Financial Resilience Specialist - Fixed Term (12 months) in Sheffield

Reporting to the Financial Resilience Manager, the Financial Resilience Specialist will help deliver our Customer and Communities Strategy. This role is about supporting customers who are experiencing financial hardship and helping colleagues give clear, helpful information on welfare benefits, debt advice and financial inclusion. The role will build the knowledge needed to help customers access services, develop financial confidence and take positive steps towards financial wellbeing and tenancy sustainment.

What you’ll be doing

• Providing training and coaching to customer facing colleagues so that customers receive accurate information and advice in relation to welfare benefits, debt advice, and financial inclusion matters.
• Supporting a caseload of customers with debt advice, advocating for customers with creditors and providing a debt adjustment service where necessary by calculating, negotiating, and acting to address problem debt – in accordance with Financial Conduct Authority regulations.
• Ensuring that partnerships are developed and monitored with other advice agencies or support services, so that customers can be referred to, where appropriate, other services for debt, welfare and benefit advice.
• Collating and producing a range of guidance and tools for customers to enable them to easily access information and updates around welfare benefits, and promoting the independent resolution of issues by customers in accordance with the Service Delivery Framework.
• Engaging with relevant professional networks to ensure Great Places understands the risks and challenges of future policy decisions in relation to the benefits system and debt advice sector.
• Developing opportunities, initiatives, and projects with Community Investment Team colleagues that will seek to eradicate financial hardship in our communities.
• Working with the Communications team to ensure that key messages relating to financial inclusion (including welfare benefits and debt advice) are communicated internally and externally.
• Delivering advice and support to customers through home visits and telephone appointments as required to provide appropriate support.

What you’ll need

• A willingness to work towards relevant professional qualifications or memberships, such as the Institute of Money Advisers qualification.
• Some experience or understanding of housing, welfare benefits, debt advice, money guidance or customer support, with a willingness to develop specialist knowledge.
• The ability to support, encourage and share learning with colleagues, or the confidence to develop these coaching skills with support.
• Good organisation and record keeping skills, with an understanding of why confidentiality is important.
• Experience of supporting people who may be vulnerable, facing challenges or experiencing financial hardship.
• An interest in working with communities and helping to deliver projects that make a positive difference to a diverse range of people.
• Confidence using Microsoft Office, or the ability to learn new systems and digital tools.

Great Places Housing Group is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults and expects all our colleagues to share this commitment; this role is subject to a basic DBS check.

What we need from you

• Be open to learning and taking part in training to build your knowledge of financial inclusion, welfare benefits and debt advice.
• Show empathy, patience and a commitment to giving customers a positive and respectful service.
• Have an interest in helping customers improve their financial wellbeing, with a willingness to keep learning and developing in this area.
• Ability to organise and plan your own workload.
• Ability to communicate confidently with strong interpersonal skills.
• Flexible and positive approach to work and the ability to work autonomously.

What we give you in return for your hard work and commitment

• Pension: DC Scheme (up to 10% contribution from both colleague and Great Places).
• WPA: Healthcare auto enrolled at no contribution level with £1250 of savings available - option to increase & add on family members.
• The Market Place: high street, restaurant & supermarket discounts, gym memberships, cycle to work, smart tech loans and much more.
• Annual Leave: Start at 26 days annual leave, increasing up to 30 days + Bank Holidays.
• Lottery: Monthly draw with 1st @ £250, 2nd @ £75 and 3rd @ £50.
• Savings Club: You can put aside money each month for 11 months to help you save for that special something (pays out in November's salary).
• Sharing Greatness: Our colleague incentive scheme where colleagues can earn £300 by helping the business achieve business targets.
• Help with transport: We offer season ticket loans, an affordable way to purchase season tickets for public transport at discounted rates.

At Great Places we believe the wellbeing of our colleagues is vital to enable them to deliver great services; all your benefits can be used inside and outside of work.