to use the telephone as this is how we communicate withcustomers. An ability to communicate with colleagues and customers clearly and concisely verbally and in writing to achieve the right result. An ability to identify problems; collate and interpret information – ask the right questions,problemsolve. A good listener thatis able toexpress empathy at the righttime. Can demonstrate sound judgement and objectivethinking. Must be able to navigate a range of computer systems sometimes whilst on a customercall. Must have the ability to handle difficult/sensitive situations. A consistent learner who is proactive about enhancing and expanding skillsets. A team player that can collaborate with colleagues to solve problems or develop new waysof thinking. Transferable Skills You gain these from school/university, previous jobs, projects, voluntary work, hobbies and interests. Could you adapt these skills to become a Case worker? Some examples below: Do you have previous experience of customer service ? Are you self-motivated and can motivate others? Can you develop relationships with a diverse range of people? Do you have good listening skills? Behaviours We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Communicating and Influencing Managing a Quality Service Making Effective Decisions Benefits Alongside your salary of 26,337, Department for Work and Pensions contributes 7,629 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides. DWP have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes: Working patterns to support work/life balance such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours. Generous annual leave at least 23 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (prorata for part time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave. Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme. Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly). Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 years continuous service. Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes. An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Womens Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more. Benefits Learning and development tailored to your role. An environment with flexible working options. A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity. A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 28.97%. DWP is a family-friendly employer and part-time and flexible working patterns within these hours may be available but must meet business needs whichmust include Monday and Friday as working days. Successful part-time candidates will be required to work full-time for specific periods to complete and consolidate training. Training and consolidation will be 100% office based. This role is not being offered as a permanent home working contract. The full-time working week for DWP is 37 hours. You may be required to work at any time between the hours 8am and 8pm on any day between Monday to Friday and 9am to 5pm on Saturday. You will be given advance notice of your personal schedule. Location Applicants should apply for suitable posts where they can travel to and from their home office location daily within a reasonable time. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Relocation costs will not be reimbursed. Hybrid Working This job role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you following you taking up your post. Things you need to know Selection process details This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window) , and will assess your Behaviours. After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete a Customer Service Skills Test. If you successfully reach the *pass mark in the test, you will be invited to interview. Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the test is 17 December 2024 at 23:55. If you fail to complete the online test before the above deadline your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/preparing-for-the-customer-service-skills-test#taking-the-test *IMPORTANT: After the test deadline, we will look at all applicant scores to decide what the jobs pass mark will be. We will consider the impact on protected groups and the number of invitations to the next stage. We may decide to raise the pass mark for the job – if so, you will be informed, and you will be told if you have passed or failed at the raised standard. Meeting the minimum test requirements for a job level is no guarantee of an invite to continue the selection process. Please note there is no requirement to provide any additional information such as a CV or Personal statement on completion of the test as there will be no sift stage for this campaign. The interview process will consist of three Behaviour based questions based on the three Behaviours listed which will last approximately 30 minutes. The Behaviour based questioning explores what the candidate can and has done, but also theirpotential. To help you prepare and settle into the interview you will be sent the Behaviour questions 1 week in advance of your interview to the email address used in your application (i.e. questions will be sent on Tuesday for interviews scheduled for the following Tuesday). You are advised to check your inbox and spam/junk folders regularly once your interview has been booked. These questions should be treated as confidential and should not be shared. The interview panel may ask you other questions which will not be shared in advance, including follow-up questions. Please note that interviews will be via video using Microsoft Teams and you will need to use your personal or work device to access the video link. You will receive a link to join the interview at the appointed time through the email account you provide us with on your application. Further details regarding the interview arrangements will be included in the invitation to interview. Communications will be electronic and/or by telephone therefore it is vitally important that you check your Civil Service Jobs account regularly, as well as your spam/junk email folder. Telephone calls may show as a withheld number, it is important that you answer so that your interview can be confirmed. If the questions have not been received prior to your interview, or you have queries about applying for this role please contact the vacancy holder via dwpwanohrecruitmentteam.wanohrecruitmentteam@DWP.GOV.UK Please note you will still be able to refer to your notes in the interview to support you in answering, but you should not simply be reading from a script. Sift and interview dates to be confirmed. Proposed Interview dates Interview Period: 9 January 2025 to 21 January 2025. Please note: If you will not be available to attend an interview within these dates please do not apply as we have no capacity to hold interviews outside that period. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview. Reserve List A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 mont hs , which we may also use to fill future similar vacancies. The reserve list may be used to offer future vacancies which arise in Working Age Team and across the wider DWP network.Any such offers would be made in strict merit order and the location and job role would be fully explained. As part of the application process, you will be asked to give your preferred location, please only select a location that you are able to travel too daily, there is no requirement to select more than 1 location. You may be placed on a reserve list if your application is successful, but we cannot immediately offer you a post, please note: If you are offered a role in a location you have expressed a preference for, and you decline the offer or are unable to take up post within a reasonable time frame you will be withdrawn from the campaign and removed from the reserve list, other than in exceptional circumstances*. If DWP makes an offer of an alternative role or location to that which you originally applied for, and you decline that offer, you will be able to remain on the reserve list. *Note – Exceptional circumstances could be when a candidate has requested a contractual Part Time Working Pattern, and this pattern cannot be accommodated in the initial role offered or in cases of serious ill health. Further Information Find out more about Working for DWP A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made. Any move t o DWP from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out. In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band. Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicants details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government. DWP takes development seriously. Our aim is for our colleagues in these roles to be appropriately skilled and qualified as determined by the business. To support this aim you may be required to undertake a work based qualification, which may be in the form of an apprenticeship, which will support you in further developing your professional knowledge and skills for this role and your future career development. The qualification can be undertaken in work time, you agree to take this job on the basis that you may be required to undertake a work based qualification; a candidates failure to participate fully in the professional programme, once appointed, may be a breach of their employment contract. Important If you hold a level 3 qualification (2 A levels or equivalent) then please bring your certificates with you to the interview if you have them. Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP’s terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing. The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action. Reasonable Adjustment At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce. We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia. If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:Contact Government Recruitment Service via DWPRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. Complete the Reasonable Adjustments section in the Additional requirements page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if youre deaf, a Language Service Professional. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the ‘Contact point for applicants’ section. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment. Security Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks. Nationality requirements This job is broadly open to the following groups: UK nationals nationals of the Republic of Ireland nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window) nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020 Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) Working for the Civil Service The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s recruitment principles (opens in a new window) . The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy. Diversity and Inclusion The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window) .