Customer Service Officer - Surrey County Council : Job Details

The starting salary for this role is £27,897 per annum for working 36 hours per week.

This is a fixed term/secondment opportunity ending in March 2025.

We are excited to be looking for an Information Officer to come and join our excellent team at Surrey County Council's Contact Centre. You'll be part of a team that values development and collaboration and will be a huge part of maintaining the outstanding service we offer to our residents.

Rewards and Benefits

• 26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 30 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 5 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days plus 1 team volunteering day per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources

About the Team

Surrey County Council's Contact Centre provides a front door to our residents for the main services delivered by the Council, answering a wide and interesting range of enquiries.

With over 1.2 million residents in Surrey, it's a complex, busy operation requiring fast reaction to changes in customer contact and service requirements. This also makes it a fairly pressurised environment in which to operate, however Officers are empowered to make independent decisions with customers and proactively contribute enthusiasm and ideas to improve the quality of the service provided.

About the Role

As an Information Officer, you'll be joining a team of over 30 Officers who were finalists in the 2021 LGC awards and prioritises offering a supportive environment for all team members. We're committed to supporting you in this role no matter what career pathway you wish to take, whether that's helping you to progress within the service or providing a gateway to roles in other areas of the Council. You'll gain invaluable customer service experience as well as insight into the variety of work the Council is responsible for, making you well prepared for whatever your next step might be.

You will be responding to enquiries, initially via telephone and once fully trained, by email and webchat on a wide variety of subjects including School Admissions and Transport, Highways, the Registration service and our Community helpline which provides financial, welfare and wellbeing support

Training

We provide extensive training and support to new and existing members of the team.

Your induction will be 3 weeks long and includes subject matter training, systems training and call handling training to ensure all our new starters understand the importance of successful interactions with customers. Once trained, you will initially take calls from the office full time to ensure you have instant face to face help and support.

About you

We're looking for individuals with a real passion for customer service who will enjoy supporting our customers all day, every day.

To be considered for an interview, your application (CV and separate personal statement) will need to outline and evidence your previous skills and experience with regards to the following areas:

• Experience of providing high levels of customer care and professionalism to members of the public and dealing empathetically with sensitive calls/situations,
• Excellent IT skills and use of databases to a high standard of accuracy,
• Ability to work effectively and flexibly and as part of a team,
• Effective written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills.

You will need to evidence relevant experience (not necessarily in a Contact Centre) combined with a natural capacity for empathy in dealing with sensitive and potentially distressing calls.

If you can tick all the above and are enthusiastic about helping our residents with their requests and enquiries, then please do not hesitate in applying.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 17/03/2024 with interviews to follow.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applications where:

• The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
• The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form

Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role.

We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.