Current Vacancies

ADVICE SESSION SUPERVISOR –  (Trainee role available for the right candidate)

Salary scale £27,920 to £29,158 (dependent on experience) 

Leamington Spa office and Stratford Upon Avon office – Elizabeth House (Stratford District Council Offices)

37 hours per week

Date: 12/01/2024

Introduction from Julie Robinson, Chief Executive

Thank you for taking the time to consider applying for a job at Citizens Advice South Warwickshire. As part of a national network of Citizens Advice offices, we work to make society fairer by helping our clients find a way forward whatever individual problems they may be facing. We do this through our core advice services available by telephone and email, and through all of our projects which are funded by a range of local funders. We also help to champion change at a local and national government level through our research and campaigning work. 

2021-2023 has seen a massive change to the ways in which we deliver our vital services to the people in south Warwickshire. We have invested in our telephone work, with our partners in BRANCAB and North Warwickshire, thanks to funding from Warwickshire County Council, and now take many calls direct from the public. This means we can meet lots of advice needs over the phone, freeing up vital face to face services at our drop in services in Leamington  Spa, Stratford District Council offices, and through our outreach locations. We have recruited more volunteers, and are able to train and support them efficiently to deliver initially on the telephone and then face to face, which is a cornerstone of the Citizens Advice model. We are committed to ensuring our services are accessible and open to everyone who needs us. More and more people are facing hardship, whether that be through the current unprecedented cost of living crisis, unemployment issues, debt and benefit challenges, housing and food and fuel poverty. Our services are now in more demand than ever. 

Consequently we are looking for people who are committed to thinking creatively about how we deliver our services now, and ways in which we can do things differently. We keep our clients at the centre of our work, and you would be joining a team of highly motivated and professional advice workers dedicated to making a tangible difference to the people in South Warwickshire. More on our projects and areas of work can be found on our website: https://www.casouthwarwickshire.org.uk/about/projects/

Our people 

Citizens Advice South Warwickshire has a Trustee Board of  people who are all volunteers. Our Trustees bring a wide range of professional skills and knowledge and insight of the district to the planning of the service. The Trustees, in conjunction with the CEO, are ultimately responsible for setting the strategy and budget for the service. Day to day running and further development of the organisation is the responsibility of the CEO who, alongside the Operations Manager, Targeted Services Manager, Telephony Manager and our Quality Compliance and Service Delivery Manager, oversee the delivery of our services.

CASW has 33 FTE paid staff members and is proud to have over 58 volunteers working in various roles, with more joining our training programmes all the time. These roles include reception and administration, generalist advice, supervisors, money advice, research and campaigns work, financial capability, money mentors, IT support and more. These volunteer roles have expanded in recent years and the service is actively developing volunteers to support its offer. 

CASW operates from two main locations, in Hamilton Terrace, Leamington Spa and Stratford District Council offices in Stratford-upon-Avon .  In order to reach people who find travelling around our large urban and rural catchment area difficult, we also provide outreach offices in many locations around South Warwickshire. As we move forward, we will continue to offer a flexible approach to working, based on the needs of the projects and clients. The office in Leamington is used as an admin, meeting and training hub currently and we are actively seeking community venues to deliver advice face to face to vulnerable clients. We also offer a unique home visiting service for those who would otherwise find access difficult. Anyone joining us can expect a flexible working base, with a degree of home working based on the needs of the business. 

Our Values:  Citizens Advice South Warwickshire  –   Our Values – and how we work together 

We are a COMPASSIONATE COMMUNITY: 

We put our clients at the heart of our work every day 

We act with openness, integrity, honesty and trust 

We collaborate effectively with our colleagues 

We are ACCOUNTABLE 

To our clients; to one another, and to our funders 

We take ownership of problems and queries 

We share ideas and we welcome challenge and alternative opinions 

We EXIST to provide a SERVICE 

We strive for increased performance, which benefits our clients and the organisation 

We are solution focused and work towards common goals with enthusiasm and tenacity 

We provide the quality and data to ensure funding success and sustainability 

We are ONE TEAM 

Supportive, Empowering, Approachable & Effective

 

Our clients 

On many indices of deprivation South Warwickshire can be defined as a low need / high income area. This masks significant pockets of deprivation, rural challenges of isolation, access to services and work, significant fuel poverty and affordability, especially in relation to housing. 

The difference we make 

We make an amazing difference to the lives of the people of South Warwickshire. What we do is often life-changing and sometimes life-saving. In 2022-23 we delivered our advice and advocacy to over 4,500 clients and advised on over  26,000 issues. 

Our funding and projects

We have a wide range of funding sources. This includes income from Warwickshire County Council, Warwick and Stratford District Councils and a number of town and parish councils. This income is awarded via direct grants and through commissioned contracts. 

We have also been very successful at drawing down further income from grant and project funding bodies including: the Big Lottery Fund, Henry Smith Trust, Oken Trust, Orbit Housing, Money Advice Service and many more. 

Our local research and campaigns (R&C) 

The stories our clients tell us provide us with a unique insight into the problems faced by people living in South Warwickshire. We are able to spot developing trends and this helps us to create campaigns and speak up for our clients to those in decision-making roles. By raising issues nationally we can create a public debate, change things for the better and help many more people than those that contact us. 

Our R&C team is led by Ed Hodson who works across Warwickshire to ensure the voices of our clients are heard. 

This is an exciting stage of our development and I hope you decide to submit an application for this critical role with Citizens Advice South Warwickshire. 

The very best of luck with your application.

Instructions 

The closing date for applications is: 9am –  2 February 2024

Interviews: to be held week commencing 12 February 2024  (In the event that you are shortlisted, you will need to be available this week) 

South Warwickshire Citizens Advice interviews will draw out the skills and competencies required for each role. As part of our recruitment process for this role, we may ask you to prepare a short presentation answering a specific question, which you will receive ahead of the interview date. We will use the presentation as part of the overall scoring for the recruitment process and consider the score an integral part of our decision making. 

Please note that when shortlisting we base our scoring and decision making on the answers you provide in the personal statement section on the form. Please take the time to ensure that you address each aspect of the Person Specification, providing examples from your working life, previous roles or volunteering experience. We do not accept CVs. 

To apply, please complete the online application form or if you would prefer a paper copy, please email : monika.shankster@casouthwarwickshire.org.uk . Please refer to the Copyof Guidance notes for applicants.doc for applicants before completing the form. 

If you are unable to make an electronic application, you may submit your application on paper and post to: 

Recruitment 

Citizens Advice South Warwickshire 

10 Hamilton Terrace

Leamington Spa

CV32 4LY

Please ensure your application arrives before the deadline of 9am Friday 9 February 2024 

 

Selection Process 

After the closing date we will consider all applications carefully and invite those candidates who appear, from the information available, to be the best-suited for the post to interview. 

It is important therefore that your application gives a full but concise description of the nature, extent and level of the responsibilities you have held.

 

If selected, details of the interview process will be sent to you by email or letter. 

Data Protection 

We will use your application only to inform the selection process. Your application will be kept on record for 12 months after which we will destroy it. If you are successful, it will form the basis of your personnel record with us and we will store it in a manual file. We will hold any data about you in completely secure conditions with restricted access. 

We will include data that you provide on the diversity monitoring form in a general database for statistical monitoring purposes only enabling us to monitor the effectiveness of our policy on Equal Opportunities and Employment. Individuals will not be identified by name. 

We shall consider that by submitting the enclosed forms you are giving your consent to the processing of your data in the ways described above. 

Religious Divergence 

We respect the diversity of our employees and that they come from a variety of religious backgrounds. Our policy is to respect all religious faiths and we will, where reasonably practical, be supportive when staff want to follow their regular practices connected with their religion. 

Policy on employing foreign nationals 

Under United Kingdom immigration rules, it is a criminal offence to employ a person who is subject to immigration control and who has not been granted leave to enter or remain in the UK, or does not have permission to remain in the UK. 

Citizens Advice South Warwickshire therefore has a legal obligation to carry out document checks to ensure that you have a legal right to work in the UK. It is also a requirement that we retain copies of the relevant documents. 

To avoid potential unlawful discrimination claims we will carry out appropriate checks on all candidates. For this role that will mean a Basic DBS Check.

All job offers are subject to the receipt of references and this will be discussed as part of the appointment process.

Terms & Conditions:

28 days annual leave including 3 days retained for Christmas/New Year

Sick Pay

3% Employer pension contributions

45p per mile for travel in the delivery of the role, outside of usual commuting to and from the office.

Benefits 

We also offer a range of additional benefits: 

  • Flexible working arrangements 
  • Fees paid for membership of relevant professional bodies 
  • Regular professional development 
  • Health & Wellbeing services provided through Occupational Health 
  • Free eye tests and contribution towards lenses/spectacles for Computer users if appropriate

Health Clearance 

Any offer of employment will be subject to satisfactory completion of a Health Questionnaire and should you disclose any health issues, then any offer of employment will be subject to a satisfactory assessment by Occupational Health. Occupational Health will identify whether there are any reasonable adjustments which can be made to support you at work. 

Job Description & Person Specification

Advice Session Supervisor

Salary:                      £27,920 to £29,158

 Hours: 37 per week Full-Time Role

Type of contract: Permanent

Responsible to: Operations Manager

Employed by: Citizens Advice South Warwickshire

Main Office: 10 Hamilton Terrace, Leamington Spa, CV32 4LY

with some peripatetic cover in Elizabeth House, Stratford Upon Avon, CV37 6HX

Overall Purpose of the role

The advice we give to clients is regulated and quality assessed in line with National Citizens Advice and AQS standards. This key supervision role has oversight of all our core service delivery through the following channels, face to face, digital and adviceline. You will manage and supervise each advice session, ensuring maintenance and development of excellent quality of advice through line management and supervision of volunteers.

Job Description

Supervising advice sessions and / or casework

  • Working alongside the Lead Advice Session Supervisor you will manage the practicalities of each advice session and ensure adequate staffing and resources.
  • Act as the main point of contact in the office for day to day running of the service.
  • Provide the appropriate level of support, mentoring and supervision to individual staff and volunteers depending on their level of competence.
  • Monitor daily case records with case checking of designated staff and volunteers to meet quality standards and service level agreements. 
  • Ensure remedial and developmental issues are identified and acted on to develop individuals, improve the quality of advice, and ensure clients do not suffer detriment due to poor or inadequate advice. 
  • Keep knowledge up to date and provide consultation support to advice and casework staff and volunteers.
  • Check when supervisors are planning holidays and negotiate cover where required.
  • Contribute to communicating local office updates and legislation changes via newsletters and verbal briefings.
  • Including working a small amount of hours outside of normal office hours to meet funder requirements as needed.

Learning, development and training

  • Contribute to the assessment of competence of designated staff and volunteers.
  • Support mentoring of new staff and volunteers. 
  • Identify volunteer training and development needs through welfare checks and appraisals.

General

  • Undertake advice work as required. 
  • 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 and values. 
  • Keep up to date with research and campaigns issues and ensure research and campaigns are promoted and integrated in a way relevant to the role. 
  • Develop and maintain effective admin systems and records relevant to the role.
  • Monitor and evaluate activities appropriate to the role and contribute to the local office planning process by providing regular reports and feedback on the areas of responsibility including data. 
  • Attend regular local office 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 and in line with our values. 
  • 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.
  • Attend Training days when required. 
  • Carry out any other tasks within the scope of the post to ensure the effective delivery and development of the service.
  • Communicate with the admin team re. updates required to leaflets, referral forms and contacts lists, posters on the walls.
  •  
  • Communicate with Office Administrator re. stationery and other office items required.
  • Support advisers with IT issues as these arise.

Networking and partnerships

  • Develop links with relevant statutory and non-statutory agencies relevant to the role. 
  • Use influencing skills to promote the local office and foster good relationships with external organisations.

 

PERSON SPECIFICATION

 

 

CRITERIA 

ESSENTIAL/

DESIRABLE

1

Achieved the general advice certificate or equivalent advice experience and a good knowledge of housing, benefits and debt advice.

E

2

Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing.

E

3

Ability to prioritise own work and the work of others, meet deadlines and manage workload and resources  in a busy environment.

E

4

Ability to use IT systems and packages, and electronic resources in the provision of advice and the preparation of reports and submissions

E

5

Proven ability to manage / supervise others, including ability to recruit, develop and motivate staff.

D

6

Strong data handling and report writing skills.

E

7

Demonstrable knowledge of working within a regulated/quality focused environment with a commitment to continue with professional development.

E

8

Working knowledge of the significance and importance of Research and Campaigns.

E