Information Advice Officer jobs

Location: Based within our Hull Office – with some travel across the region
Employer: Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire (HEY)
Salary: £29,400 per annum
Hours: Full time (part time options will be considered)
Contract length: Fixed term 1 year

We are seeking a passionate and skilled Information and Advice Benefits Advisor to join our team and make a difference in the lives of older people.

Older people in later stages of life are facing growing challenges in maintaining their well-being. To address these needs, the Age UK HEY Information and Advice Benefits Advisor will provide tailored welfare advice services, supporting older people in key areas of need across the region.

The Role

In this pivotal role, you will:

• Deliver welfare benefits advice services for older people, seeking income maximisation for clients wherever possible.
• Encourage benefit take-up and provide confidential advice on potential entitlement.
• Assist with benefit applications and provide support with appeals and decision challenges.
• Advise and assist with the needs of the clients such as housing, scams, blue badges, care support and more

About You

The ideal candidate will have:

• A strong knowledge of the benefits system.
• Experience with the claims and appeals process.
• A proven background in advice giving.

You will join an experienced and supportive advice team at Age UK HEY, working collaboratively to ensure older people receive the support they need to live happy and independent later lives.

About Us

Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire is the region’s only organisation dedicated to supporting older people. Our mission is to help older people live happy, independent later lives through a wide range of services.

What We Offer

• The opportunity to be part of a growing and impactful service.
• A supportive, collaborative work environment.
• The chance to make a real difference in the lives of older people.

Accountable to: I & A Team Lead Advisor

Primary Purpose

To lead on providing specialist welfare benefits Information & Advice to older people.

This role needs to ensure that Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire Information & Advice services are developed and delivered efficiently and effectively, and information resources are kept up to date. This includes providing support to other staff in the delivery of Information & Advice activities and training/supervising volunteer I&A Advisors.

Responsibilities

· To provide information and advice to older people, their carers, relatives and friends. This advice may be in person, in writing, by email or telephone. There may also be occasional home visits.

· To provide a holistic assessment of the individual, carers and family which includes referrals into our wider services

· To have an in-depth knowledge of welfare benefits which apply to older people.

· To be responsible for the provision of up-to-date benefit information and undertaking benefits checks. supporting older people and their carers in benefits claims.

· To have a knowledge of those issues likely to affect older people, for example but not limited to Lasting Power of Attorney, care provision, housing as well as paying for care.

· To respond promptly, proactively and effectively to a wide range of enquiries from the public and other relevant agencies/partners.

· To support access/refer to a wide range of services that are appropriate, paying particular attention to the needs of marginalised groups and promoting opportunities for early intervention, prevention, re‑ablement and independent living.

· To undertake practical help and casework - helping an older person/carer fill in claim forms, sorting out their financial situation, assisting with a wide range of complaints and following up these, helping sort out paperwork.

· To be responsible for the recording, collation and monitoring of all relevant information relating to clients information, needs and accessing our services and the milestones, outcomes and outputs of the service.

· To be responsible for inputting client records onto the organisations case management system and running reports in a accurate and timely manner.

· To maintain a caseload of new and existing clients through to completion and case closure.

· To arrange and participate in stakeholder and other events throughout the region

· To work closely with other members of the team and partner agencies in respect to correspondence, telephone conversations and enquiries.

· To lead on providing specialist I&A expertise and Benefits advice support to staff and volunteers in the delivery of broader Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire I&A activities.

· Supervising the Volunteer I&A Advisors, ensuring they are briefed and supported in their duties.

· To provide outreach information & advice at venues across the region as and when required.

· To provide high quality information, ensuring that our policies and procedures are fully complied with.

· To monitor and maintain files/records, using internal and external audits, to ensure we meet the standards required by our Case Management Procedure, the Age UK Quality Advice Standard and other external accreditations as required.

· To liaise with and refer clients to external organisations and services as appropriate.

· To undertake accurate recording according to our policies and procedures.

· To support the Team Lead, Head of Operations and CEO with statistics and reports as required. Support completion of external audit preparation

· To keep up to date with relevant laws, policies and procedures – locally and nationally and participate in training (internal and external).

· To promote the services provided by Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire, including our charged-for services, to customers and professionals. This will include attending outreach events.

· To uphold and protect the good reputation of the organisation

Effectiveness

To be effective in the role the post holder will:

· readily gain the trust and confidence of service users.

· enable people to find their own strategies for fulfilling lives.

· Be highly organised with their administration and diary management

· challenge low aspirations.

· treat people with unconditional respect.

· augment the resilience, experience, resourcefulness and determination of older people themselves.

· foster co-production of service delivery and development, working with teams across the organisation, taking a lead on ensuring that I&A and benefits advice activities are accurate and efficiently delivered.

· foster partnership between service users, family carers, volunteers, staff, partner organisations and commercial allies.

· learn and record learning about the needs and issues faced by older people.

· develop and share in-depth knowledge of the services available to older people and the problems they face when trying to access them.

Effectively deal with key challenges in the role:

· challenging low aspirations to effectively deliver preferred outcomes for ‘seldom heard’ older people, in line with targets and deadlines.

· maintaining service user throughput at the same time as achieving independence.

· time management and balancing competing priorities.

· Case recording in accordance with IAQP standards

Communication

Develop effective communication strategies and working relationships:

· with service users, family members, carers, professionals, students, and volunteers

• with health, social care, and voluntary sector organisations

Other

· Ensure that staff and volunteers always act to promote the interests of older people and uphold the organisation’s commitment to promoting equality and diversity and fighting age discrimination.

· Undertake and keep up to date with any necessary training to carry out the job.

· Act at all times to protect the organisation from any risk of wrongdoing or loss of reputation.

· Be willing to undertake responsibility for exceptional tasks from time to time.

· To participate in Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire’s fundraising, promotional and social events, working with other members of staff and volunteers.

· Undertake other duties as required in line with the duties and responsibilities of the post.

Pay: Up to £29,400.00 per year

Benefits:

• Free parking

Experience:

• Welfare benefits : 1 year (required)

Work Location: In person