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Dear Applicant

RE:Business Support Officer Post Ref:

Thank you for your interest in the above post. Please find enclosed in this application pack the following documents:

  • Application Form and Guidance Notes
  • Job Description
  • Person Specification
  • Structure Chart
  • Service Overview

Application Form:

The application form plays a key part in our selection process. We use the information you provide to shortlist for interview.

You are urged to ensure that all the information contained in your application is relevant and that you demonstrate how you meet the criteria on the person specification. Please use the person specification for guidance when filling in the application form.

References: If successful at interview, Ipswich Borough Council will seek to obtain two employment references. Wherever possible the name of your first referee must be from current employment/education and the second from either current or former employment/education. If you cannot provide an “employment” reference please contact the HR Team at Ipswich Borough Council for further assistance.

If you have any recruitment queries, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01473 433402. Please leave your name, number and brief details of your question and a member of the recruitment team will call you back.

Ipswich Borough Council

Job Description: K74b

Business Support Officer

Main Purpose of Job

To assist the Business Support Team Leader/ to ensure the effective administration of Housing, Environmental Health and Community Services.

Main Duties

  1. To provide full administrative support to the Service Group including: managing post (including scanning); updating documentation and ICT systems; raising purchase orders and invoices, goods receipt supplies and services and undertaking purchase through corporate credit card.; producing documentation and booking appointments for customers; allocating work to Officers and resolving customer queries
  1. To issue pest control contracts and assisting Dog Wardens with micro-chipping.
  1. To receive/process/check/co-ordinate Right to Buy applications – including arranging valuations, corresponding with solicitors, calculating entitlement to discount, initiating fraud investigations, dealing with general enquires in person, by phone and email.
  1. To carry out administrative and financial duties relating to leasehold management – including calculating annual charges: ground maintenance, door entry, communal electricity, window cleaning, Community Caretaking services,
  1. To assess the eligibility of residents for Disabled Facilities Grants – carrying out complex means testing by phone and dealing with enquires
  1. To provide support for elements of the Choice based lettings allocation process; responding to clients messages, renewals, significant birthdays, incomplete applications, producing and distributing weekly newsletters.
  1. To arrange rent deposit payments, credit checks, issuing invitation letters to homeless applicants, completing and submitting mandatory government returns
  1. To manage and update the wages/annual leave system for Maintenance and Contracts operatives, calculating weekly payments and callout payments, adding labour costs, managing mobile working, dealing with pay-related enquiries. Process all building related and other invoices for payment, including raising purchase orders, checking and inputting receipts and invoices for goods and materials. Assist in the resolution of queries regarding invoices..
  1. To carry out inductions for all new staff and maintain/ ensuring the confidentiality of personnel files
  2. To manage trade operative’s diaries and responsive repairs scheduling, including scheduling Community Caretaker visits. Controlling all appointed work including day and emergency response jobs, dealing with phone enquiries from trade operatives, tenants and CCC staff, providing technical advice, support, and information. Creating processes and workflows for trade operatives to comply with ISO accreditation, managing imprest stock, picking lists, entering issue sheets, managing amendments and final trabsfers, completing van and stores stock takes
  1. Such variations as may be required from time to time without changing the general character of the duties shown above or the level of responsibility entailed.

/ Ipswich Borough Council
Person Specification
BUSINESS SUPPORT OFFICER
HOUSING SUPPORT SERVICES
ATTRIBUTES / ESSENTIAL / DESIRABLE / METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Qualifications /
  • Educated to GCSE level pass in minimum of two subjects, including English
/
  • Application
  • Certificates

Work Related Experience / Job Related Skills /
  • Experience in dealing with the public in person and on the phone
  • Demonstrate ability to interpret and follow procedures and to provide requested information
  • Experience of writing formal letters relating to services provided
  • Ability to maintain and analyse databases and other statistical information
/
  • Experience of working in a local government environment
  • Experience of building construction or maintenance administration
  • Experience of Environmental Health administration
/
  • Application
  • Test
  • Interview

Specialist Knowledge /
  • Demonstrate competent keyboard skills with accuracy of inputting and transferring data
  • Proven IT skills in relation to word processing and spreadsheets - data input analysis and presentation
/
  • Experience of working with Electronic Document Management systems
  • Experience of working with Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems

Personal skills /
  • Ability to deal with people at all levels over the telephone
  • Good written and verbal communication skills
  • Demonstrate willingness to work with others to help achieve service requirements
  • Demonstrates a customer-focussed and responsive approach that improves service delivery
  • Ability to make decisions on own judgements
  • Demonstrates a flexible work attitude to meet requirements of the service
  • Ability to carry out work under pressure and maintain standard of work
  • Demonstrates ability to work with minimal supervision
  • Proven ability to work to meet targets
/
  • Ability to undertake research and compile statistics
  • Experience of working in a performance managed environment
  • Experience of managing your time to achieve targets
/
  • Application
  • Interview

Other Requirements /
  • Must be able to work flexible hours between 8am and 5pm Monday to Friday
  • A basic disclosure from Disclosure Scotland is required for this post.

Ipswich Borough Council

Housing Advice

Business Support Unit

  • Maintaining HRA Business Plan including annual rent setting
  • Financial and performance monitoring,expert user for Housing specific IT systems Maintenance of Housing information systems
  • General administration such as post, scanning, processing orders and invoices and hundreds of other tasks to help the teams function
  • M&C Business Support
  • Environmental Health Business Support

Housing Options

  • Face to face work with customers at the Customer Service Centre for all Housing Options Issues, on an appointment basis
  • Duty phone line giving free housing Advice to all residents of the Borough
  • Homelessness prevention using a variety of options including Private Rented Sector through the Ipswich Lettings Partnership, Hostels and other supported accommodation, mediation with friends/family, negotiation with landlords/Housing Benefit to address rent arrears
  • Homelessness applications and decisions

Accommodation Team

  • Maintenance of the housing register, assessing housing need and carrying out eligibility tests where applicable
  • Checking adverts for all void social housing properties in the Ipswich boundary before advertising on Choice Based Letting system
  • Allocation of social housing through the Choice Based Letting scheme
  • Ensure access to accommodation for vulnerable groups including those with physical disabilities
  • Rent account management of temporary accommodation, including recovery action where appropriate

West Villa Accommodation

  • Resettlement officer working across both teams (Accommodation/West Villa) assessing and co-coordinating support for homeless households where appropriate
  • Team of hostel staff responsible for day-to-day operation of the hostel, maintaining 24 hour cover in shifts
  • Enforcing hostel license conditions
  • Crisis intervention with professional agencies
  • Sign posting residents to appropriate agencies for non-related housing assistance
  • Assess out of hours requests for assistance under homelessness legislation and provide accommodation where applicable

Policy and Strategy Team

  • Production and review of the Council’s Housing Strategy
  • Review of all policies and strategies in Housing and Community Services
  • Research
  • Horizon scanning

Health and Wellbeing

  • Production and review of the Council’s Health and Wellbeing Action Plan
  • Work to ensure that IBC is a Dementia Friendly Organisation
  • Active membership of the Ipswich Dementia Action Alliance