Hove Town Hall (On-Site)
Permanent, Full time
£28,163 - £30,060 pro rata
35
Job introduction
The School Meals Team is part of the Families, Children and Learning directorate. We are looking to recruit a Free School Meals Officer to be responsible for the effective business support service for checking the eligibility of families to free school meals. The postholder will work collaboratively with all schools across the city.
You will have experience of working in a busy office environment with a flexible, adaptable approach and the ability to multitask effectively according to business priorities. Knowledge and experience of databases, document management and free school meals legislation, alongside excellent customer care skills. Be able to manage your own workload and prioritise tasks whilst working to a high level of accuracy and with an attention to detail. Adaptable and able to learn new software systems and create relevant training/process documents as necessary.
As part of a small, hard-working, and friendly team, you must be adaptable and willing to respond to issues as they arise.
This is a full-time position working Monday – Friday and currently based in the offices at Hove Town Hall.
For more information or an informal discussion, please contact Susie Haworth, School Meals Team Manager at susie.haworth@brighton-hove.gov.uk
About the role
The post holder’s Principal Accountabilities will be
Key point of contact for schools and guardians regarding FSM issues and queries, via email and/or telephone. Able to interpret legislation and government guidance for real-life scenarios.
Obtain and collate information and evidence to assess entitlement to free school meals (FSM) in accordance with prescribed regulations and Council policies. Manage relationships with claimants, schools or other professionals/ third parties, in person, or via phone, email, letter.
Manipulate and manage data to assess entitlement to free school meals. Retrieving, cross-checking and analysing information/data. Produce accurate reports for presentation to both internal and external parties.
Interpretation of reports to identify any potential errors or discrepancies and to resolve with the aim of maximising entitlement.
Maintain entitlement records on the computer system ensuring appropriate and clear case notes, detailing advice given and/or actions taken to reflect a full case history.
Regularly undertake a review of entitlement of awards, outside of statutory processes and communicate and record any changes needed to individuals and schools.
Review and update the application process and procedures with the aim of maximising access to free school meals.
Liaise with schools and other colleagues and create reference documents to reflect any changes to legislation, processes or procedures, and support with any training.
Work with the School Meals Contract Officer to support the School Meals Contract as required, especially during peak times or in the absence of the post holder.
As part of your application, you will need to complete your education and work history and provide answers to some shortlisting questions. Your answers to the shortlisting questions are the most important part of your application as they will be used in the shortlisting process to assess whether you meet the essential requirements for the role that are set out in the person specification and to decide whether you should be offered an interview. Before you start your application, please read our guidance here (Shortlisting questions guidance (brighton-hove.gov.uk)) as this gives important advice which will increase your chance of success in the shortlisting process.
Additional information
Your starting salary will be pro rata if the above position is less than 37 hours or term-time only.
We are a workplace that supports flexibility and employee wellbeing in the way we work whilst providing the best service for our customers. Team and service working arrangements are designed to support both employee work life balance and team collaboration. These would be part of your individual working arrangements alongside any personal preference agreed with your manager in advance of joining. Your contractual location will be the designated council office for your team and travel to and from your contractual location would be at your own expense.
For more information about our values and the benefits of working at the council, visit Why work for us
Company information
Encouraging a diverse workforce
Our city is known and loved for its diversity. Not only is the mixture of people, culture and skills vital to the economic and social development of the city, it's what makes Brighton & Hove such a great place to live, work and visit. We are committed to developing and retaining a workforce that is representative of the diverse communities we serve so we welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds. In order to achieve our aims of proportionate representation, we particularly encourage applicants from a BME or White Other background as well as those who identify as disabled, male or trans.
Find out more about our commitment to being a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone can achieve their potential by reading about our fair and inclusive actions, our anti-racism strategy and How we create a fair and inclusive workplace.