Recovery Officer

**Other Information**:There are two positions available on this post

**Passionate about providing a high-quality collection service by helping and supporting our residents and businesses?**

**Role Snapshot **

Our Councils bill and collect £250m in Council Tax each year. You will be part of a team that engages with our customers to find practical and sustainable solutions to ensure that local taxes are paid in a timely manner. Offering support and guidance to those individuals that are struggling with their finances is key to the success this role. With a focus on ‘getting people out of debt, not debt out of people’, the role offers a real opportunity to make a positive difference to our residents.

**What you could be part of**

As part of our Recovery Team, you will work alongside colleagues with a focus on collecting unpaid Council Tax and Business Rates in a fair and ethical manner from our residents and businesses. This will involve taking and making phone calls from customers to negotiate sustainable offers of payment. For those needing additional support you will work closely with our Help Hub and where appropriate internal debt advisors and other debt advisory organisations. You will also liaise with external agencies, such as the Department of Work & Pensions (DWP) and Enforcement Agencies. Predominantly based in the office (or working from home) but you will also have the opportunity to attend the Magistrates Court to obtain liability orders.

Working at the Council enables you to be part of an organisation which is proud to deliver high-quality, customer focussed services. Our success comes from us being commercially astute and business-like. Continuous improvement is also vital, and we challenge ourselves to develop new and innovative ways to improve the services that make a real difference to people’s lives.

**What you’ll be doing **
- Work on non-routine recovery reports and cases deciding on the best form of recovery action including committal or bankruptcy in consultation with managers for the recovery of Council Tax and Business Rates (NDR).
- Work with the Early Help team to deal effectively with customers who are experiencing financial difficulties by referring and supporting vulnerable persons to the Help Hub as appropriate.
- Assist in the maintenance of the Enforcement Agent contract work including the transmission and monitoring of work to the Enforcement Agent, and reconciliation of cases sent.
- Deal with cases where the council is taking bankruptcy or insolvency action and where necessary liaise with the defaulter concerned and the council's legal advisors.
- Strive for continuous improvement of processes and procedures operating in an innovative and cost-effective manner identifying and actioning efficiencies where appropriate

**You must have **
- 5 GCSEs at Grade C (or equivalent qualification) including Maths and English
- Ability to keep up to date with legislation and policies in relation to Council Tax and NDR administration and recovery
- Demonstrable experience of customer service in the Council Tax and NDR environment and experience of resolving complex customer queries with successful complaint handling and resolution
- Demonstrable experience of working within a recovery role and detailed understanding of the appropriate legislation
- Good planning, organisational and time management skills, including prioritisation and self-monitoring of workload and work under own initiative
- Demonstrable influencing skills with some negotiation

**What’s in it for you**

**Why Work For Us?**

Do you want to know more about why our staff work for us? Our website has a fantastic why work for us section where our staff tell us what makes working for the Councils so special.

**What Flexible and Agile Working Arrangements do we Offer?**

The Councils understand the importance of operating a work life balance in the modern world. The Councils operate a flexible working policy and agile working options available for employees where operationally possible.

**What Roles Do the Councils Offer?**

The Councils operate a vast and diverse number of services for our residents, so with this comes a vast and diverse amount of job roles within the Councils. Our website has a great graphic showing all our job families and roles within the Councils. From here you can plan your career with the Councils or get some ideas on other roles that you may be interested in.

**What Benefits do our Employees Receive?**

View all our amazing staff benefits on offer for our employees. Our website has a brilliant benefits section allowing you to see the range of discounts, exclusive offers and total rewards our employees receive. Make sure you stop by to find out more information.

**What Employer Accreditations do we Hold?**

The Councils have a range of employer accreditations that we have worked very hard to achieve. Our website has a full descriptive list of all our current accreditations and wh