Welfare Rights Advice Worker for Almond Housing Association Tenants
Post: Welfare Rights Advice Worker for Almond Housing Association Tenants
Service Area: Advice Services
Salary: £28,226 -£29,913 per annum (pro rata: £21,712 - £23,010)
Hours: 30 Hours Fixed Term until 31st March 2026
Location: Almond Housing Association offices- Livingston and West Lothian area or Home based.
If home-based, you will be required to spend 1-2 days each week in Almonds offices and also attend meetings in person in West Lothian and Edinburgh.
We are looking for a motivated and highly organised Welfare Rights Advice Worker to join our accredited advice service.
The Action Group is working in partnership with Almond Housing Association to provide an expert Welfare Benefits Advice service to its tenants. This will be done by:
Carrying out benefit checks
Assisting people make benefit claims
Helping people to understand their benefits and their rights
Providing type I debt advice
Identifying where people need wider advice and support and assisting them to access this
Helping people to challenge decisions, including representing at appeal tribunals
Liaising with a range of partners and external agencies
Collating information and leading on reports for funders
You will be a friendly, positive and helpful person and have the ability to communicate specialist knowledge in a straightforward and accessible way.
You will be committed to maintaining and updating your knowledge, skills and understanding of welfare rights and benefits and share The Action Group’s values.
A clean driving licence and access for work purposes would be helpful.
Why work with us?
You will:
Join a supportive and professional team that is Accredited to The Scottish National Standards for information and Advice Providers
Join a diverse and inclusive workplace culture
Benefit from being an organisation that invests in its staff (Investor in People – Gold Award)
24/7 employee assistance programme, with access to free legal advice and counselling
Pension
Good annual leave entitlements
About the role
The Action Group is working in partnership with Almond Housing Association to provide an expert Welfare Benefits Advice service to its tenants. This will be done by:
· Directly providing a comprehensive (Type III) Welfare Rights advice and representation service to maximise the income of tenants. The Advice Worker is expected to work with 120-160 referrals each year.
· Helping people to understand their entitlements and meet their responsibilities.
· Providing Type I debt advice. Identifying where people have debt issues and connecting them into Money Advice services.
· Providing information, training and back-up advice to other professionals (particularly to Housing Officers)
The post holder will also have a role to Identify where individuals have wider support or advice needs and assist them to access agencies and services that can help.
The post will require a flexible approach which may include occasional evening or weekend working. The Action Group is accredited to the Scottish National Standards for information and Advice Providers. You will work to set standards for delivering quality advice services.
Advice, Advocacy and Representation
Provide information and advice to people (this will include disabled people, people with support needs, carers, and professionals who work with them). This advice is delivered by telephone, on digital platforms, by letter, email, and by personal appointments (both office-based and home visits).
Check benefit entitlement and when needed, provide individual support in pursuing relevant claims and appeals.
Carry out ‘Better Off’ calculations to help people understand how their financial situation will look if they take up employment.
Assist people with a wide range of advice tasks - from application completion to detailed case-work and appeal representation.
Provide strategies and solutions to complex cases
Organise own caseload and manage case recording within team standards
Liaise with external agencies on behalf of people (where needed).
Act as a specialist resource for professional workers from a variety of agencies, in order to ensure that advice reaches as many people as possible.
Identify other issues that are impacting on people and signpost/refer (as appropriate) to other agencies and services that might benefit them
Keep up-to-date with legislative changes.
Coaching and training
Coach and mentor people to develop their knowledge and confidence in dealing with benefits and benefits agencies
Develop tools and systems that people can use to help them manage their benefit responsibilities
Support people to liaise with agencies
Develop and deliver presentations, workshops and training sessions on advice issues, to a variety of audiences.
Monitoring and Reporting on activities of the service
Keep full, accurate records of clients who have been advised.
Monitor and report on activities of the project
Compare outcomes with targets for the project and make necessary adjustments to the service to enhance it.
Identify and report on issues affecting people you are working with
Attend progress meetings with project funders as required
Promoting the Service and raising awareness of benefit entitlements
Develop strong networking and partnership working relationships with internal and external partners.
Assist with the production of written advice materials, articles for journals, publicity materials, take up campaigns etc.
Promote the service through a variety of methods
Contributing to a Quality Service
Be familiar with, and work within, all organisational and Team policies and procedures
Participate in all necessary training
Contribute to service user consultation efforts and assist in the production of explicit service standards, reviews, evaluations and annual reports on service improvement
Encourage understanding of the complaints procedure amongst people using the service.
Maintain a good understanding of equality and diversity issues and a commitment to supporting people from marginalised groups
Other Duties
This job description is not intended to be exhaustive and the post holder may be required to perform other duties on occasion.
Confidentiality
High standards of confidentiality are required in relation to the roles, tasks and responsibilities described above
Supervision Received
The post holder will regularly meet their line manager for supervision as outlined in the Group’s performance management policy.
9. Amendments This job description may be amended following discussions with the post holder and with approval from the Senior Manager HR
Apply now
The Action Group
We could use lots of fancy words to sum us up, but really it comes down to you, your family and us, working together to get the right support for you, that changes as you change and keeps putting you right at the centre of all that we do.
Our History The Action Group was set up in 1976 by a group of parents and carers of people who had learning disabilities and other support needs. They began by campaigning for better services for the people they cared about in the local area of Leith and Restalrig. This group, who all lived in the north east of Edinburgh, took the name Area 5 Action Group from the Social Work Department’s area in which they lived. Providing and Improving Learning Disability Care for Over 45 Years The Action Group was, and continues to be, a membership organisation with the twin aims of campaigning for, and providing, good community care services. In 1976, services and supports in the community were few and far between and large institutions and hospitals, like Gogarburn in Edinburgh, were the main service for children and adults. Locally, The Area 5 Action Group ran a high profile political and media campaign to get learning disability and support needs on the agenda. It also explored ways to develop service-provision By 1985, now called The North Edinburgh Action Group, membership had grown and service users came from all over Edinburgh, East Lothian, West Lothian and Midlothian. By 1992, with development plans focussing across an even wider area, a further name change to The Action Group was made. Over the years the Action Group has been at the forefront of campaigning for and providing high quality community services.
The Vision That Families caring for a person and individuals who have support needs and/or Learning Disability encounter no barriers to their chosen lifestyle, are able to follow a path of choice and can enrich their opportunities. The Mission To Value, listen and involve people so that our every action is judged to be the best. The Values An ordinary life includes the 5 accomplishments which derives from the work of John O'Brien. These values are at the heart of the organisation. People accessing our services should have: Community presence - Relationships Competency - Respect - Choice
Our benefits
Looking to make a difference? Make a difference in your community and in people’s lives by becoming a support worker with us! Your goal will be to help people with additional support needs to gain or maintain their independence, and going about their lives in general, to support with work, health and wellbeing, or attending and participating in activities. HSF Health Plan to all our Full-time & Part-time employees Pension Good annual leave entitlements TAG Rewards – our exclusive discounts and savings programme Travel time payable where applicable Ongoing support, training and development opportunities Mileage allowance where applicable
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