Clackmannanshire Citizens Advice Bureau, based in Alloa, is an independent and innovative advice organisation providing holistic advice to the residents of Clackmannanshire across 7 locations in the county. We currently have 27 paid staff and 17 volunteers who provide a wide range of services, across our projects.

We have been delivering a valuable, high-level service to the community of Clackmannanshire for over 50 years. We have accreditation in Type III advice by Scottish National Standards for advice providers (SNSIAP) in the areas of Housing, Debt and Benefits

Benefits of working with Clackmannanshire Citizens Advice Bureau are, annual performance related salary increases, 5% employer’s pension contribution plan, free membership of an employer health plan, free use of company Ebikes and a retail perks scheme. Holiday entitlement for full year is 39 days leave including public holidays with the ability to buy and sell annual leave. Flexible working scheme including some home working and flexible starts finish times

The Citizens Advice network in Scotland has been delivering a comprehensive, enhanced support service called Help to Claim, introduced in April 2019, providing the advice and support people need to submit their claim for Universal Credit and support them through to their first payment.

Clackmannanshire Citizens Advice Bureau is looking for a client-focused individual with experience of providing specialist level advice, to join as a Help to Claim Adviser (UC) and to help ensure clients get the support they need. This includes supporting with online forms, the evidence required, telephone and web chat.

The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate relevant recent experience and knowledge of the welfare benefit system including Universal Credit, however do not require to be a trained adviser (but will be required to complete this training) but a knowledge of generalist advice would be an advantage. Applicants should also demonstrate strong oral and written communication skills, be well organised and be proficient in using a range of IT tools to carry out their work, including case recording systems, Microsoft Office, benefit check programmes and be able to make and manage benefit claims.

Consideration maybe given to individuals who do not meet the full requirements of the post but who could be trained in a reasonable period of time this will be offered at below the entry level salary initially.

Committed, results-driven and supportive to the needs of others, the successful applicant will be able to work both on their own initiative as well as part of a team and must be willing to follow and develop agreed procedures.

This is a unique opportunity to give citizens access to free, impartial and confidential advice helping them to make informed decisions, whenever they need it and however they choose to access it.

A Help to Claim Adviser delivers a holistic advice and support service aimed at clients on completing their initial Universal Credit claim and supports them through to their first payment. This involves helping with the online forms, the evidence required, and verifying their identity online using telephone and webchat.

The adviser will be expected to complete full holistic issue diagnostics, support with issues in scope of the project and any emergencies, then refer on to further services available to the client (such as drug and alcohol support). The adviser should maintain local connections with partner organisations and the DWP within their region.

The Citizens Advice network in Scotland is the largest independent advice service in the country. Citizens Advice Scotland is a charity within this network – we act as a national organisation supporting and representing the service as a whole and the interests of citizens. At the heart of the network there are 59 individual citizens advice bureau across Scotland, all operating as independent charities in their own right, which focus on providing support and advice directly to clients. Each of these organisations is a member of Citizens Advice Scotland. We believe that every citizen should have access to free, impartial, and confidential advice that helps them make informed decisions, whenever they need it and however, they choose to access it.

Citizens Advice Scotland provides a business development function and a series of national specialist advice services known as projects which require centralised project co-ordination and support. As the organisation continues to expand in our response to the cost of living and energy crisis, and to meet unprecedented demand for our advice services, we are seeking new team members to join us. You will work alongside the rest of the allocated team, ensuring successful development, delivery, and continuous improvement.

The roles will support a number of projects and therefore a dynamic and flexible individual who can multitask is required. The national projects are delivered by the Citizens Advice bureau network, with the Project Officer providing vital support to enable the advice and support people need.

You will also support a number of internal functions and services and you must have the ability to communicate clearly and to proactively gather information from a wide stakeholder and participation base ensuring deadlines are met.

The roles offer the opportunity to be part of an influential organisation that campaigns for a fairer Scotland in order to make a real difference to consumers' lives. This is a great opportunity to play a critical role in helping to make society fairer, and in supporting our network of Citizens Advice Bureaux across Scotland.

For more information about the role, please refer to the Job Pack.

Employee benefits

Citizens Advice Scotland offers excellent terms and conditions. We want our people to have a great work life balance and we have designed our working practices and benefits to support this. Here are some of things our employees benefit from: a 35-hour full time working week, 40 days annual leave, genuine flexibility in working hours with a flexi-time system, and blended/hybrid working opportunities for every role.

Citizens Advice Scotland is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion. We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies and flexible working arrangements to support all our staff. We are also committed to equality of opportunity for all and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.

CAS provides options for blended working to allow employees to balance their time attending the office with time working from home. The number of days you will be able to work from home each week will be dependent on your job role and can be discussed as part of the recruitment process.

The postholder will deliver generalist advice and information via Outreach Clinics within the community, and sometimes via phone, email or at the Bureau itself.

Although a general advice role, the work will have a focus on assisting people in or at risk of financial hardship by helping them maximise their income through accessing available benefits, settlements, grants, discounts, schemes and other entitlements.

Experience of advice-giving, good communication skills, including for engaging sensitively with vulnerable people, understanding of the UK and Scottish benefit system and commitment to the mission and values of Citizens Advice are essential.