DWP - Work Coach - Luton

About the Department

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. We are the UK's biggest public service department and administer the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health benefits to around 20 million claimants and customers.

DWP is committed to being an equal opportunities employer and we aspire to being the most inclusive employer in the United Kingdom. The Work Coach role is rewarding, varied and complex and no two days will be the same as you will be dealing with different customers face to face and their specific support needs each day. If you’re looking for a career that makes a clear and positive difference to people’s lives, then a DWP Executive Officer role may be an ideal for you!

Job description
As a Work Coach you hold a vital role in the Department, helping individuals and their families towards financial independence through work and enabling them to claim the support they need as they progress.

Work Coaches are customer-focused, dedicated individuals and able to deliver exceptional service with empathy and compassion to people who need their support.

As a Work Coach, you will use sound judgement to help people through some difficult, challenging times in their lives, and your tailored coaching can make a huge difference to their ability to find, stay in, and progress in a job.

If you are looking for a job that makes a clear difference to people's lives, a Work Coach role in DWP could be just what you are looking for.

Key Accountabilities
The Work Coach role is wide-ranging and diverse. You will be working with customers, employers and colleagues through a combination of face to face, digital and telephone contact on a daily basis. Some of the main activities are set out below:

1. Providing support to customers claiming Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseekers Allowance and Income Support.
2. Offering quality advice to customers about job search actions, supporting them to job search effectively in a largely digital world, and matching to suitable vacancies.
3. Meeting your legal duty to comply with the Equality Act 2010 and making sure your customers get the additional support and advice to help them access our services.
4. Building positive relationships with customers that encourages, motivates, and builds trust.
5. Developing an in-depth knowledge of local employment opportunities and the support our service partners offer.
6. Making timely decisions, based on customer needs, and referring them to appropriate help and support.
7. Be accountable for performance and management of your caseload.

Person specification
What we are looking for:

1. Effective communication skills both verbally and in writing to a wide range of diverse customers.
2. The ability to understand complex information and give clear explanations to the customer.
3. You will be able to coach customers to improve their movement into work.
4. You must be able to navigate a range of computer systems to action tasks as well as coach customers to be confident using digital work search tools.
5. You’ll also be required to handle telephony queries and have the ability to manage difficult situations where required in a calm and professional manner.