Customer Service Adviser (First Line)

Customer Service Adviser (First Line) - 12 month Fixed Term Contract 

Post No: 42998

Salary: Starting from £27,711 to £30,060 p.a.

Scale / Band: Grade 4

Hours: 37 hours per week - Monday to Friday 8:30am - 17:00pm

Place of work: Town Hall, Worthing - Primarily Contact Centre based, in the Town Hall. Could be called into any of Adur and Worthing Council’s customer contact locations.

Closing date: 12th January 2025 

Interviews: TBC

Join Our Dynamic Customer Contact Centre Team – A Challenging and

Rewarding Career Opportunity

Are you ready for a fast-paced, rewarding role where every day brings new challenges? We’re looking for a dedicated and resilient individual who thrives in a high-energy environment and is passionate about delivering exceptional service.

At our Customer Contact Centre, you’ll be at the heart of helping our customers with their most pressing needs. While this role is certainly demanding, it’s also incredibly fulfilling and offers plenty of opportunities for growth, learning, and career advancement.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Handling high volumes of customer interactions through phone, email, and face to   face, ensuring each experience is positive, solution-focused, and empathetic.
• Problem-solving - every day presents a new challenge, and you’ll be the expert our customers rely on.
• Collaborating with an enthusiastic team that’s committed to helping each other succeed, creating an environment of continuous learning and improvement.
• Being a trusted advisor - you’ll develop expertise in our services, processes and policies, allowing you to guide customers through complex issues.
• Supporting customers in arrears - a key part of this role involves working with customers who are behind on payments. You’ll need to approach these situations with care and understanding, negotiating payment solutions in a way that works for both the customer and the Councils’. We believe in offering our customers support and guidance to help them get back on track.
• Adapting to change in a constantly evolving role, where you’ll gain valuable skills that can propel you into more advanced positions within the Councils’.

What We’re Looking For:

• Resilience and a can-do attitude - this is a high-pressure environment, Customers who contact us can be vulnerable, frustrated or distressed so the ability to stay calm, focused, and positive is key. Sophisticated communication skills are essential.
• Excellent communication skills - clear, empathetic, and effective communication will help you build trust and resolve issues efficiently.
• Problem-solving mindset - every customer interaction is different, and you’ll need to adapt quickly.
• Team player mentality - collaborating with others and learning from each other will be essential to your success.
• Experience in customer service or a similar fast-paced, customer-facing role is a plus, but we’re also open to training the right person who has the right attitude! We are looking for hardworking, adaptable advisers committed to ensuring excellent customer service, even when the council is unable to provide the resolution the customer desires.
• Flexibility - the role is based within our Contact Centre in Worthing Town Hall, but you will be asked to provide assistance when needed at our face to face offices in Worthing and Shoreham.

Why This Role Is Worth It:

• Develop your career - this role provides excellent opportunities for advancement. We love to promote from within, and we’ll support you with the training and resources you need to move up.
• Dynamic environment - no two days are the same! You’ll face a variety of customer needs, keeping the work exciting and engaging.
• Supportive team culture - you’ll be part of a close-knit team that encourages collaboration, offers support, and celebrates wins together.

The Demands:

This is not your typical customer service role. The pace is fast, and the expectations are high. You’ll need to stay focused, multi-task effectively, and manage customer issues with empathy and professionalism. But the rewards are immense - both in terms of the impact you make on customers and the skills you develop along the way.

The successful candidate will be subject to a Basic DBS clearance and three years employment referencing. 

At Adur & Worthing, we are committed to supporting care leavers, in accordance with the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 and the Children and Social Work Act 2017. To that end, we operate a guaranteed interview scheme for anyone meeting the essential criteria of the role they are applying for. In order to be considered for this, you will need to be a care leaver under the age of 25 at the time of application. Please confirm that you are a care leaver in the "Showing how you meet the person specification and job description" section of the application form. 

As a Disability Confident employer, we will ensure that a fair and proportionate number of applicants declaring a disability, that meet the essential criteria for this position, will be offered an interview. 

Staff are our most important asset and we therefore have a benefit package which reflects our continuing commitment to our employees.  This includes:

• Generous leave entitlement; a minimum of 26 days + Bank Holiday entitlement
• Local Government Pension
• Training & development
• Occupational Health
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
• Employee resource groups/networks 
• Buddy Support Programme  
• Flexible working options

We are committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community - a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit. Staff work in a supportive and safe environment, recognising their responsibility to value and respect each other’s contributions. Standards of conduct must be of the highest level to ensure that no-one is harassed, bullied or victimised. We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, staff engagement forums and are keen to hear from applicants from a variety of different backgrounds.