Debt Recovery Officer

West Northamptonshire Council; Northampton; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 34,000; Full time

Job summary

West Northamptonshire Council is seeking a Debt Recovery Officer to help recover outstanding income while delivering a fair, professional and supportive service to customers.

You’ll work within our Finance Operations team to maximise income collection and support vital services for communities, combining customer service, problem solving and financial administration. The role involves debt recovery activities, enquiries, and contributing to service improvements.

Qualifications

• Experience of debt recovery, finance operations or income collection would be beneficial.
• Customer-focused with strong communication and problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage a range of debt recovery activities and communicate with customers through telephone, email and written correspondence to help resolve outstanding debts.
• Respond to enquiries relating to Adult Social Care and sundry debts, providing clear information and guiding customers on options and responsibilities.
• Support debt recovery processes with colleagues, legal services and external partners to ensure timely settlements and adherence to policies.
• Contribute to service improvements, support system developments and participate in projects to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency.
• Support colleagues and help develop apprentices and new starters while maintaining accuracy and high levels of customer service."],
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Skills

Customer service

Negotiation

Problem solving

Communication

Attention to detail

Job description

At West Northants Council, it’s about our people and the difference they make. As a Debt Recovery Officer, you’ll play an important role in helping the Council recover outstanding income while ensuring customers receive a fair, professional and supportive service. Working within our Finance Operations team, you’ll help maximise income collection to support the delivery of vital services for our communities while working with customers to achieve positive and sustainable outcomes.

This is a varied role that combines customer service, problem solving and financial administration. You’ll work with a wide range of customers and stakeholders, helping to manage debt recovery processes, resolve enquiries and contribute to the continuous improvement of the service.

Our Benefits

You can also see our full list of employee benefits on our careers site here: Why you should work for us | West Northamptonshire Council.

What will you be doing?

You’ll manage a range of debt recovery activities, communicating with customers through telephone, email and written correspondence to help resolve outstanding debts in line with the Council’s policies and collection strategies. Your work will include responding to enquiries relating to Adult Social Care and sundry debts, providing clear and accurate information and supporting customers to understand their options and responsibilities.

Working closely with colleagues, legal services and external debt recovery partners, you’ll support the efficient delivery of debt recovery processes, ensuring information is accurate, up to date and handled in accordance with relevant legislation and procedures. You’ll also contribute to service improvements, support system developments and play a positive role in projects that help enhance the customer experience and operational efficiency.

As part of a collaborative team, you’ll support colleagues and help develop others, including apprentices and new starters, while maintaining a strong focus on customer service, accuracy and continuous improvement.

About You

You’re a customer-focused individual with experience of working in a fast-paced environment where communication, negotiation and problem-solving skills are essential. You’re confident speaking with customers about sensitive financial matters and can remain calm, professional and empathetic while working towards positive outcomes.

You have strong organisational skills and can manage your own workload effectively while maintaining high levels of accuracy. Experience of debt recovery, finance operations or income collection would be beneficial, along with an understanding of relevant legislation and customer service best practice.

Most importantly, you’ll be someone who can build positive relationships, work collaboratively with colleagues and adapt to changing priorities. You’ll share our THRIVE values and our commitment to delivering excellent services for the residents and communities of West Northamptonshire.

About Us

At West Northants Council, it’s about our people. People who thrive with ambition, bubble with new ideas, demand better ways of working, caring about every detail, and who never shy away from a challenge. Our culture is a gateway for new experiences. A place to forge new opportunities. To empower you in your career and unite you with like-minded people.

Our vision is ‘to make West Northants a great place to live, work, visit and thrive’. We truly stand by this and work hard every day to make this a reality. Our corporate values, THRIVE, stand for: Trust, High Performance, Respect, Innovate and Empower, they underpin everything we do and how we deliver services.

We are committed to ensuring diversity, equality, equity, and inclusion is woven into the fabric of WNC and everything we do, to enable all colleagues to develop and maximize their full potential. We are a disability confident employer, a member of the Armed Forces Covenant, and a Care Leaver Covenant partner.

The following film was created by us to communicate our intentions - watch WNC colleagues explain what DEI means to us.

If you need additional support or reasonable adjustments during the application process, including needing the job description in another format or language, please email [e-mail] for support.

West Northants Council, where careers thrive.