Shropshire Council - Senior Benefits Officer in Shrewsbury

As Shropshire Council, we are proud of our achievements and have proven to be a resilient local authority in response to the many challenges we overcome. We will continue this momentum with ambition and a focus on delivering our four key priorities outlined within the Shropshire Plan: Healthy People, Healthy Environment, Healthy Economy, and Healthy Organisation.

We are committed to achieving this by aligning everything we do to our vision ‘Shropshire – living the best life’; to tell everyone that Shropshire Council is a great place to be. We will enable a skilled, happy, healthy, diverse, inclusive, empowered, and proud workforce that influences and leads change, addressing any inequalities.

As a member of the Council Tax Team within the Revenues and Benefits Service, you will support the achievement of these key priorities, making a real difference to the lives of people in Shropshire. The Revenues and Benefits Service provides a wide range of services on behalf of the Council that affect the lives of every household and business in the county.

Overview of your role

The postholder will operate within defined procedures and legislative requirements and will deal with large volumes of work that need to be completed within tight deadlines. The post holder is responsible for:

• Supporting and deputising for the Benefits Team Manager in organising the day-to-day administration of the team
• Carrying out complex Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support calculations
• Providing advice and guidance to other team members

What will you be doing?

• To carry out complex assessments and deal with sensitive queries
• To produce standard and non-standard letters and responses which require an in-depth knowledge of procedures for effective and timely liaison with benefit customers
• To have regard to the subsidy implications of all data input and decisions made in respect of claims
• To liaise with benefit customers relating to more complex issues by telephone, in writing and in person
• To provide advice, guidance and support to Benefit Officers and Benefit Support Officers and also Revenues teams
• To liaise with the Quality Assurance Team to ensure that assessments of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support are processed accurately and within the targeted time scales
• To collate, submit and represent the Council in respect of appeals to the Tribunal Service and Valuation Tribunal
• To authorise and approve backdate requests and manual adjustments from Benefit Officers
• To interrogate and extract information from the Customer Information System provided by the DWP in order to facilitate the prompt and accurate assessment of Housing Benefit
• To recover overpaid Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support in accordance with regulations and the Council's policies
• To exercise vigilance in the identification of potentially fraudulent claims and to refer to SFIS, or to local investigations teams where applicable
• To liaise with other bodies and agencies in order to facilitate the prompt and accurate assessment of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support
• To assist in the development and delivery of staff training programmes
• To deputise for the Benefits Team Manager in their absence
• Undertake such other duties associated with the activities of the Benefits Service as may be required from time to time

The above duties are an illustrative outline and are not an exhaustive list. You will be expected to become involved in a range of work to enable the service to respond effectively to the changing requirements of the Council and changes affecting the workforce.

What we expect of you

• Adopt a customer-focused approach when delivering your service, ensuring engagement with service users and maintenance of an appropriate personal profile
• Act as an advocate for your service and work collaboratively with colleagues across the whole Council to meet the needs of the people of Shropshire
• Meet individual, service and personal development targets agreed through the Personal Development Review Process
• Learn from experience and are committed to continuous improvement individually and as an employee of the Council
• Work with colleagues to meet your team’s key performance indicators, support a culture of team working and ensure the team functions successfully in support of the Council’s corporate and service objectives
• Meet the behaviours and competencies adopted by the Council in the way in which they achieve their objectives and carry out their work

A priority for the Council is the protection of vulnerable people, ensuring they are able to live as independently as possible. The post-holder will promote and engage with the Council’s responsibility to safeguard the welfare of children, young people and adults, and protect their right to be safe from harm.

What are your conditions of Service

The conditions of service are those laid down by Shropshire Council, which have been adopted and amended as necessary from those laid down by the National Joint Council for Local Government Services. Your primary work base will be at The Guildhall, Shrewsbury with the requirement to regularly work from home.

Your post is subject to the following:

• The post is permanent for 37 hours per week
• Normal office hours are 8.45am – 5.00pm Monday – Friday with a minimum lunch break of 30 minutes. Occasional evening/weekend work may be required
• The post is subject to the Council’s annualised hours scheme as implemented within the specific work area
• This post carries eligibility to join the Local Government Pension Scheme
• Annual leave entitlement is a pro rata flat rate scheme of 207 hours (28 days) annual leave plus bank holidays, with five days extra awarded to those staff with five years local government service giving an entitlement of 244 hours (33 days)
• Two days of an employee’s allowance (pro rata for part-time staff) must be taken at Christmas for any potential Christmas closures
• The appointment is subject to two months’ notice in writing on either side
• The appointment is subject to six months’ satisfactory probationary service during which time the notice period will be one week on either side
• Smoking is not allowed in Council buildings, in Council vehicles or in any Council place of work
• It is a condition of your appointment that you provide a suitable vehicle for the performance of your duties and that this is readily available for use during normal working hours
• You are entitled to claim for reimbursement of the costs of travel on council business at the rate of 45 pence per mile

What pre-employment checks will we undertake?

The appointment is subject to receipt of the following pre-employment checks:

• Satisfactory employment references
• Medical report
• Evidence of the qualifications required for the post/listed on your application form
• All applicants who are appointed to this post will be subject to a Basic Disclosure check once the appointment is confirmed

Supplying false information or failing to disclose relevant information could be grounds for refusal and could amount to a criminal offence.