Housing Advice Caseworker: Supporting Abri Tenants in the Bracknell Area
Role Purpose
This post is to deliver casework to achieve positive advice outcomes for tenants of Abri (Silva) Homes Housing association within the Bracknell and District area. You will be providing generalist advice on subjects including benefits and income maximisation and debt and financial capability. You will often be supporting people who are vulnerable, and the role may require the postholder to carry out home visits and meeting at outreach venues in the community. The role works closely with professional and voluntary sector partners, as well as a committed and experienced team. A DBS check is required for this role.
Salary (DOE): Probationary period: £25,500 After Probation: c£27,000
Hours: 12 hours per week
Contract Term: Permanent
Location: Hybrid, mainly on site and outreach with some remote working possible (offices in Bracknell and Maidenhead)
Reporting to: Advice Services Manager, Citizens Advice East Berkshire
Main Duties and Responsibilities
Advice Service
- Provide detailed advice, advocacy, practical support, and casework on the range of issues presented by clients, supporting well-informed choices and decisions, negotiating with third parties (statutory and non-statutory), and support for tribunal and County Court cases as required.
- Work with clients, health professionals and others, by telephone, email and in person, working at outreach locations where agreed.
- Maintain a focus on achieving positive outcomes, including financial gains and soft outcomes from welfare benefits, income maximisation, debt management, financial capability, securing housing, and consequent improvements in health and wellbeing.
- Manage a caseload of clients, ensuring progress is clearly defined and case progression is timely and dynamic.
- Work with other specialist advisers across Citizens Advice East Berkshire to share expertise, training, and supervision, managing referrals where appropriate.
- Participate in research and campaigns work, particularly focusing on discrimination and other barriers faced by service users, contributing to reports and case studies where agreed.
Professional Development
- Participate in learning and development activities to achieve and maintain caseworker competences.
- Keep up to date with relevant legislation, case law, policies and procedures, and undertake subject based training as appropriate.
Administration
- Manage own caseload, using case management and other systems effectively, to ensure successful and timely support for clients.
- Manage information to enable required reporting, case studies and outcomes measures.
- Ensure that all work complies with relevant Citizens Advice quality standards, systems and procedures.
Generic
- Keep up to date with Citizens Advice aims, policies and procedures and ensure these are followed.
- Ensure that work reflects and supports the Citizens Advice service’s equality and diversity strategy.
- Keep up to date with research and campaigns issues and provide evidence as appropriate.
- Maintain effective admin systems and records relevant to the role.
- Attend regular internal and external meetings relevant to the role.
- Work cooperatively with colleagues and encourage good teamwork, clear lines of communication and common practices within the team.
- Abide by health and safety guidelines and share responsibility for your own health and safety and that of colleagues.
- Identify your own learning and development needs and take steps to address these.
- Carry out any other tasks within the scope of the post to ensure the effective delivery and development of the service.
Networking and partnerships
- Develop links with relevant statutory and non-statutory agencies relevant to the role.
Person Specification
- Empathy and motivation to provide good quality advice and casework support to clients.
- Experience of delivering advice and casework, particularly on the subjects of welfare benefits and debt advice, in person and remotely.
- Commitment to achieving the best outcomes for clients through delivery of high-quality advice and casework.
- Strong organisational and time management skills, using systems effectively, prioritise appropriately, and enable timely responses to client needs.
- Able to demonstrate good communication, listening skills and empathy to respond appropriately to challenging behaviour.
- Able to demonstrate adaptability, to manage different situations calmly and professionally.
- Ability to work independently, with the confidence to ask for help from the wider team and be proactive in managing challenges.
- Able to effectively and confidently use IT systems as a core element of day-to-day work, including case management. debt and benefits calculations.
- Self-awareness to enable giving and receiving feedback; and constructive engagement to achieve development goals.
- Willingness to carry out role in main office and other locations such as home visits and outreach venues to meet service delivery needs, with an understanding of the challenges in seeing clients away from the main premises.
- Ability to demonstrate a commitment to the aims and principles of the Citizens Advice service, including its equality and diversity policies, and research and campaigning role.
- To provide evidence as appropriate of any research and campaign issues.
- Ability to contribute to an inventive, responsible and generous organisation and team culture, sharing tasks and supporting organisation goals.
- Ability to utilise a range of reference resources.
Join Our Team: If you’re ready to make a positive impact in your local community, apply now to become our Abri Caseworker.
To Apply: After reviewing the Job Description and Information Pack, please send your CV and a cover letter outlining your suitability for the role to recruitment@caeb.org.uk.
Interviews will be arranged as they are received for suitable candidates and the openings will close upon successful appointment, so it is advised applications are submitted promptly to avoid disappointment.
Please be aware that Citizens Advice is not a sponsoring organisation. Therefore the successful applicant must already possess the right to work in the UK.
Please also note, in the event of a high number of applications, we reserve the right to close the application early.
Citizens Advice East Berkshire is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, or age.
Caseworker Abri Housing Job Description (July 2024)
Job Application Form (June 2022)