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SalaryOur Values
In line with our One Coventry Values we strive to have a workforce that reflects our local communities and welcome applicants from all sections of the community. We particularly welcome applicants from minority ethnic backgrounds, applicants who have a disability and applicants who are from the LGBTQ+ community to apply for our senior leadership roles.
Our Values are:
About the team we are recruiting to
We value diverse perspectives and experiences and are striving to create a workplace culture that is inclusive, is accepting of all and is free from discrimination and bias.
The Revenues Service is a large team of more than 60 people working together to collect £340 million of corporate revenue to help the Council provide vital services to Coventry residents. From council tax to business rates to invoices for stalls at the Godiva Festival, the team perform a range of roles to ensure we provide excellent services to residents and internal council departments and that ultimately, we maximise the collection of public funds. The revenue we collect ensures the council can provide services from bin collections to looking after our parks and green spaces to providing the best possible chances in life for our looked after children.
Our team is uniquely placed within the council as we interact with every one of Coventry’s 140,000 residential properties and 9,000 commercial properties. Every resident and customer we deal with has a unique set of circumstances - our team challenge those who can pay and don’t pay – applying a range of legal remedies to compel people to pay what they owe. But the team also listen to and support those who can’t pay and help some of our most vulnerable residents find a way out of debt.
Coventry City Council’s Revenues & Benefits Service is comprised of diverse, multi-talented teams who all have the same aim, to help the city’s most vulnerable residents and to maximise income for the authority. Our work is varied and covers the assessment and administration of schemes that provide financial help and support for those in need. Specifically, the Benefits teams are responsible for the delivery of: Housing Benefit and Discretionary Payments which we administer on behalf of the Department for Works and Pensions. 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.
The Revenues area of the service is responsible for the billing and collection of Council Tax, non-domestic rates & Business Improvement Districts.
We also recover any overpaid housing benefit, administer Council Tax Support which is a local scheme that helps residents with their Council Tax charges, check eligibility for Free School Meals, by working closely with schools we aim to ensure every child who is entitled has a free school meal.
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?
This is an exciting opportunity for a highly motivated individual to join our Revenues and Benefits Systems Support team and provide assistance in supporting all operational functions within the Revenues and Benefits Service in order to meet Business objectives as determined within the Service and Operational Plans.
Main work duties will include but will not be limited to the following:
Providing specialised support in relation to the IT systems used by the Revenues & Benefits service and its customers. This includes running business processes to ensure that all areas of the system remain operational.
Test new functionality of all systems within Revenues & Benefits.
Ensure that all system issues are investigated and if necessary, logged with the relevant support provider, tracked, diagnosed, and resolved or escalated.
Conduct audit checks on daily batch processes, output and financial reconciliation and liaise with the relevant support provider to ensure any issues are resolved as soon as possible.
For a full list of the main duties and responsibilities please view the job description attached below
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?
We are looking for someone with extensive knowledge of legislation such as Benefits, Council Tax and Business Rates.
Ideally the successful candidate will have specialist knowledge of Housing Benefits.
You must have excellent IT skills and be able to communicate at different levels. You must be organised, self-motivated and can problem solve and analyse complex data. As well as using your own initiative, you'll be able to work well as part of a team. Working accurately and meeting deadlines and targets, you'll have a willingness to learn new skills, and be flexible to meet team needs.
When applying for this role you will be asked to write a personal statement. Please refer to the Job Description and Person Specification, and particularly include the following in your application:
Examples of:
High level of ICT knowledge & experience, specifically Housing Benefits systems.
Ability to communicate effectively to a wide variety of recipients both verbally & in writing
Your ability to work effectively with a wide range of issues at times under pressure, i.e. conflicting priorities & deadlines.
For full details on the application process please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'
Interview date(s): Week commencing 5th February 2024
About Coventry
Coventry has a proud, innovative and creative spirit that throughout its history has seen communities come together to tackle problems and bring about real social change.
We are cutting-edge, challenging, youthful, vibrant and diverse.
At Coventry we are committed to excellence in everything we do. With around 5100 staff from a range of different backgrounds, our aim is to recruit and develop talented people who will focus on our customers, take responsibility, work together and find better ways of doing things.
To deliver the best services to our residents, we need the best people working for us to make a difference to our communities.
If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards and benefits package - to find out more please visit https://www.coventry.gov.uk/council-vacancies
Coventry City Council
