Description
The starting salary for this position is £29,697 per annum for a 36-hour working week (prorated for part-time staff).
Join our dedicated team at Surrey County Council's Adult Social Care Information & Advice Service as an Information Officer!
We're looking for two enthusiastic people who are committed to making a difference in the lives of our residents. In this role, you'll be part of a supportive and collaborative team that values growth and continuous improvement, playing a key role in delivering the high-quality service we're proud to offer.
The positions are based at Dakota in Weybridge. Following your induction, there will be flexibility to work from home part of the week. This is a permanent contract opportunity, with both full (36 hours per week) and part-time (28.80 hours per week) opportunities available.
Rewards and Benefits
1. 26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 30 days after 5 years' service
2. Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
3. An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
4. Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
5. Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
6. A generous local government salary related pension
7. Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
8. 2 paid volunteering days per year
9. Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
About the role
The Adult Social Care Information & Advice Service serves as the first point of contact, our 'front door', for anyone seeking support from Surrey's Adult Services. In this dynamic and fast-paced role, you'll handle a diverse and engaging range of enquiries. While the environment can be demanding, it's also highly rewarding. You'll be trusted to make informed, independent decisions and encouraged to bring your energy, ideas, and initiative to help continuously enhance the quality of our service.
In this role, you'll respond to enquiries from both the public and professionals seeking support for adults, offering clear and comprehensive information about local care and support services. Your guidance will help individuals understand how adult social care works in their area, explore available care and funding options, and navigate the process of accessing the right support.
What a typical day might look like
10. You'll be the first point of contact for incoming enquiries, managing each interaction within agreed service level targets. You'll assess the urgency and risk of each call, using your judgement to prioritise and respond effectively.
11. Working closely with colleagues across Surrey, you'll help coordinate timely responses to requests for support, advice, information, and safeguarding concerns.
12. You'll engage with residents and their families to gather important background information. This insight is crucial in supporting our partner agencies and ensuring the right help is provided.
13. You'll play a key role in supporting emergency responses by working with police and ambulance teams. Your coordination will help ensure the right resources are deployed quickly and efficiently during critical situations.
To help you settle in and feel fully supported, all new team members will work from the office 4 days a week during the initial induction and training period (up to 12 weeks). Once you're confident and ready to work independently, you'll move to a hybrid pattern, typically 2 days in the office and 3 days from home. A level of flexibility will be required, as there will be times when you'll need to come into the office more often depending on team or service needs.
Shortlisting Criteria
To be considered for an interview, your CV and separate personal statement will need to outline and evidence your previous skills and experience with regards to the following areas. Please note, we have provided context to demonstrate how this will relate to the role:
14. Excellent communication skills: The ability to listen actively, speak clearly, and convey information effectively, (even under stress or when upset by graphic situations you may hear or read about), and providing reassurance to callers, managing contact with professionalism and composure.
15. Information gathering: Maintain clear and concise records of all interactions, accurately recording information to assess need and use sound judgment to signpost callers to the most appropriate services or support pathways.
16. Empathy and patience: The ability to connect with individuals from diverse backgrounds and circumstances, especially those who are experiencing distress. Officers must convey information effectively and confidently, including managing expectations, and remain calm under pressure when handling emotionally charged interactions.
17. Resilience: The role is extremely rewarding, but also comes with some challenges. For example, you will be taking calls from members of the public who could be distressed, angry, experiencing a mental health crisis or reporting abuse. We ask you to think carefully about how this might impact on your wellbeing and especially how you will cope, during and following these types of calls.
18. Strong decision-making skills: The capacity to assess situations quickly, make informed decisions, and act decisively. You will need to be highly organised, able to prioritise and manage multiple tasks effectively and accurately. You must be able to work independently with minimal supervision, and make appropriate and safe decisions under pressure.
19. A background in customer service or people-facing roles and experience talking on the phone: You will need to be able to work with people from all walks of life and have the ability to engage in conversations politely and effectively.
20. IT literacy: Typing skills, including the ability to type and navigate computer systems efficiently, are crucial. Information must be recorded accurately.
21. An understanding of social care and health issues, with a basic awareness of public sector and voluntary agencies.
Working hours flexibility
Please note, as part of our commitment to serving the people of Surrey, you will need to remain flexible, which may include staying later to respond to incoming calls regarding abuse and neglect, and to complete any necessary handover work to our out-of-hours team following those interactions.
Contact Us
The job advert closes at 23:59 on 13th July 2025 with interviews planned for 22nd and 23rd July. The interview will include a 10-15 minute presentation in a format of your choice on a topic shared in advance.
We look forward to receiving your application,