Finance Deputy Officer

Overview

Are you highly organised, financially confident, and motivated by work that truly makes a difference?   Then we would love for you to join our team at Buckinghamshire Council as a Finance Deputy Officer. In this role, you will play a vital part in managing the personal finances & property of vulnerable adults to ensure that these individuals receive the financial support and protection they need, in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements.

If you’re looking for meaningful work, strong values, and the chance to grow your career, we’d love to hear from you.

About us

Working in the Finance Deputy Team as part of the wider Revenues and Benefits Team at Buckinghamshire Council, we are Buckinghamshire Council’s in-house client money management team.

We are a small team responsible for managing the personal finances and property of just over 300 of Buckinghamshire Council's most vulnerable Adults.  Made up of a Team Leader and what will be 5 full time Finance Deputy Officers, we are dedicated to making sure all decisions we make are always in the client's Best Interest.

No two days are ever the same on the Team.  Working closely alongside colleagues in Adult Social Care, as well as care providers and support workers, we have a very varied workload where an investigative and inquisitive mind are very helpful attributes.  Our duties range from paying utility bills to issuing weekly personal allowances and emergency payments, as well as maximising their income, maintaining their claims to benefits where entitled and ensuring that their needs are met within their own budgetary constraints.  

The successful applicant can expect to join a close-knit team who pride themselves on excellent teamwork and constantly aim to achieve the best possible outcomes for their clients. We take a keen interest in our clients as individuals and always make sure we always put their needs first.  

The team support Promoting Independence and Living Well approaches for Buckinghamshire people in the prevention or resolution of financial vulnerability through effective support, advice, and guidance.

Why Join Us:

• Culture: Experience a fair and inclusive culture that promotes a positive work-life balance.
• Benefits: Enjoy generous leave entitlement, competitive pay aligned with our performance pay scheme, and a substantial employer pension contribution through the Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Development: Opportunities for career growth and development, along with various discount schemes and more.

About the role

As a Finance Deputy Officer, you will manage the financial affairs of adults who lack the mental capacity to do so, acting under Corporate Appointeeships or Court of Protection Deputyships. This role is pivotal in ensuring clients’ income, assets, and property are correctly managed, protected, and used in their best interests.

Key responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Gathering information and preparing applications to become a Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) Corporate Appointee on behalf of clients.
• Acting as a DWP Appointee, managing a caseload of Appointeeship cases in accordance with DWP guidelines.
• Maintaining a caseload of Deputyship cases as appointed by the Court of Protection and supervised by the Office of the Public Guardian.
• Ensuring that all correct invoices and payments are made on behalf of clients in a timely manner.
• Maintaining appropriate financial records and producing financial reports as required.
• Liaising with health and social care professionals and any other persons involved in providing care and support to our clients.
• Ensuring that priority is given to the safeguarding of vulnerable adults and that the council’s and the service’s safeguarding policies and procedures are followed.
• At all times working under the Deputyship Standards, DWP Appointeeship Standards and with full regard to the Mental Capacity Act in all decisions made on behalf of our clients.
• Visiting and protecting client property under s47 of the Care Act 2014.
• Supporting colleagues with advice on Court of Protection processes and financial safeguarding.
• Meeting performance targets and contributing to continuous improvements across the service.

About you

To excel in this role, you should have a solid understanding of the welfare benefits system and possess relevant skills and practical experience. Understanding of the Court of Protection Property & Affairs Deputyships & DWP Appointeeships will also be extremely beneficial. 

The ideal candidate will have a good knowledge of relevant processes, systems, policies and procedures, as well as a good working knowledge of other areas of the authority relevant to the service. Your ICT skills should include the use of standard packages and bespoke databases, and you should be highly numerate and accurate with attention to detail.

In addition to technical skills, you should have excellent written and verbal communication skills, including a full command of both written & spoken English language, with the ability to explain specialist information in a way that non-specialists and vulnerable Adults can understand.

Qualifications:

• Educated to GCSE/NVQ 3 standard (including Maths & English) or equivalent

• ICT skills, including standard Microsoft packages and AFW Financial Systems such as Liquidlogic LAS Live & Lloyds Commercial Banking Online (CBO).

For further information on this role, please see the attached job summary.

Other information

This role requires the ability to travel around the county, so a full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle for business use is essential.

If you would like to have an informal conversation about this role, please contact Claudine De Bellis, Finance Deputy Team Leader at [email protected]

Working arrangements: Any desk worker, working 2 days in the office and 3 days from home. 

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).

For further information on filtering please refer to Nacro guidance and the guidance published by the Ministry of Justice (see, in particular, the section titled ‘Exceptions Order’).

We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.

We understand that candidates may use AI tools to assist with their applications. While we welcome innovation, we expect all submissions to reflect your own experience, skills, and achievements accurately. Please ensure your application is truthful and demonstrates your personal capabilities, as this will be assessed during the selection process.

Buckinghamshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk.

Our values and culture

We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.

By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:

• a fair and inclusive culture
• the chance to really make a difference to those around you
• health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
• a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
• ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
• opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events

At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.

From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.

We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.

About the Business Unit

Resources cover a wide range of specialisms, including Human Resources, Finance, ICT and Business Operations. Our main focus is supporting the other directorates to provide the best possible service to our residents. To do that, we have to make sure we have the right people in the right roles across the organisation. From our finance teams, working strategically to ensure the best value from public money; to HR keeping our employees healthy and happy, each service is vital in making sure Buckinghamshire Council has what it needs to run effectively and efficiently.

As well as providing high quality services to other areas of the Council, you could also be helping us build on the revenue which comes from our external clients. If you are ambitious, customer-focussed and bursting with new ideas, we want to hear from you.

We recognise and reward you

Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.

https://jobs.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/working-buckinghamshire-council/