Customer Services Advisor - Edinburgh 313R

Administrative Officer

As well as competitive salaries and a generous annual leave entitlement, we offer a substantial package of benefits including:

• Excellent training and career progression
• Competitive pensions
• Learning and development tailored to your role
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Strengths and Experience.

To help you prepare, below is a rundown of what to expect during the selection process:

• Eligibility form
• Civil Service Customer Service Skills Test
• Application form
• Video interview

After the eligibility form you will be asked to do a Civil Service Customer Service Test.

Guidance and details on how to access the test will be given to you before you take it. Please allow yourself plenty of time to complete it, as there will be no technical help or guaranteed assistance after 8 a.m. on the closing date.

Please complete the online test as soon as possible (within 24 to 48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the test is 11.30 a.m. on 17th July 2023. If you fail to complete the online test before the deadline your application will be withdrawn.

Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The test is administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website.

Please ensure that any technical issues with the test are reported prior to 8:00 a.m. 17th July 2023. There will be no extension to the deadline for completing the test.

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

If you are invited to an interview it will be a video interview, based on Civil Service Strengths. We will send you full instructions on how to access it, what ID you’ll need to show us and what it involves. Please read through these carefully, it will help you to be fully prepared.

After you receive your interview invite, you’ll have 7 days to complete and submit the interview. If you won't be able to do this in time, please contact us with your reasons before the deadline at recruitmentqueries.csg@hmrc.gov.uk. Unfortunately, if you don't contact us in time your application will be withdrawn.

We reserve the right to raise the score required at any stage of the process in order to manage numbers.

Interview dates to be confirmed.

A reserve list may be held for a period of up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles – if this applies to you, we’ll let you know via your Civil Service Jobs account.

Eligibility

To check that you are eligible to apply, review this eligibility information

Important information for existing HMRC contractual homeworkers:

Please note that this role is unsuitable for contractual homeworkers due to the nature and/or requirements of the role.

Reasonable Adjustments

We want to make sure no one is put at a disadvantage during our recruitment process because of a disability, condition, or impairment. To assist you with this, we will reduce or remove any barriers where possible and provide additional support where appropriate.

If you need a reasonable adjustment or a change to be made so that you can make your application, review this information on reasonable adjustments, and contact hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible.

Equality and Diversity

We’re committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues here at HMRC. We want everyone to feel valued, supported and comfortable being their true self at work.

We’re proud to be a diverse and inclusive employer, supporting social mobility by giving opportunities to people from all walks of life. We want to maximise the potential of everyone who chooses to work for us and offer a range of flexible working patterns and support. Our aim is to make a fulfilling career at HMRC accessible to you.

For more information on how we make this happen, review this information on our culture and values.

Applications received from candidates with a criminal record are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

We welcome applications from those who need to work a more flexible arrangement and will agree to requests where possible after considering operational and customer service needs. We can’t guarantee that we can meet all requests to work flexibly, as agreement will be subject to business ability to accommodate, and any request to work a more flexible arrangement should be made prior to your acceptance of the provisional offer.

Customer facing roles in HMRC require the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English and/or Welsh where required. Where this is an essential requirement, this will be tested as part of the selection process.

The Civil Service runs a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Locations

HMRC has a presence in every region of the UK. For more information on where you might be working, review this information on our locations.

Security Update

For more information on the level of security checks we will carry out, review this information on security checks

Further Information

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. The evidence you provide in your application must relate to your own experiences.

Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant application/s will be withdrawn from the process.

Duplicate applications for the same vacancy will also be withdrawn.

Transferring into HMRC from Civil Service If you are currently working for an ‘Other Government Department’ (OGD) and would like to consider the impact on your pay when joining HMRC, please see the attached document "Combined T&C and OGD Pay English”, found at the bottom of this advert. Further information on staff transfers can be found on gov.uk

Problems during the application process

If you experience accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

If you think you’ve made a mistake on a short application form (e.g. you’ve ticked the incorrect eligibility box), please contact hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk at least two working days before the vacancy closes. After this, we won’t be able to reopen your application.

Please use the subject line to insert appropriate wording e.g. Please re-open my application - 298451 & vacancy closing date 17 July 2023. Please note that we cannot amend or re-open your application if you have submitted your full application in the interests of fair and open recruitment.

For reasonable adjustments queries or requests, please see details within reasonable adjustments section above.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with settled or pre-settled status or who apply for either status by the deadline of the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals working in the Civil Service
• relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals who have built up the right to work in the Civil Service
• certain family members of the relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the Recruitment Principles. In the first instance, you should raise the matter directly with the department concerned via complaints.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: Click here