About the team we are recruiting to

Coventry City Council’s Benefits Service is comprised of diverse, multi-talented teams who all have the same aim, to help the city’s most vulnerable residents.  

Our work is varied and covers the assessment and administration of schemes that provide financial help and support for those in need. 

Specifically, the teams are responsible for the delivery of: 

• Housing Benefit and Discretionary Housing Payments which we administer on behalf of the Department for Works and Pensions. We also recover any overpaid housing benefit 

• Council Tax Support which is a local scheme that helps residents with their Council Tax charges 

• Free School Meals, by working closely with schools we aim to ensure every child who is entitled has a free school meal  

• Community Support Grant Scheme which includes assistance in extreme emergency situations and can provide citizens help to resettle back into the community by providing essential furniture items.  

We embrace the ONE COVENTRY approach, working closely with our external partners and other Council teams, such as the Housing and Homeless teams and Children’s teams, ensuring we have a holistic approach to supporting our residents.

What is the job role?

We have a vacancy opportunity in the Benefits Service for a Team manager’ post, you will be managing a team responsible for processing claims for Housing Benefit, Council Tax Support and Universal Credit.

Reporting directly to a Senior Team Manager you will be responsible for:

• Management duties such as 1 to 1’s / managing sickness absence / supporting and developing staff / responding to complaints
• Direct management of a team of Benefit Assessment officers, including work allocation and performance management
• Delivering Corporate and Service objectives
• Taking an active role in the Benefits management team

Please see the attached document for a full Job Description and person specification. Here you will find a detailed summary of the duties and requirements needed to for fill this role.

This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such appointment to this post will be conditional upon the receipt of a satisfactory response to a check of police records via Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

Who are we looking for?

When applying for this role you will be asked to write a personal statement, please include the following information in your application: 

• An example of your in-depth working knowledge of the Service, relevant legislation, and related providers.
• Self-management skills, to enable workload organisation, prioritisation and implementation, with minimum supervision.
• Where you have used team building and motivational skills.
• Your ability to organise the work of the team and set targets.
• An example of your well-developed communication skills to liaise with customers and their representatives and all internal and external organisations, both verbally and in writing.
• Your ability to deal effectively with a wide range of issues, at times under pressure, i.e. conflicting priorities, deadlines.

If you need further information please contact Rachael Hartopp on 02476 971634.

For full details on the application process please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'

All attachments for the job can be found here

Interview date(s): 3rd & 4th September 

About Coventry

Coventry is a lively, multicultural city, which embraces old and new. Around the modern city centre there are traces of history everywhere – in the old city walls, the timber-framed buildings and the reconstructed medieval Spon Street. But Coventry has always had an eye on the future, and is now firmly focused on regenerating and re-inventing itself to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. With major developments and new projects taking place right across the city, Coventry City Council is the place to be!

There's a huge buzz about the city – Coventry ranks as the 8th best city to live, work and do business in the UK, and is the UK City of Culture 2021 ! We believe this will help put Coventry on the map for all the right reasons. You can feel the sense of local pride throughout the city as we build towards this momentous year. It also offers a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to those joining us to play their part in it.

We genuinely believe that Coventry City Council is a special place. You will be joining Coventry City Council during an exciting time to become part of a team that contribute to achieving our visions for the city. We have made our council a place where we look after our people, making sure you're happy in your work and given everything you need to succeed. We've created friendly, welcoming workplaces where everyone is working towards the same cause, providing the best possible services for the city of Coventry.

As a council with improvement at its heart, we’re committed to making life better for the people who live and work in Coventry. We’re equally concerned with the quality of life enjoyed by our people, so by joining us, you won’t just be helping the community, you’ll be helping yourself too.

Not only do you get to work alongside great people that are helping to improve services for our community we offer great benefits too! For your valued contribution we will provide a fantastic benefits package including;

• Flexible working arrangements
• Generous annual leave allowance starting at 27 days and rising to 32 days
• Pay progression through multiple increments
• Outstanding local government pension scheme
• Learning & Development with access to certified courses.
• Access to an award winning Occupational Health Team
• Vibrant employee networks 

Coventry City Council