Administration Assistant - Req24650

Job title: Administration Assistant
Salary: B1, £23,114 - £23,893
Hours: 37
Contract: Permanent
Location: Tribeca House

Would you like to be part of something bigger and join us in our ambition to become the Best City, working together as a Team for Leeds? Do your values match ours, and do you have something to offer?

Leeds City Council delivers over 500 different services to residents and is dedicated to bringing the benefits of a prosperous, vibrant, and attractive city to the people of Leeds. This is a fantastic time to join us. 

What we offer you
We take pride in offering the best employee experience, with benefits including:

• a competitive salary and annual leave entitlement plus statutory holidays
• membership of the West Yorkshire Pension Fund with generous employer contributions
• flexible and hybrid working arrangements subject to service requirements
• a clear career pathway and continuing professional development opportunities
• a range of staff benefits to help you boost your wellbeing and make your money go further

About the role

This role is working in the Business Administration service supporting the Adults & Health Mental Health Unit team. Supporting Social Workers, Team Managers, an SDM and Head of Service.

You will work as part of a team to meet daily deadlines of processing referrals, data cleansing, as well as written and verbal communication with stakeholders and clients. The work is predominately based within the CIS APEX applications which hosts all adults in Leeds with social care involvement.

Good IT skills and attention to detail are essential as you will need to be able input referral information into the APEX system accurately, unpick data and send private and confidential correspondence. We also have extensive spreadsheets and SharePoint sites which we use and update regularly.  We also provide regular reports and stats to the service team managers.

There is a large amount of telephone work involved with this role, primarily communicating with professionals and you will need to be able to communicate clearly and effectively, signposting where appropriate. Some calls can be of a difficult and/or sensitive nature.
There is also a heavy flow of incoming queries from the service via our admin inbox, you will need to show initiative and manage your time in order to respond to these queries effectively.

The job is suitable for hybrid working, a minimum of 2 days a week will be based in the office, but flexibility is essential.

About you
As an Administration Assistant you will bring to the role:

• Excellent communication skills
• Excellent IT skills
• Strong organisational skills
• Flexibility and resilience
• An ability to prioritise

How to apply
Please complete the online application form.

Read our guidance for further advice. Please check your information carefully and ensure you complete all sections before submitting your application. 

If you have any queries or would like an informal chat about the role please contact Deborah Bowness, Team Leader, 0113 3788227 or email Deborah.bowness@leeds.gov.uk

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.

We promote diversity and want a workforce that reflects the population of Leeds. Leeds City Council is ranked 70 on the Stonewall Equality Index 2023. We are also an age-friendly employer, a Mindful Employer and a Disability Confident Leader.

All new Leeds City Council appointments are made subject to the satisfactory completion of a six-month probationary period.

This role is based in the UK. Employment is conditional on confirmation of the right to work in the UK - either as a UK or Irish citizen, under the EU Settlement scheme or having secured any other relevant work visa. If you do not have the right to work in the UK and the role does not meet eligibility for sponsorship, please consider carefully whether you meet the eligibility to apply.

Job Description

Job Purpose

Shared Services consists of employees in the Business Support Centre, Business Administration Service and Contact Centre. These services provide administration support activities to a wide range of teams and services across the council.  We help the council to streamline operations by redesigning processes, reviewing models of delivery to enable better sharing of resources and exploiting existing or introducing new technology to modernise the way we work.

Our staff use a range of computer programmes and systems to support services which include those working with teams based across the council in a number of different administration roles. The role involves hybrid working (home/office dependant on service need), potentially working face-to-face with customers and working within the council boundaries as required.

Specific team job purposes are listed below.

Responsibilities

Work with high levels of accuracy for tasks such as checking documents, recording numerical and alphabetical information.

Identify problems and areas for improvement and offer solutions.

Work unsupervised, using your initiative to adhere to time scales and deadlines and manage your own workload.

Carry out a range of administrative duties.

Work flexibly and move within service areas – working at different locations depending on service demand.

Maintain effective relationships with other Leeds City Council staff, Elected Members, members of the public and other partnership organisations as appropriate.

Flexible and adaptable to change to assist other services as required commensurate to grade

Participate in appraisal, training and development activities as necessary to ensure up to date knowledge and skills

Improve own practice through observation, evaluation, discussion with colleagues and development programmes.

Work collaboratively with colleagues, knowing when to seek help and advice.

Contribute to the overall ethos, work, and aims of the service by attending relevant meetings, training days/events as requested.

Be aware of and comply with Leeds City Council policies and procedures e.g. child protection, health, safety and security, confidentiality and data protection, reporting all concerns to an appropriate person

Be aware of and support difference and ensure equality for all working in an anti-discriminatory manner, upholding and promoting the values, standards and equal opportunities of Leeds City Council.

Recognise and appropriately challenge any incidents of racism, bullying, harassment or victimisation and any form of abuse of equal opportunities, ensuring compliance with relevant policies and procedures.

The Council has adopted a flexibility protocol and this role will be expected to work within these parameters.

The duties outlined are not meant as an exhaustive list and will also comprise any other duties within the spirit of the post commensurate with the job evaluation outcome for this post.

Qualifications: 

Qualifications demonstrating ability in numeracy and literacy or equivalent knowledge
PERSONAL SPECIFICATION

Method of Assessment will be through one or more of the following Application Form, Test, Interview or Certificate.

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS: It is essential that the Candidate should be able to demonstrate the following criteria for the post within the context of the specific role duties and responsibilities:  Candidates will only be shortlisted for interview if they can demonstrate on the application form that they meet all the essential requirements.

Skills Required

Well-developed interpersonal and communication skills, including face-to-face, telephone and written communication skills.

Able to work with, and within, multiple teams and contribute to its development with suggestions for new ways of working.

Able to work on you own and use your initiative to adhere to timescales and deadlines.

Good numeracy and literacy skills and the ability to deal with complex tasks with support.

Able to collate data and use it to produce reports.

Knowledge Required

Of the applications, systems and IT programmes utilised by the service and being able to accurately record and retrieve information

Understanding of the importance of providing excellent customer services and experience of dealing positively with challenging situations.

Knowledge and experience of adhering to procedures and legislation relating to confidential information.

Behavioural & other Characteristics required

Committed to continuous improvement in all areas and work towards delivering the Best City Ambition of Health & Wellbeing, Inclusive Growth and Zero Carbon.

Able to understand and observe Leeds City Council Equality and Diversity Policies.

Carry out all duties having regard to an employee’s responsibility under Health & Safety Policies.

Willingness to actively participate in training and development activities to ensure up to date knowledge, skills and continuous professional development

Understand and embrace Leeds City Council Values and Behaviours and codes of conduct.

DESIRABLE REQUIREMENTS: It is desirable that the Candidate should be able to demonstrate the following criteria for the post within the context of the specific role duties and responsibilities:  Candidates are not required to meet all the Desirable requirements however these may be used to distinguish between acceptable candidates.

Knowledge Required

Safeguarding