Community Welfare Officer – Library Service

Can you be both pro-active and re-active to situations, and good at problem solving?

Do you have excellent communication skills?

Are you a friendly and approachable individual who enjoys engaging with people from a range of diverse ages and backgrounds?

If the answer is yes, we could have the perfect role for you!

Our libraries deliver essential community-based support, promoting the benefits of reading for everyone, offering a quality, trusted information service, bridging digital inclusion through supporting safe access to online resources, and curating a programme of events and activities that meet the needs of targeted audiences.

Salary : £25,584 to £25,992 per annum

Contract Type : Fixed Term Contract until 31 December 2025. The final end date will be confirmed with the successful candidates.

Working Pattern : Full-time (37 hours per week) Monday to Friday

Location : Your base location will be , St Marys Road Shoreham, BN43 5ZA. However, the work will be carried out across various library locations throughout West Sussex.

Interview Date : Monday 27 January 2025 or Tuesday 28 January 2025

The role will require successful candidates to work Monday to Friday, with some flexibility in the hours between 8 : 30am and 6 : 00pm. Additionally, you will be expected to work until 6 : 00pm on two days each week.

You will need to be able to travel independently around the county, including to areas that may not be easily accessible by public transport. Pool cars and pool bikes available to book from main county council buildings (subject to availability).

Internal candidates wishing to apply for this role will be considered for a secondment position. Please can you therefore discuss and agree this with your manager before applying for this position.

The Opportunity

We have an exciting opportunity waiting for you, in the vibrant south of the county, where you'll serve as a crucial point of contact within our expansive network of 36 libraries.

We get huge job satisfaction from helping everyone who comes through our doors, and you could too! You will play a key role in delivering frontline assistance, support, and problem-solving for a wonderfully diverse range of libraries and communities.

As a Community Welfare Officer for the south region, you will be based at Shoreham by Sea Library and you will play a crucial role in providing support, guidance, and assistance to library visitors, ensuring a safe and welcoming environment for all, here and at other libraries across the coastal area of West Sussex.

Our work in libraries is diverse and any given day can often feel quite different from the next! There will be some key responsibilities likely to feature in this role, including :

• Greeting customers, signposting to key services, and acting as liaison with other community partners when the situation warrants, which may include the emergency services.
• Maintaining a visible presence on the library floor, which will include moving around the library premises during the working day.
• Acting as the first port of call to address signs of distress or anti-social behaviour in a timely manner.
• Provide unwavering support and assistance to library staff, role modelling and passionately reinforcing best practices and behaviours.

Apply now and Join us in creating a supportive and caring environment for our library community!

About You

The role of Community Welfare Officer will require you to remain alert, paying close ongoing general attention to customers and activities occurring in the library.

You will be able to demonstrate excellent communication and interpersonal skills, communicating on several different levels with multiple stakeholders and adapting your style accordingly.

We’re looking for someone who can be a good role model and generously share their knowledge of the library service.

You will have experience of working with community groups, customers, or volunteers, including dealing with challenging situations and defusing, de-escalating behaviours.

The successful candidate will be self-motivated, highly approachable, and deeply customer focused. You will have good digital skills, basic literacy, and written communication skills.

For more information on the Key Skills as well as the Qualifications and / or experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.

Rewards and Benefits

We think libraries are great places to work, where you can make a difference to local communities every day. Find out more about the variety that comes with working in a library and hear first-hand from some of our library staff here : Library Jobs - West Sussex

From flexible working (where possible) to access to our Employee Assistance Programme, we aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do.

A laptop and mobile will be supplied if applicable to your role. You will benefit from 25 days annual leave, rising to 28 days after 5 years’ service plus the opportunity to buy additional leave, an excellent local government pension scheme as well as a range of discounts giving our staff access to hundreds of offers.

For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our Rewards and Benefits page.

Salary : $25,584 - $25,992