Benefits Assessor

About the job

Key information

Closing date: 15 June 2026

Salary: Grade 8, £49,282 per annum

What will I be doing?

Play a leading role in shaping how Somerset Council delivers fair, effective, and forward-thinking debt recovery.

This is an exciting opportunity for an established Recovery Manager to lead the delivery of debt recovery across key income streams, ensuring vital funds are collected to support frontline services that make a real difference to local communities. This debt recovery will be across multiple income streams, including Council Tax, Business Rates and Housing Benefit.

What makes this role truly rewarding is the balance between performance and purpose. You’ll champion fair and ethical recovery, supporting vulnerable residents while driving innovation, improving systems, and shaping modern, data-led approaches to income collection. With scope to influence strategy, lead service transformation and build strong partnerships both internally and externally, this role offers the chance to leave a lasting impact.

At Somerset Council, you’ll join a forward-thinking organisation that values strong leadership, collaboration and professional growth. In return for your expertise, you’ll have the autonomy to lead change, influence strategic direction and make a meaningful difference in a supportive and progressive environment.

Role Summary

As our Recovery Manager, you will lead the Council’s debt recovery service, ensuring income is collected effectively, fairly and in line with legislation. You will drive service performance and continuous improvement while supporting residents, and work collaboratively across teams and partners to reduce arrears and improve outcomes. In doing so, you will play a key role in strengthening the Council’s financial stability and enabling the delivery of vital services to the community.

What you’ll do – Key Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the Council’s end-to-end debt recovery service across multiple income streams, ensuring effective, fair and legally compliant practices.
• Develop and deliver the Council’s debt recovery strategy, driving performance, continuous improvement and income maximisation.
• Oversee day-to-day recovery operations, including legal processes, enforcement activity and the management of external recovery partners.
• Lead, motivate and develop a high-performing recovery team, providing coaching, performance management and fostering a culture of accountability and customer focus.
• Monitor recovery performance through KPIs and data insights, using analytics to identify trends and improve outcomes.
• Ensure all recovery activity complies with relevant legislation, governance requirements and audit standards.
• Work collaboratively with internal teams and external agencies to support vulnerable residents and promote early intervention to reduce arrears.
• Manage relationships with enforcement agents, legal advisors and other partners, ensuring strong performance and adherence to contracts and service standards.
• Drive innovation and system improvements, using technology, automation and data-led approaches to modernise recovery processes.
  Lead on complaints, complex cases and service escalations, ensuring issues are handled effectively and sensitively.

What kind of experience or qualifications do I need?

Essential

• Strong understanding of local government finance regulations, including recovery legislation, best practice in debt collection, insolvency procedures, enforcement protocols and schemes such as Breathing Space.
• Knowledge of safeguarding and vulnerability considerations, with experience handling complex cases, complaints and working with vulnerable customers.
• Proven experience in debt recovery within a local authority or similar public sector environment, including experience of court proceedings and legal processes.
• Experience of managing a recovery team, including leadership, performance management, staff development and motivation.
• Experience representing an organisation in legal settings, working with stakeholders and presenting financial information clearly.
• Experience in policy development, compliance, risk management and responding to internal and external audits.
• Experience managing contracts and partnerships, including enforcement agents or external providers.
• IRRV qualification or membership (or equivalent experience), alongside a degree level qualification or equivalent experience.
• Formal leadership or management qualification (or equivalent experience), with debt recovery or enforcement accreditation (or equivalent experience).
• Excellent leadership, communication and interpersonal skills, with strong stakeholder management capability.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and decision-making skills, including the ability to analyse complex information and deliver clear, well-supported solutions.
• Proficiency in data analysis, reporting and revenues systems (e.g. NEC), with strong organisational and time management skills.

Desirable

• Experience leading strategic transformation or service redesign within a financial or recovery environment.
• Training in conflict resolution or complaint handling.
• Experience in change management, including staff engagement, culture development and continuous improvement.

Supporting documents and information

Permanent, Full-time role (37 hours per week)

33 days’ annual leave (additional to Bank Holidays)

Flexible and hybrid working, with an expectation of being in a Somerset Council office 1 – 2 days per week. This will be across offices in Bridgwater, Shepton Mallett, Taunton and Yeovil.

Development training will be offered both through mandatory and optional training courses.

Some travel within the local area may be required for meetings, site visits and community engagement activities.

Regretfully, we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role. We are only able to proceed with candidates who already have the right to work in the UK without the need for visa sponsorship.

For an informal chat about the role, please contact Shaun Warren, Head of Revenues and Benefits on 01278 435447 or shaun.warren@somerset.gov.uk

A full job description will be provided to shortlisted candidates or on request via recruitment@somerset.gov.uk

Apply on the Somerset Council website

Apply now