Administration Assistant

Overview:
We are seeking an Administration Assistant who has a good standard of literacy, numeracy, and excellent communication skills. This is a public facing role based in the town council office in the Memorial Hall on Potter Hill in Pickering working 14 hours over Tuesday to Friday mornings (so 3 hours per day with an additional 2 hours to be worked flexibly by agreement). Start times will be between 8.30am and 9.30am, and finish times will be between 11.30am and 12.30pm, by agreement.

Responsibilities:
- General clerical duties, including photocopying, scanning, filing, and shredding.
- Maintaining electronic and hard copy filing systems, and managing records of council policies, statutory information, and health and safety documents.
- Assisting with the preparation of reports by carrying out research, and following up on actions from meetings under the direction of the town clerk.
- Dealing with enquiries from the public either by telephone, email, or in person. Dealing with sensitive or confidential matters appropriately.
- Checking on issues reported to the council whether these relate to town council assets or assets managed by other authorities and reporting these to the relevant person.
- Assisting with cemetery matters, and in the absence of the assistant to the town clerk arranging burials and liaising with funeral directors and families.
- Producing posters, newsletters, social media posts, and statutory notices. Ensuring that notice boards are kept up to date.
- Assisting with the organisation of events such as summer events at the Community Park, the Christmas Lights Switch On and the Annual Town Meeting.
- Learning and developing new skills in a varied and busy role, undertaking training, developing skills specific to a local authority, and adapting to a changing environment.
- Carrying out other administrative duties, as might reasonably be expected as part of this role.

Experience and skills:
- Experience of working in a busy office environment is preferred, and the candidate must be proficient in using Outlook, Microsoft Word, and Excel.
- Must be able to work as part of a small team, but must also be able to use initiative and work alone, when required.
- Attention to detail, the ability to prioritise tasks, and work to a high level of accuracy is essential.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills are required.
- The ability to handle sensitive information with confidentiality, both within the council and externally is essential. The candidate must also be able to develop a professional and positive working relationship with other staff, councillors, and contractors and promote the council in a positive way in the community.

This is a part-time position working as part of a team of five staff, who support each other and work hard to achieve the council's aims and objectives. The council, made up of twelve councillors, is your employer as a corporate body, but a staffing committee is appointed to deal with most staffing matters. The town clerk will be your line manager.

This is an excellent opportunity to develop your existing skills in a varied and interesting role, where you will have the opportunity to meet new people and feel part of the community of Pickering. The Town Council upholds the highest standards and councillors and staff enjoy serving the community, and work hard to develop good relationships with members of the public and other organisations.

Job Types: Part-time, Permanent

Pay: £11.82-£12.21 per hour

Expected hours: 14 per week

Benefits:

• Company pension
• Cycle to work scheme
• Sick pay

Education:

• GCSE or equivalent (preferred)

Experience:

• Customer service: 1 year (preferred)
• Administrative experience: 1 year (preferred)

Language:

• English (required)

Licence/Certification:

• Driving Licence (preferred)

Work Location: In person

Application deadline: 24/05/2024