Housing Benefits Service Manager

Starting salary: £51,542
Job Level: Level 5, Zone 2
Work Location: 5 Pancras Square, London, N1C 4AG
Hours per week: 36
Contract type: Permanent
Closing date: Tuesday 4th October at 23:59
Interviews to be held: Week commencing 10th October 2022
Alternative flexible working options available / open to discussion  

** AGENCY STAFF, PLEASE CLICK HERE TO APPLY **

About us

Camden is building somewhere everyone can thrive, by making our borough the best place to live, work, study and visit. We’re not just home to UK’s fast-growing economy, but to the most important conversations happening today. And we’re making radical social change a reality, so that nobody gets left behind. Here’s where you can help decide a better future for us all.

The role

The role exists to lead the day-to-day effective delivery of the Housing Benefits service provided by Camden Council for its most vulnerable residents in accordance to legislation, policy and procedures.  The candidate will need to ensure the service continuously improves and provides value for money which means you will need strong leadership and service improvement experience to constantly strive to improve outcomes and meet local and national targets.

In addition to your existing Housing Benefits management experience, you will also need strong financial awareness due to being responsible for timely and accurate payments made to customers for Housing Benefits, Discretionary Housing Benefits, Local Welfare Assistance payment and related Government grants whilst minimising subsidy loss.

You will be working in a multi-agency and multi-departmental environment, representing the Council locally, regionally and nationally (as appropriate) including taking part in benchmarking and best practice groups.
This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and will require an Enhanced DBS.

About you

To find out more about what it is like to work at Camden, meet some of our People by visiting 'www.camdenjobs.co.uk/our-stories'.

The successful candidate will have existing management experience within a Housing Benefits service, ideally also at service manager level so that you have experience of managing team leaders who report into you. You must be able to communicate confidently, persuasively and empathetically across a wide range of groups including residents, elected members, senior leaders and other stakeholders.  They will have excellent knowledge of housing benefits processes including subsidy and other Government returns to ensure minimal financial loss to the Council.  Ideally you will also have experience of project and or change management to help lead your new service through ongoing change and improvement over the next few years with ongoing rollouts of Universal Credit and the impact that will have on service delivery.

We would also expect the successful candidate to possess strong analytical skills, a keen eye for detail (particularly legislation and changes to it), the ability to resolve issues at pace and the ability to motivate and enable people through collaborative working.

Working for Camden

We're ready to welcome your ideas, your views, and your rebellious spirit. Help us redefine our corporate services, and we'll redefine what a career can be.

At Camden, you’ll receive a host of benefits as well as joining a flexible working employer. Visit 'www.camdenjobs.co.uk/staff-benefits' to see full details of our benefits.

Additional information

To view the Job Profile, please click HERE or copy and paste the below URL into your browser: http://camdocs.camden.gov.uk/HPRMWebDrawer/Record/9740482/file/document?inline

To apply for this job please follow the "Apply" link. In the ‘Why you?’ section of the application you will be required to demonstrate how you meet the role criteria noted in the Job Profile under the “About You” section.

Inclusion and Diversity

We want Camden Council to be a great place to work and to ensure that our communities are represented across our workforce. A vital part of this is ensuring we are a truly inclusive organisation that encourages diversity in all respects, including diversity of thinking. We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and those of Other Ethnicities, LGBT+, disabled and neurodiverse communities to make a real difference to our residents so that equalities and justice remains at the heart of everything we do.

To discover more about Camden and our commitment towards diversity, equality and safeguarding, please visit 'www.camdenjobs.co.uk/staff-benefits'.

Asking for Adjustments

Camden is committed to making our recruitment practices barrier-free and as accessible as possible for everyone. This includes making adjustments or changes for disabled people, neurodiverse people or people with long-term health conditions. If you would like us to do anything differently during the application, interview or assessment process, including providing information in an alternative format, please contact us on 020 7974 6655, at resourcing@camden.gov.uk or post to 5 Pancras Square, London, N1C 4AG