Customer Services Officer

Temporary Contract

Job Details

Client: Carmarthenshire County Council
Service Area: Chief Executives / Contact Centre / Customer Services

Hours: 37 hours per week

Working Pattern:
Monday to Friday
08:45 to 17:00

The Contact Centre operates Monday to Friday, 08:30 to 18:00.

Start Date: 01 September 2026
End Date: 30 November 2026

Number of Roles: 4

Location

Client Location:
Carmarthenshire County Council

Candidates may be required to work across different access channels and locations within Carmarthenshire, including rural parts of the county, depending on operational needs.

Pay

PAYE Rate: £13.69 per hour
Overtime PAYE Rate: £20.54 per hour
Bank Holiday PAYE Rate: £27.38 per hour

Job Overview

Carmarthenshire County Council is seeking Customer Services Officers to join the Customer Services team on a temporary basis.

The role will involve providing an effective link between customers and Council services, dealing mainly with telephone enquiries, but also supporting enquiries through other access channels including face-to-face, digital, email and social media where required.

The successful candidates will help customers access the right information and support at the first point of contact wherever possible. The role will involve supporting customers across a wide range of Council services including Housing Repairs, Refuse and Recycling, Public Protection, Council Tax, Housing Benefits, Homelessness, Debt Recovery, Blue Badge applications, Licensing and other service areas.

Important – Please Read Carefully

This is a Customer Services Officer role within a busy Council Contact Centre / Customer Services environment.

Candidates must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, a caring and professional approach, strong IT and keyboard skills, and the ability to work accurately in a busy environment.

The role involves recognising and responding positively to customer needs, supporting customers who may be facing challenging circumstances, encouraging customers to use online services where appropriate, and helping customers resolve enquiries at the first point of contact wherever possible.

Candidates must be flexible, proactive and committed to delivering high-quality customer care.

A Standard DBS is required for this role.

Candidates without customer service, contact centre, public-facing, telephone-based, digital enquiry handling, IT or council service support experience are unlikely to be considered.

Key Responsibilities

Act as an effective link between customers and Council departments
Handle customer enquiries mainly by telephone
Support enquiries across face-to-face, email, digital and social media channels where required
Promote online services to customers contacting the Council
Encourage and support customers to use online services where possible
Provide accurate information and assistance to customers
Help customers record service requests
Assist customers with completing forms and producing clear statements
Issue, receive and validate application forms and documents
Support customers with amendments and updates where required
Handle enquiries relating to Housing Benefits, Council Tax, Housing Repairs and Homelessness
Handle enquiries relating to Debt Recovery, Blue Badge applications, Licensing, Refuse and Recycling and Public Protection
Resolve enquiries at first point of contact wherever possible
Take ownership of customer enquiries
Refer customers to Hwb Advisors, other departments or partners where required
Identify customers who may benefit from additional financial or wellbeing support
Refer customers to the Claim What's Yours initiative where appropriate
Remain alert to possible fraudulent claims or documentation
Make decisions within established guidelines regarding eligibility for Council services
Maintain knowledge of relevant Council services and processes
Use Council IT systems and databases to access, input and update information
Schedule, monitor and respond to corporate social media content where required
Maintain confidentiality and comply with data protection obligations
Capture information such as complaints, equalities data, customer satisfaction and footfall
Work flexibly across access channels and locations to meet operational demand
Assist with on-the-job training for new staff where required
Participate in training and staff meetings

Essential Experience & Skills

Customer service experience
Experience recognising and responding positively to customer needs
Experience delivering high-quality customer care
Experience dealing with telephone enquiries
Experience working with customers across different communication channels
Excellent communication skills
Excellent interpersonal skills
Caring and professional approach
Ability to deal sensitively with difficult or challenging situations
Ability to support customers from a wide range of backgrounds
Good IT skills
Excellent keyboard skills
Familiarity with a range of IT applications
Ability to work accurately in a busy environment
Ability to input and update records on IT systems
Ability to retrieve and provide information clearly
Ability to maintain confidentiality
Understanding of data protection requirements
Ability to work well within a team
Flexible and proactive approach
Self-motivated with strong initiative
Tactful and diplomatic approach
Ability to travel across Carmarthenshire when required

Desirable

NVQ Level 3 or equivalent in Customer Care
Experience in a contact centre environment
Experience within a local authority customer service environment
Knowledge of County Council services
Knowledge of Council Tax, Housing Benefits, Housing Repairs or Public Protection services
Experience retrieving and presenting information from a wide range of sources
Experience handling social media enquiries
Welsh language skills
Experience supporting customers with online service access

Language Requirements

Welsh: Spoken Level 4 / Written Level 2
English: Spoken Level 4 / Written Level 4

Additional Information

A Standard DBS is required for this role.

The successful candidate may be required to travel to provide cover at other sites within Carmarthenshire, including rural areas, and may need to attend events that could involve working outside normal core hours.

Disclaimer

On applying for this vacancy, you agree that your personal details will be passed onto our client for their consideration of your suitability for the role.

I acknowledge that it is my responsibility to notify Fix Space Recruitment Limited of any hirer who I do not want my details to be passed onto.

Job Reference

RQ1763086