Bereavement Support Officer
Location: Amersham
Overview
Our cemetery & crematoria team provides expert services to our local communities, to make sure that every customer receives the best possible service from us at an emotionally charged time. From building relationships with funeral directors and families to coordinating burial and cremation services this is a busy and rewarding role, where you’ll see the impact of your work in front of you.
About us
Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that brings together the strengths and expertise of the county’s former five councils to create positive change for local people, communities and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future, with a clear commitment to improving services for residents and providing stronger representation for Buckinghamshire both locally and nationally.
Career development is something we take seriously at Buckinghamshire Council. We are committed to helping our colleagues grow and develop, with many team members progressing quickly as they gain experience and take on greater responsibility. As part of our Cemeteries and Crematoria Service, you will be supported by an experienced and encouraging management team and will have access to professional development opportunities, including training through the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM), to broaden your knowledge and support your career progression.
About the role
As a Bereavement Support Officer, you will provide administrative support across our two crematoria and six cemeteries, helping to ensure the highest standards of care and service are delivered to bereaved families, funeral directors and other customers.
Key responsibilities include:
- Responding to enquiries from customers, families and funeral directors
- Taking bookings for burial and cremation services
- Processing statutory documentation and maintaining accurate records on our systems
- Applying fees, processing payments and handling burial plot applications
- Supporting the day-to-day administration of cemetery and crematorium services
- Monitoring and liaising with contractors working across our cemetery sites
This is a customer-facing role where you will often be supporting people during emotionally difficult circumstances. You will play a vital role in ensuring every interaction is handled with professionalism, empathy and care.
Working across our crematoria and cemetery offices, you will be contracted to work every Saturday, alongside four flexible days between Monday and Friday. You will help ensure that every visitor receives a compassionate, efficient and high-quality service.
Fixed
As a ‘fixed’ worker, you’ll spend most of your time in the same location, which will likely be a fixed office or location where your role is performed. Typically, you’ll be based in the same location as the rest of your team, because you provide a particular service from that fixed location or need access to information there.
About you
You will have experience of working within a team environment and delivering excellent customer service. You will be organised and able to manage competing priorities, with strong attention to detail and confidence using computer systems to record information and process payments.
You will also have:
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- The ability to work effectively with colleagues, contractors, funeral directors and members of the public
- A caring, compassionate and sensitive approach when supporting bereaved families
- A flexible, proactive and positive attitude
- The ability to work accurately and efficiently in a busy environment
Above all, you will share our commitment to putting customers at the heart of everything we do and delivering a professional, respectful service to our communities.
Other information
Our cemetery and crematoria sites are peaceful places for families to remember their loved ones and are a place of great beauty and contemplation. You’ll be working from sites based at Bierton and Chilterns Crematoria and Penn Road Cemetery and will travel to cemeteries to meet the needs of our customers.
If you would like to have an informal conversation with the recruiting manager, Michaela Pottle, please email [email protected] with your contact details.
This post is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:
- All unspent cautions and/or unspent convictions
For further information on how long it takes for cautions and convictions cautions to become spent, please refer to our guide on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (updated 2023) | Nacro
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.
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.
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
Our Communities directorate works across the county to deliver a number of the key customer-facing services that our residents, businesses and visitors rely on every day.
This directorate includes a wide range of services, including:
- collecting and disposing of waste and recycling
- maintaining our roads and Rights of Way network and parking
- ensuring the delivery of school transport, and supporting sustainable travel including public bus services and School Crossing Patrollers
- managing Country Parks
- leisure facilities, museums, theatres and libraries, as well as developing our Cultural Strategy
- Licensing, Environmental Health and Trading Standards
- Cemeteries and Crematoria
The customer is central to how we develop and deliver all of these services, which help promote our rich and vibrant culture and special environment.
We are looking for enthusiastic, ambitious and committed individuals to join our team and help us to continue to make Buckinghamshire a great place to live, work and visit. This is an exciting time for us as we bring together the services previously run by five separate councils before Buckinghamshire Council was created. Whilst making major changes to contracts affecting residents across Bucks, we continue to focus on delivering great customer service. You will join us on our journey of continuous improvement - whether that’s through developing strategies and ways of working or delivering services on the ground, every person in Communities is a valued member of the team.
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/
