Customer Services Officer - FTC 9 months

North Herts Council; Letchworth; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

A local council in Letchworth is seeking a customer service professional for a 9-month maternity cover role starting on 17 November 2025. The successful candidate will handle enquiries from customers through various channels and ensure a high-quality service. Strong communication skills and adaptability are essential. This role offers a supportive working environment within a community-focused organization.

Qualifications

• Experience in providing customer service solutions across various customers.
• Ability to analyse situations, identify solutions and take decisions.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Handle customer enquiries via various communication methods.
• Resolve customer enquiries at the point of enquiry.
• Perform administrative tasks as required.

Skills

Customer focussed

Attention to detail

Effective communication

Multi-tasking

Calm under pressure

Tools

Computer skills

Job description

Overview

Our customer service professionals are the primary relationship with our internal and external customers; either by direct or virtual contact, ensuring customers receive a high-quality customer experience.

Duties include handling customer enquiries by telephone, letter, social media, email and face to face and logging comments, compliments, and complaints. You will be responsible for resolving as many customer enquiries as possible at the point of enquiry, about a variety of different Council services such as Council Tax, Housing, Waste, and Environmental Health, amongst others. The role also involves some administrative tasks.

You will need to promote the best image of the company through a professional manner, personal appearance and behaviour and adhere to company standards and procedures whilst maintaining the highest level of personal conduct.

This is a 9-month fixed-term maternity cover role, commencing on 17 November 2025.

The Experience you will bring

• Customer focussed.
• Rigorous with a strong attention to detail.
• Able to adapt your speech/voice tone to each situation.
• Able to remain calm under pressure with a high level of resilience.
• Proactive/reactive, reassuring and understanding.
• Able to advise/coach customers.
• Agile and able to embrace constant change with adaptability.
• You will need to have good computer skills and be able to communicate effectively whilst taking accurate and appropriate details on computer systems and navigating computer-based information to resolve enquiries accurately and efficiently.
• Experience in providing customer service solutions across a range of different customers with confidence.
• The ability to multitask, set priorities and manage time effectively.
• Effective, clear, and professional written and verbal communication.
• Ability to analyse a situation, identify a solution and take a decision.

About Us

North Hertfordshire is a large rural district with approximately 125,000 residents with four historic towns, Hitchin, Baldock, Royston and Letchworth Garden City. The Council has a clear vision: We put people first and deliver sustainable services, to enable a brighter future together.

Why work with us?

We are committed to promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion in our recruitment practices and in our employment policies. We want our employees to feel safe to express themselves and we encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds with a wide range of talents. We are dedicated to promoting a healthy work/life balance, valuing our employees, and enabling them to make a difference to the local community.

Please note that all our vacancies require you to live and work in the UK, and selection interviews are face to face in our Letchworth offices or other nearby council sites.

At North Herts Council we are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and we guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum requirements for the job.

If you would like an informal chat about the post, you can contact:
Customer Services Team Leader – Colette Soanes 01462 474180

Please note, we reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient suitable applications. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

Closing Date: Noon 14 October 2025
Interviews: Week commencing 20th October 2025