Our Network Services Team help Citizens Advice Bureaux across all Scottish communities to be inspired by their actions, support them, and offer them guidance and opportunities for initiating social change and making improvements to their own communities through their services.

The team act as a bridge between bureaux and Citizens Advice Scotland and provide vital assistance in the distribution of key messages, the implementation of project co-design and production with bureaux and monitoring the progress of the bureaux.

This post provides a great opportunity for you to provide administration and analytical support to the Network Services Team to support delivery of their core programme of work to the Citizens Advice Bureaux network. The aim of this programme is to build capacity across the Network. The programme consists of a range of core areas from Governance, Volunteering and Net Zero and everything in between.

As an Administration Officer you will be responsible for the collation, analysis, and reporting of statistical and qualitative data to support informed decision-making and optimise administrative effectiveness across various functions of the team, you will also have opportunities to liaise with bureaux directly.

This role offers you the opportunity to work at the heart of supporting Scotland's largest independent advice network and to make an invaluable contribution to citizen’s lives.

About Us

Inverness, Badenoch and Strathspey CAB is an independent charity providing advice, information and support to people across our community. We are a friendly team of over 60 employees and volunteers working over 3 locations (Inverness, Raigmore and Aviemore) delivering a busy advice service. We strive to deliver a good quality service that meets the needs of our clients in a non-judgemental and confidential manner. We aim for individuals not to suffer through not knowing or understanding their rights and responsibilities or not being aware of the services available to them. We provide advice and options to our clients so that they can make informed decision and feel empowered to improve their personal circumstance.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Purpose of the Role

As an Advice Worker, you will have an interesting and rewarding role giving advice on a range of topics but in particular Universal Credit and benefits. You will work as part of a supportive team ensuring our clients receive a holistic service enabling them to exercise their rights and access the benefits and services they are entitled to. At IBS CAB you will have the opportunity to gain a broad knowledge in a range of topics (e.g. housing, debt, employment) as well as developing your skills and experience. You will be supported through an extensive initial training programme and encouraged to continually develop during your time with us.

Key Responsibilities

Advice Giving

• Interview clients over the phone and/or through video conference and/or face to face to gather relevant information about their circumstance and the issue(s) they seek help with.
• Research the topic to identify options and potential action for the client
• Explain simply and concisely the options available to the client so that they can make an informed decision
• Offer practical help such as calculating benefits, supporting client to claim Universal Credit and contacting other agencies on behalf of the client
• Liaise with specialist teams within the bureau on complex issues and on-going casework and ensure we are providing a holistic advice service
• Refer clients to other agencies and 3rd sector organisation for specialist support and advice
• Record each contact with the client on the CAB database
• Ensure advice given meets the standard expected and this is reflected in case records

Social Policy

• Identify issues brought to the bureau by clients which may have a wider social policy impact and needs further action at a local or national basis
• Record social policy issues on the case recording database
• Provide case studies to be used for highlighting social policy issues and for evidencing the work of the bureau

Case Management

• Manage workload by prioritising enquiries and casework and report back to manager on progress
• Use case recording database and other IT systems to ensure follow up action is taken within timescales

Data handling and Confidentiality

• Adhere to data protection regulations and ensure that special category data is handled in accordance with relevant legislation and organisational procedures  Abide by Citizens Advice confidentiality policy

Working with Others

• Develop and maintain good working relationships with the team, share knowledge and information and make a positive contribution by working proactively toward delivering a good service for our clients
• Provide encouragement and support to our team of volunteers and contribute to their positive volunteering experience
• Develop and maintain good working relationships with external stakeholders, including statutory and voluntary service providers
• Embrace our equality and diversity principles by treating everyone as individuals and with respect at all times

Training & Development

• Be proactive in identifying own training needs and taking responsibility for personal development
• Keep knowledge up to date on legislation relevant to the post and of local issues and policies
• Seek support from manager and participate in supervision and appraisal meetings. Use feedback constructively to further knowledge and skills

General

• Adhere to all IBS CAB policies and procedures
• Be willing to carry out any other related tasks, as required by your manager, which are compatible with the functions of the post.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

This role would suit an individual who is enthusiastic to gain new knowledge and learn new skills. You may be at the start of your career, returning to work after a break or simply looking for a change in direction.

What is important to us is that you:

• Want to advise and help a broad range of people particularly those who are disadvantaged
• Have good communication skills and are comfortable talking to a diverse range of people over the phone, through webchat and face to face
• Are able to build positive relationships with clients, colleagues, volunteers and external contacts , including energy companies
• Willing to have difficult and/or sensitive conversations
• Have a practical and common-sense approach with the ability to manage others expectations
• Are enthusiastic about learning and gaining new skills, knowledge and experience
• Wish to achieve a good standard of work
• Are organised and able to prioritise and meet deadlines
• Have a competent standard of written English that will allow you to complete comprehensive case records, produce correspondence such as emails and letters and complete forms on client’s behalf
• Have a competent standard of maths/arithmetic that allows you to complete basic calculations such as benefits checks, energy statement calculations and income and expenditure reports
• Are able to research information and are keen to solve problems
• Are confident in using IT systems
• Are interested in the work of CAB and associated social policy issues

Other Requirements

Please note that this post is subject to the completion of a criminal records declaration and a satisfactory Basic Disclosure check.

Citizens Advice Edinburgh is looking to recruit an Advice Services Manager, who has a particular knowledge and expertise of Welfare Rights, but also a good working knowledge of all other advice subjects, particularly debt, employment, housing and immigration.

You will be joining a team of 4 other Advice Service Managers each of whom has a particular expertise in each of the other 4 advice areas outlined above.

Citizens Advice Edinburgh is one of the city's leading advice providers and as part of the Citizens Advice Network, you will be joining the country's largest and most respected advice providers.

The Robertson Trust are looking for a Technology Services Officer, based in Robertson House, to provide technical advice, training and support to staff and key stakeholders. If you would like to be part of one of Scotland’s biggest independent funders, with the clear aim of tackling poverty and trauma, this role could be for you.

We want to see a Scotland where everyone is valued and able to flourish. Over the next decade, we have committed to use all our tools and resources, including our sites at Robertson House, Glasgow and The Barracks, Stirling, to work with others to reduce poverty and trauma across four themes:

• Education pathways
• Emotional wellbeing and relationships
• Financial security
• Work pathways

The Technology Services Officer will have Technology-related qualification or equivalent experience.

The key focus of the role is to work closely with and support the Facilities & ICT Manager to provide technical advice, training and support to staff and key stakeholders, while collaborating with colleagues to support the delivery of secure, digital solutions that enhance the provision of the organisation’s core services.

Key responsibilities:

• Work closely with technology support contractors, serving as an internal point of escalation,
• Assist Facilities & ICT Manager to provide access to all sites for ICT engineers/contractors, ensuring onsite works are completed to the agreed standard and specification,
• First point of contact for in-house technical support (for applications the external contractor doesn’t support) including staff, Trustees, tenants, visitors and beneficiaries,
• Provide ICT onboarding/offboarding of staff and trustees,
• Assist relevant teams in delivery of events where technology is used,
• Administer company-wide systems, including: M365 application suite, M365 Admin Centres, CRM, password manager tool, email security platform, etc.
• Identify and implement, where possible, opportunities for improvement of processes across the organisation making cost effective use of existing systems and technologies.
• Support projects to define system requirements that deliver best value and is fit for purpose.
• Support the Facilities & ICT Manager to provide an internal response to cyber threats – phishing attacks, etc.
• Assist Finance Director in the fulfilment of Data Subject Access Requests through liaising with external contractor for data gathering.
• Contribute to the development and regular reviewing of policies relating to ICT and cyber security.

A full job description is available for download below.

The Person

We are looking for someone with current demonstrable experience of Microsoft 365 Admin Centres, preparing training materials, and developing support guides/info for staff, delivering training in one-to-one and group environments. You should be able to effectively communicate, build, and maintain relationships with internal and external stakeholders. You should have strong analytical skills with the ability to collect, organise, analyse, and disseminate information with attention to detail and accuracy. It is essential you can deal with conflicting demands timeously and calmly, while delivering high quality output.

We are an Equal Opportunities employer. We want to encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds to work with us. We believe that greater diversity of experience, skills and ways of thinking will challenge our thinking and practice on poverty and trauma and broaden our collective knowledge and networks. We encourage applications from suitably qualified candidates from all parts of the community, regardless of age, disability, race, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, religion or belief or socio-economic background. We also encourage applications from those with experience or knowledge of how poverty or trauma impact on people’s lives.

Benefits

• Salary £35,875 FTE
• 35 days holiday per calendar year, inclusive of public holidays
• Pension - 10% employer contribution or 14% if employee contribution is 7%
• Private health insurance
• Annual Travel Pass Loan
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to Work
• Employee discounts

We are a Living Wage employer accredited by the Living Wage Foundation.

Applications for flexible working will be considered from day-one of employment.