Benefits Assessor (Capita One/Academy)

Job Description This is a remote position. Rate: £23.05 p/h (umbrella) Term: 3 months Hours per week: 37 Location: Remote What you'll work on Under the guidance of the Senior Benefit Assessor, to assess Housing Benefit & Council Tax Support in accordance with legislation, case law, and the working practices and procedures of the council to the required standards of accuracy and achieving agreed clearance times as laid out in the service plan. To deal with customer enquiries by telephone, in person or on visit as required, and to support colleagues and partners in prioritising customer needs, and providing excellent customer care. What you'll achieve 1. To be responsible for processing all work allocated to them by the Benefit Team Leaders, in accordance with the Services stated performance indicators and office procedures. 2. To undertake work on the assessment of all types of Housing Benefit (HB) and Council Tax Benefit (CTB), applications, including applications from students, the self employed, all types of tenures, overpayment calculations and underlying entitlement, initial investigation on complaints, verifying claims to an agreed standard. 3. Maintain customer’s records accurately via the Council’s on-line computer systems, complying with Data Protection, Freedom of Information and other security standards. 4. To give accurate advice to customers, promoting take up of Housing and Council Tax Benefits and other welfare benefits, and to ensure that customers receive the maximum amounts of benefits and additional income they are entitled to. 5. Identify and initiate recovery of overpaid benefits and classify each overpayment for subsidy purposes. Ensure overpayments are:- a) identified b) calculated c) notified d) recovered In accordance with the HB/CBT legislation, and maintaining effective communications with claimants and other stakeholders. 6. To provide support, training or mentoring to colleagues and partners as required. 7. Conduct quality control exercises by checking the work of others in the team as required and identifying discrepancies and errors, reporting the results to the Benefits Team Leader. 8. Conduct home visits, with a colleague if necessary, to facilitate any benefit related enquiries. 9. Deal with telephone enquiries and provide assistance on complex issues to employees on the One-Stop-Shops and if appropriate conduct interviews with the customer. 10. Work in partnership with the Council Tax Billing/ Recovery/ Fraud sections and maintain effective communication on common issues. 11. Liaise with DWP offices, the Rent Officer Service, Housing Associations and private landlords on individual cases. 12. To take personal responsibility for keeping abreast of new legislation. 13. To comply with Health and Safety legislation, and the Council’s Equal Opportunities Policy. 14. To provide customer services and to process Housing Benefit claims at the frontline and alternative venues as required. 15. To identify and refer any cases of potential fraud to the Fraud Team for investigation, liaising with investigators as required. Requirements Who we're looking for ​ Must have recent experience in the role and be fully competent in all aspects of assessing Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support. Skills you'll need to bring A highly competent user of the Capita One (Academy) software Benefits What we offer We believe employee benefits should go beyond just a free drink or fruit bowl. What’s more, we believe you should get to choose perks that suit your lifestyle. That’s why we’ve partnered up with the global benefits and rewards provider Perkbox, to offer something for all of our people. Here’s what you can look forward to: Perks Hub * Hundreds of global and local perks, available online 24/7 * Free monthly lifestyle perks; such as free coffees, breakfasts, cinema tickets, etc * Shopping discounts from the biggest brands, all year round * Save money on everything from the supermarket shop to summer holidays Wellness Hub * Easy to follow videos for everything from yoga exercises, to strength training and HIIT workouts * Mindfulness, meditation and sleep resources, available on all your devices * Guides to help with everything from anxiety to stopping smoking * Confidential mental health helpline, 24/7 access to a qualified counsellor Celebration hub * Working with us means you're always part of Team BSS - celebrate and recognise fellow contractors, whether they're across the desk or across the world * Company polls where everybody can vote for the winners Culture Hub * A single place to find company updates, photos, benefits information and lots more! * Stay in the loop with what’s happening by accessing Culture hub anywhere, at any time