Benefits Officer (role B)

Full job description
Benefits Officer (role B)
Posted on 1 April 2025 Apply
Directorate BHCC: Central Hub
Salary £31,067 - £32,654
Contract Fixed Term
Closing Date Apply by 22 June 2025
Location
Bartholomew House, Bartholomew Square, Brighton


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Job Summary
Job reference
orbis/TP/50+5/44513
Positions available
1
Working hours
22.2 hours per week
Closing date
22 June 2025
Job category
Administration Clerical
Organisation
Brighton Hove City Council
Job introduction
Working as a Benefits Officer administering our Local Discretionary Social Fund, you will be making a difference by helping people who are struggling to make ends meet.

Are you an individual who is motivated by helping and supporting households in crisis? Can you communicate effectively in high pressured situations and come up with innovative solutions that are individual to each household’s needs?

You will be helping to deliver the Household Support Fund, a government fund aimed at crisis support, to financially vulnerable households in Brighton Hove. An awareness of Brighton and Hove’s charitable and third sector organisations would be an advantage as you will be working alongside them to support households out of crisis.

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Paul Ross-dale at: @brighton-hove.gov.uk

The Local Discretionary Social Fund team is located in the centre of Brighton in the heart of the North Laine, on the seafront, and the role would require you to work from the office.

Hours: 0.6 FTE, 22.2 hours

Fixed term contract for external candidates. Secondment may be offered for internal candidates, before applying, please ensure you have read the Secondment policy to ensure you are eligible to apply. In accordance with the policy, please ensure you have the written approval of your line manager before applying. Evidence of this must be included with your application.

Interview date: To be confirmed

About the role
Now more than ever, our Welfare Teams are focused on supporting people in the city who really need help. In this role, you will be based on our Discretionary Help and Advice Team, providing emergency help to a range of vulnerable people, e.g., with food and fuel vouchers, and other essential supplies.

This is an extremely rewarding role as it has an instant impact, improving lives and making a difference.

The work on the team is fast-paced and you will need to adapt to changes in demand alongside your colleagues.

You will be working across services and liaising with the voluntary sector. This is a fantastic opportunity for personal growth and development, and to discover the council’s role in the wider community.

For more information about the work of the team please go to www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/ldsf

NB: Although this role is for Benefits Officer, the postholder will join the Discretionary Help and Advice Team – training will be provided. We are keen to talk to applicants who understand how to support and communicate well with people who have complex and urgent needs.

Please read our Apply for a job at the council (brighton-hove.gov.uk) pages carefully. They give you all the guidance you need to complete your application as well as information on what will happen after you’ve submitted your application and at interview.

As part of your application, you will need to complete your education and work history and provide answers to some shortlisting questions. Your answers to the shortlisting questions are the most important part of your application as they will be used in the shortlisting process to assess whether you meet the essential requirements for the role that are set out in the person specification and to decide whether you should be offered an interview. Before you start your application, please read our guidance here (Shortlisting questions guidance (brighton-hove.gov.uk) as this gives important advice which will increase your chance of success in the shortlisting process.

Additional information
Your starting salary will be pro rata if the above position is less than 37 hours or term-time only.

We are a workplace that supports flexibility and employee wellbeing in the way we work whilst providing the best service for our customers. Team and service working arrangements are designed to support both employee work life balance and team collaboration. These would be part of your individual working arrangements alongside any personal preference agreed with your manager in advance of joining.

For more information about our values and the benefits of working at the council, visit Why work for us.

Company information
Encouraging a diverse workforce

Our city is known and loved for its diversity. Not only is the mixture of people, culture and skills vital to the economic and social development of the city, it's what makes Brighton Hove such a great place to live, work and visit. We are committed to developing and retaining a workforce that is representative of the diverse communities we serve so we welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds. In order to achieve our aims of proportionate representation, we particularly encourage applicants from a BME or White Other background as well as those who identify as disabled, male or trans.

Find out more about our commitment to being a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone can achieve their potential by reading about our fair and inclusive actions, our anti-racism strategy and How we create a fair and inclusive workplace.

 
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