Benefits Officer at London… · Walthamst…

Grade: Scale 6 - SO2 £35,520 - £42,060 Full time - Fixed term Closing Date: 18/09/2026 Directorate: Resources

Organisation: London Borough of Waltham Forest Salary: Scale 6 to SO2 £35,520 - £42,060 (dependent on experience)

Contract Type: Full time - Fixed term (12 Months)

Working hours per week: 36 Application Deadline: 18/09/2026Proposed Interview Date(s): Week Commencing 28/09/2026Reference: 2280**About Us:**Bursting with culture, energy, and opportunity, the London Borough of Waltham Forest is a fantastic and exciting place to work.We are a highly ambitious borough. Driven by culture and the innate creativity of our residents, we have developed new and innovative ways to build our communities. Our Council is relentlessly resident-focused, insight-led, digitally driven and commercially minded; a Council focused on meeting the needs of our existing and future residents.London Borough of Waltham Forest is one of the Mayor of London’s Good Work Standard employers. This accreditation is a proof of our commitment to creating a healthy, fair and inclusive workplace. This includes fair pay and conditions, workplace well-being, skills and progression and diversity and recruitment.About the role: We are recruiting two Benefits Officers on a 12-month fixed-term contract to support the Council's Corporate Debt Recovery Service.

The successful candidates will primarily undertake debt recovery activities, managing a caseload of outstanding debts, contacting residents and businesses, negotiating repayment arrangements, and progressing recovery action in line with Council policies and legislation. Officers will work closely with internal services and external partners to maximise income collection whilst ensuring vulnerable residents are identified and supported appropriately.

This is an excellent opportunity for candidates with experience in benefits, revenues, debt recovery, income collection, customer service, or financial administration. Strong communication, organisation, and case management skills are essential.

We are a Home Office–licensed sponsor; however, for this specific role we are not able to provide Skilled Worker visa sponsorship. To be considered, you must already hold a form of UK work authorisation that does not require sponsorship.

>> Click here to download the Role Profile << Key Responsibilities: Process Housing Benefit, Council Tax Support, Free School Meals and discretionary support schemes accurately and within service timescales.

Complete financial assessments and reassessments in accordance with legislation, Council policy and service procedures.

Recover Housing Benefit overpayments and corporate debts, including negotiating repayment arrangements and progressing recovery action in line with Council policy and legislation.

Provide a high-quality customer service, responding to enquiries from residents, landlords, partners and other stakeholders. Maintain accurate records, correspondence and management information using the Council's systems and databases.

Contribute to service improvement initiatives, including the use of automation, digital processes and robotic processing.

Support the identification and prevention of fraud, subsidy loss and processing errors.

Assist with training, mentoring and supporting colleagues and apprentices where required. Qualifications and Requirements: (GCSE English and Maths at Grade 4 (or equivalent qualification).

Relevant NVQ Level 2 or Level 3 qualification desirable. Terms and conditions:

• Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks;
• Satisfactory declaration of interest;
• This role is subject to safer recruitment practices as it involves work with children and/ or vulnerable adults;
• Satisfactory DBS check;
• As a public authority, we must ensure that members of staff in public-facing roles are able to speak fluent English. This means that they must have a command of spoken English, with confidence and accuracy, sufficient for the effective performance of their role. This requirement does not refer to any particular English language qualifications, regional or international accents, dialects, speech impediments or the tone of conversations. It does not require staff to speak only in English. How to Apply: Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the ‘Apply’ button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy.We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.**Equal Opportunity Employer:**Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy.We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview.For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us.**Contact Information:**If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact Eamonn Hennessy, Head of Service at Eamonn.Hennessy@walthamforest.gov.ukIf you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.The Council’s preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method. Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.

Fraud Awareness Notice The London Borough of Waltham Forest only advertises vacancies via our official website and approved recruitment platforms (e.g. Jobsgopublic).

We will never ask for payment or request sensitive personal or financial information as part of our recruitment process.

If you are contacted by a third party claiming to represent the Council, please verify the vacancy via our official careers website before sharing any information.

If you have concerns about a job advert or communication, please report it to: fraud@walthamforest.gov.uk