Overview and context

A key role enabling our customers, MPs and their staff, to comply with the MPs’ Scheme of Staffing and Business Costs by providing high quality customer service and building relationships with a region of up to 170 MPs and their staff.  The role is IPSA’s first point of contact for our customers; offering advice, guidance and information, taking and making telephone calls, responding to emails and attending face-to-face meetings.  The role also plays an important part in inducting and educating customers on IPSA’s systems and processes and offers significant opportunity to contribute to the continuous improvement of operational activity that supports achievement of IPSA’s strategic objectives.

The Scheme can be perceived as complex and the role holder will need a full understanding of all its aspects, maintaining knowledge of relevant data, processes and systems to make life easier for MPs and their staff so they can focus on what really matters by delivering advice and support to MPs and their staff about how to access funding, manage budgets and ensure spending falls within the rules.

The MP Services Directorate includes two customer-facing teams: one team delivers advice and support to MPs and their teams about how to access funding, manage budgets and ensure spending falls within the rules, while the other team delivers advice and support about how to register properties with IPSA to access the funding that goes with them, in addition to providing tenancy advice, internally and externally, across residential and commercial property. Depending on operational requirements, you’ll be recruited to one of these teams at your time of appointment and you may be required to move between teams in future to continue to meet the needs of our customers and your own personal development.

This role sits within the MP Services Directorate and reports to one of our MP Services Managers.

Key responsibilities

• Enabling MPs and their staff to comply with the Scheme of MPs’ Staffing and Business Costs by providing high-quality customer service, building strong and productive relationships and offering accurate and timely advice and support.

• Enabling MPs and their staff to register properties and claim reimbursement of business costs, ensuring they are compliant, timely and accurate. 

• Approving and registering properties for access to funding, applying the Scheme rules and property-related legislation.

• Educating MPs and their staff on the requirements of the Scheme, processes and systems on a one to one or group basis.

• Pro-actively supporting MPs and their staff to manage their financial budget by working with others in IPSA to maintain an overview of their current budget, projected financial position and amounts due to be repaid.

• Inputting and maintaining high quality, accurate data and information to aid decision making.

• Supporting the validation of expenditure through the pre-payment and post-payment validation processes, identifying areas of concern, recovering amounts owed quickly and recommending routes for resolution.

• Engaging with external stakeholders where needed, to provide joined-up support to MPs (e.g., working with colleagues at the House of Commons or landlords).

• Contributing to the continuous improvement of operational activity that supports achievement of IPSA’s strategic objectives to improve customer service, simplify our policy, deliver financial value and grow our people.

• Undertaking autonomous projects and other pieces of work as well as contributing to wider IPSA projects, as required.

• Reflecting IPSA’s values of staying connected, seeing the bigger picture, being open, doing the right thing and making a difference through all that you do.

IPSA is a learning organisation. We constantly review our work against our customer’s need and assess the environment in which we operate so that we can continuously improve. Therefore, the list of key responsibilities may adapt and change over time within the spirit and nature of organisational change and the development of the role.

What we’re looking for

You’ll be passionate about delivering excellent customer service and helping us to deliver our vision of enabling MPs to focus on what really matters by providing an exemplary, seamless, regulatory service.  You’ll dazzle people with your boundless energy, and you’ll have a positive influence on how our customers feel about us through understanding their needs and priorities. Through a collaborative approach to your work, sound communication skills and great attention detail, you will build bridges and you’ll be adept at communicating complex and challenging financial information to MPs and their staff, proactively supporting MPs to spend wisely and within the guardrails of the Scheme.

The experience and technical level required for the role, along with personal qualities, skills, attributes, and qualifications (where relevant) are listed below:  

Essential

• Demonstrable experience working within a customer-facing service environment.

• Knowledge of Information Governance and Data Protection and the importance of its application.

• Able to lead, manage and influence complex conversations.

• Able to manage multiple workstreams simultaneously and work to changing priorities/conflicting demands.

• Thorough and inquisitive mindset with high attention to detail

• Resilient and performs well under pressure, responding constructively to setbacks and change.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

• Presentation skills which are suitable for wide audiences at all levels.

• Good written communication, listening and observational skills.

• Cultivate effective working relationships across and work collaboratively with external stakeholders.

• Reflecting IPSA’s values of staying connected, seeing the bigger picture, being open, doing the right thing and making a difference through all that you do.

Desirable

• Experience and/or working knowledge of a regulatory or financial services setting.

• Some experience and knowledge of the application of UK property legislation.

• To be self-aware, recognising own limits, acting on feedback from others and knowing when to seek support and guidance

• Proficiency to understand financial management techniques and IT skills.

• Proactive and flexible self-starter, adapting quickly to changing situations and taking the initiative to respond to the needs and priorities of others.

Salary progression

We operate a training and competency framework which consists of three stages - learning, developing, qualified. At each stage, there is a set of criteria comprising the relevant knowledge, experience and behaviours that need to be achieved before progressing to the next stage of the framework and each of the stages are linked to pay progression. While the pace at which you may progress is specific to you, it is likely to take between 6 –12 months to move through the learning and developing stages before being signed off as qualified. This framework provides colleagues a clear set of expectations to develop competence and confidence.

‘Learning’ is the introduction to the team, processes and broader knowledge underpinning the role. ‘Developing’ is about consolidating knowledge and putting it into practice. You can then progress to the final stage as ‘Qualified’, at this stage, you will have demonstrated the necessary skills, knowledge and experience to work independently and consistently deliver high quality work.

Our commitment and values

We’re committed to creating an inclusive, vibrant community and to making IPSA a brilliant place to be.

At the heart of our people philosophy is our promise to engage, enable, and empower every team member to deliver excellence, learn, and develop every day.

Ensuring equality of opportunity is central to this.

With diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and thinking IPSA will continue to operate as a high-performing organisation with a truly diverse and inclusive culture.

That’s why we encourage applications from all backgrounds and communities, such as returning parents or carers who are returning from a career break, people who are LGBTQIA+, from Black, Asian, and other ethnic backgrounds, with a disability, impairment, learning differences or long-term condition, with caring responsibilities, from different geographic regions and people from all socio-economic backgrounds, and any other under-represented groups in our workforce.

As well as our Inclusion Panel we have several workplace networks that promote and celebrate diversity, equity, inclusion, and sustainability.

Our values guide us and we demonstrate them in all our work. These are Staying Connected, Seeing the Bigger Picture, Being Open, and Doing the Right Thing. and Making a Difference. As a values-based organisation, you can expect them throughout the recruitment process and beyond.

Interview process and timeline

Interviews will be virtual via Microsoft Teams, so you’ll need access to a secure WIFI network and a private space. 

Our interviews are competency and values-based. We’ll ask you a series of questions designed to help assess your suitability for the role and for IPSA. We may also ask you prepare a short task or presentation.

The closing date for this role will be 10 March 2024, so we encourage you to submit your application without delay. Shortlisting will take place in w/c 11 March 2024 and interviews will take place in w/c 18 March 2024.

Downloadable job description

Please find a downloadable version of the Job Description.

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