Location
Bernard Weatherill House, 8 Mint Walk, Croydon

Hours
36 hours per week

Salary
Grade 7 £38,256 - £39,276 per annum plus fantastic benefits

About the Role
Are you resilient enough to handle conflict, empathetic enough to spot vulnerability, and skilled enough to negotiate a solution that works for everyone? This isn't a back-office admin role. This is frontline financial justice.

We are looking for people with the right mindset, not just the right CV. If you have experience de-escalating tense situations (maybe in retail, hospitality, social care, or complaints), and you can stay calm and compassionate even in difficult situations, we want to talk to you.

Every day, you will speak to people facing genuine financial hardship, alongside those who simply choose not to pay. You will take calls from customers who are angry, distressed, or confused. You will need to stay calm when others are losing their temper and dig beneath the surface, asking the right questions to uncover the truth of someone's circumstances.

You will negotiate sustainable payment plans that protect the council's income while giving residents a fair chance to clear their debt.

You don't need to know the legal intricacies of Council Tax legislation on day one. We will teach you that. But let's be upfront: this is a high-pressure, customer-facing role. You will deal with conflict, distress, and resistance every single day. We don't shy away from that reality.

What we offer in return is investment in you. We will train you thoroughly on the legislation and systems, so you feel confident and competent. We will support your wellbeing and give you the autonomy to make decisions.

But we are looking for someone who already has the core foundations: resilience, empathy, and a cool head under pressure. Those are the things we expect you to bring. We provide the technical toolkit; you provide the human skills to use it effectively.

What You'll Actually Do
- Solve puzzles: Every case is different. You'll investigate accounts, spot discrepancies, and determine the right recovery action. You'll have the autonomy to decide when to be flexible and when to enforce strict recovery action, always balancing firmness with fairness.
- Negotiate: You'll speak with customers over the phone, via email, and face-to-face to agree on sustainable payment arrangements.
- Handle pressure: You will assist at Magistrates' Court hearings and manage post-liability order cases (attachments of earnings and benefits). You need to be comfortable with formal, high-stakes environments.

About Us
Croydon Council balances its books, listens to residents, and delivers good sustainable services. Our priorities include making the council financially sustainable, working in partnership with Croydon’s diverse communities and businesses, strengthening collaboration with partner organisations and the voluntary, community and faith sectors, ensuring good governance, and developing our workforce to respect community diversity.

Key business plan outcomes:
- Croydon is a place of opportunity for business, earning and learning
- Children and young people in Croydon have the chance to thrive, learn and fulfil their potential
- Croydon is a cleaner, safer and healthier place, a borough we’re proud to call home
- People can lead healthier and independent lives for longer

We support flexible and hybrid working arrangements and are committed to equal opportunities. As part of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria. The successful candidate will be subject to a DBS check if required.

Experience
- Proven experience in a customer-facing role where you have handled conflict, managed difficult conversations, or de-escalated tense situations. This could be in retail, hospitality, social care, housing, complaints handling, or any role involving public interaction under pressure.
- Experience making sound decisions independently, particularly when no script was available and you had to use your own judgement.
- Experience managing multiple priorities, such as juggling a busy shop floor, handling a restaurant full of diners, or managing a caseload of customer queries.
- A track record of staying calm and professional when faced with hostility, distress, or high-pressure situations.

About You
- Resilient: You don't take verbal conflict personally, stay calm under pressure, juggle multiple priorities without getting flustered, and handle rejection or hostility without it affecting your day.
- Empathetic but firm: You can identify genuine vulnerability and signpost to support services (like CAB or Mind), but you are not easily manipulated by sob stories.
- Curious: You ask "why" and "how" to get to the bottom of a case rather than accepting the first answer.
- Strong moral compass: You understand that debt recovery isn't black and white and can balance the council's need to collect revenue with a genuine desire to treat people fairly, especially those facing genuine hardship.

Qualifications
No specific qualifications are required for this role. We value the right mindset, resilience, empathy, and communication skills. Full training on legislation and systems will be provided.