Appeals and Monitoring Officer

About Us at Hounslow

We’d love you to join us at the London Borough of Hounslow! Our people are deeply committed to providing excellent services to our residents, doing all we can to make lives as good as they can be.

We are an outstanding council, serving an outstanding borough. With brilliant, visionary leadership, a dynamic Cabinet and a can-do culture, we’ve built strong partnerships which have transformed how we serve one of London’s most diverse boroughs. Hounslow is the world in one place and full of potential.  We are stepping up for our residents like never before.

About our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

We live by five core values: Lead with Heart, Do New, Pass on the Power, Harness the Mix and Be a Rock.  All our work has equality, diversity and inclusion at its very heart, best articulated in “Harness the Mix”.  It's about breaking down barriers between our parts and people and unlocking the problem-solving power of our amazing mix of minds. We serve a diverse community, we have a diverse workforce and we are committed to being an inclusive employer.

We work hard to create representation across our workforce and leadership community, we have thriving employee network groups and our learning and development programmes help us lead, model and breathe ways of working that eliminate inequality, inequity, injustice and bias.

As part of this and under our commitments as a Disability Confident Employer, we make reasonable adjustments to accommodate our candidates.  There’s space for you to tell us what you need within our application form.

Our Benefits

If you join us, you’ll have access to a range of employee benefits. Read more about these here.

About the Role

This is a great opportunity for an experienced Appeals and Monitoring (aka Representations and Appeals Officer) looking for a new challenge, to work within the Parking Operations team.

The postholder will be responsible for dealing with Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) correspondence, deciding motorists appeals, dealing with emails, court & bailiff/debt registration work, some telephone calls, refunds, complaints, and the office-based collection of data to assist with contract monitoring.

This is a hybrid position, meaning if you are successful you will be working from Hounslow House at least once or twice a week, as scheduled by your line manager, to align with the team's in-office days. You will be working remotely the rest of the week.

About the Team You’ll Be Working In

Parking Operations has a statutory duty to enforce parking restrictions on the borough’s roads and car parks under legislation set out within the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (RTRA), Road Traffic Act 1991 (RTA) and the Traffic Management Act 2004 (TMA).

Our aim is to reduce traffic congestion, improve road safety and local air quality; and maintain the provision of parking spaces for permit holders whilst improving accessibility for all road users - especially those with disabilities.

The Appeals and Monitoring team are a part of Parking Operations. We deal with PCN correspondence at all stages of the life cycle of a PCN, including at Representations, Appeal, Charge Certificate and Debt Registration stages.

Your key responsibilities will be to:

1. Investigate PCN Disputes: Review and assess PCN disputes carefully, following the council’s policies and procedures, before issuing a formal decision to the motorist.

2.Maintain Performance Standards: Ensure that your letters are clear and concise, respond to the motorists’ points, and adhere to the relevant quality, policy, and legal guidelines. As part of this you must ensure that daily targets are either met or exceeded. 

3.Liaise with External Services: Work with the Traffic Enforcement Centre, County Courts, and Legal Services to promptly address Witness Statements and Statutory Declarations, ensuring all relevant policies and procedures are followed.

4.Additional Duties as Needed: Assist with various other tasks, such as processing refund requests, responding to emails, and occasionally handling phone calls, to help keep the office running smoothly.

About You

Your Skills:

If the below resonates with you we’d love to hear from you:

1. Experience with PCNs and letter writing: You’re comfortable investigating PCN issues and handling correspondence professionally.
2. Self-motivation and a strong work ethic: You take pride in your work, are driven, and enjoy working independently.
3. Flexibility and a positive, solution-oriented attitude: You’re adaptable, always ready to pitch in with a "can-do" mindset, and you approach your work with professionalism.
4. Computer literate: You’re comfortable using computers and Office 365 software tools including Excel and Outlook, to get the job done.

Professional Qualifications:

No professional qualifications are required for this role, although a level three City & Guilds Notice Processing qualification would be an asset. 

Read more about the work you’ll be doing in the Role Profile.

Don’t meet every single requirement? We know that sometimes people can be put off applying for a job if they think they can’t tick every box.  At Hounslow, we realise the ‘perfect candidate’ doesn’t exist. So, if you can do most of what we’re looking for, go ahead and apply. You may be just the right candidate for the job or be perfect for one of our other roles! Training will be provided at every opportunity, to ensure you have the tools to do the job.

When Interviews Will Be Held and Who to Contact

The key information you need about the role should be in the role profile, but if you have any further questions about the role, please contact:

Email: David.Coughlan@Hounslow.gov.uk

Telephone: 0208 583 3378

Interviews for this job will be held 24^th and 29^th April 2025.

Closing Date: 21^st April 2025