Administration Officer - Cemeteries

Portsmouth City Council; Portsmouth; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

Join Portsmouth City Council as an Administration Officer for Cemeteries, where you'll manage daily operations and support the Cemeteries Manager. This role requires excellent communication and organizational skills, with a focus on providing compassionate service to the bereaved. You'll handle administrative tasks, liaise with various stakeholders, and ensure smooth operations in a sensitive environment. If you're self-motivated and adaptable, this is an opportunity to make a meaningful impact in the community.

Qualifications

• Excellent attention to detail and ability to communicate effectively with customers.
• Good numeracy, literacy, and strong IT skills required.
• Experience in a cemetery/bereavement environment is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Support daily operations of the Cemetery Service and assist with administrative tasks.
• Liaise with Funeral Directors and church representatives.
• Manage general enquiries and ensure compliance with data protection.

Skills

Attention to Detail

Communication

Organizational Skills

Numeracy

Literacy

IT Skills

Job description

Administration Officer - Cemetries

Salary: Band 5, £25,652 - £27,363 p.a..

37 hours per week

The Service

The city council currently owns and operates three cemeteries within the city of Portsmouth, these are Milton, Kingston and Highland Road Cemeteries.

Our vision for bereavement services in Portsmouth is that we will meet the needs of the bereaved people and the wider community by providing burial and commemoration of the dead in a range of ways that respect the requirements of our diverse community and ensure that the significant green spaces in our cemeteries are well-maintained, attractive and accessible to residents as places of reflection, learning and recreation.

Your New Role

Supporting the Cemeteries Manager and Assistant Cemetery manager, working within a small team, you will be responsible for the daily operations of the Cemetery Service assisting with the necessary administrative tasks.

Working within a busy office environment this is a varied role where you will support the smooth running of the cemeteries office, assisting with everyday administration.You will assist with the daily operations of the burial service and liaisons with Funeral Directors and church representatives whilst ensuring completion of records and ledgers.You will respond to and record general enquiries in person, by phone and by email and ensure compliance with date protection where relevant to customer date and record management.You will also liaise with internal department to resolve any issues relating to grounds, buildings etc as well as the police to report vandalism, anti-social behaviour and any other necessary issues.In addition, you will carry out general administration tasks including spreadsheet management, ordering stationary, administration of grave renewals and memorials, financial administration and monitoring the cemeteries shared inbox.

The role is primarily office based at Kingston Cemetery but there may be a requirement to work from another office base in the city on occasion.

The hours of the post will be required to cover the core office period to meet the operational needs of the business and flexibility will be subject to business need

What you'll need to succeed

With excellent attention to detail, you will have the ability to communicate effectively with customers in a sensitive, compassionate and confidential manner. You will have an organised approach to work, good prioritisation skills and be able to work under pressure.
You will possess good numeracy, literacy and have strong IT skills.A good team player who is flexible and adaptable to provide cover during absence periods and manage changing workloads.You will be self -motivated and proactive towards work and able to use your initiative as there will be times when you will work on your own or with limited supervision. Experience of working in a cemetery/bereavement environment is desirable but not essential.

For full details of the role please refer to the job profile.

About Portsmouth City Council

What we can offer you:

Portsmouth City Council is a unique organisation, committed to making a difference, and is guided by core values that set who we are as people, what we stand for, and how we act.

Read more about working at Portsmouth City Council and our benefits on our careers portal homepage: Careers Portal - Find jobs with Portsmouth City Council

Application process:

Please read the full job profile for further details on the post to ensure your application matches the requirements of the role stated in the who is the person.

Remember to demonstrate why you are suitable against each of the points described in the 'Who is the Person' points on the Job Profile using examples from your experience or transferable skills. This might be through qualifications or descriptive examples from your work / personal experience, which clearly illustrates what you did and the effect it had. This is important or you are likely not to be shortlisted. Please read alongside the 'How to apply' information on the careers portal.

We are a disability confident employer - committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection process is inclusive and accessible and welcome applications from all areas of society.

You will need to demonstrate that you have the Right to Work in the UK. No post will be offered without it.

Closing date: 4 June 2025

The interview process will take place on the 12 June 2025

We will email applicants from time to time

Please ensure you check e-mail folders as sometimes our e-mails may go into spam/junk folders.

Should you require any support in completing the application form please contact [e-mail]. or call the recruitment team on 023 92 616800