Location
London Borough of Sutton, The Old Rectory, Festival Walk, Carshalton.

Hours
Full Time (specific office days: every Thursday and one additional day as advised by line manager)

Salary
£38,256 per annum

About the Role
Joining the London Borough of Sutton means working for two high performing London Boroughs: Sutton and Kingston. Many services are shared across both Councils, offering a unique opportunity to learn from a wider range of activities and political environments. Flexible working arrangements are supported, including working from Sutton and Kingston offices and from home, with equipment provided to enable this flexibility.

Exciting developments are underway in both boroughs, including the London Cancer Hub, a world-leading cancer research and treatment centre, and Kingston’s largest housing regeneration programme focused on energy-efficient homes. Both Councils are committed to tackling the climate emergency through innovative technologies and societal change.

The Client Finance Officer role is part of the Shared Finance Service within the Adult Social Care Finance Hub. The Client Finance Team manages appointeeship, deputyship, and protection of property functions for vulnerable service users. You will act as a corporate appointee for welfare benefits and a court-appointed deputy, working closely with service users, social workers, and support teams to ensure full benefit entitlement and financial management. You will also provide training and guidance on welfare benefits and financial procedures, and collaborate with Housing Finance Rent Recovery Teams to prevent rent arrears and ensure care fees are paid.

Key responsibilities include managing a caseload of vulnerable service users, keeping up to date with relevant legislation and guidelines, providing high-quality support on welfare benefit and client finance issues, and supporting your team with flexibility and cooperation. Note that two mandatory office days are required each week.

We offer a supportive, friendly, and collaborative environment with opportunities for career growth and development. Staff benefit from a range of perks including generous annual leave, enhanced family leave, volunteering days, flexible working schemes, learning and development resources, discounts, pension scheme, cycle to work schemes, and confidential health and wellbeing support.

We value authenticity and expect applicants to demonstrate their own skills, experience, and motivation, aligned with our PRIDE values. Our recruitment process is designed to be transparent and inclusive, supporting diversity and removing barriers to employment.

Experience
- Experience working with vulnerable individuals and managing financial arrangements is desirable.
- Ability to work with multiple agencies such as Housing Benefits and the Department of Work and Pensions.
- Experience preparing and presenting statistics is advantageous.

About you
- Excellent communication skills, able to deal sympathetically and tactfully with the public, often in stressful situations.
- Strong organisational skills with the ability to prioritise workload effectively.
- Team player with flexibility to support colleagues and management.
- Empathy and understanding of issues faced by vulnerable people.
- Good IT literacy.
- Physically able to visit clients in their homes, including properties accessible only by stairs.

Qualifications
- No specific qualifications are stated as mandatory, but relevant experience and skills are essential.
- Commitment to continuous learning and keeping up to date with legislation and guidelines related to welfare benefits and client finance.