JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE:

Senior Clerical Officer

REPORTS TO:

Budgetary Support Team Leader

RESPONSIBLE FOR:

To provide administrative, clerical and secretarial support to Senior Officers on all matters relating to the organisation and work of the department and the service it provides, on behalf of the EA for pupils with Special Educational Needs.

JOB PURPOSE

To provide administrative, clerical and secretarial support to Senior Officers on all matters relating to the organisation and work of the department and the service it provides, on behalf of the EA for pupils with Special Educational Needs.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Financial and Budgetary

• Coordinate the submission of invoices for senior management approval and liaise with relevant teams to ensure timely payment.
• Support the procurement and ordering of pupil-related resources, equipment, and services in accordance with financial procedures.
• Provide administrative and financial support to the SEND team, responding to queries and assisting with budget management activities.
• Analyse and interrogate financial data to produce statistics, and management information to support decision-making.
• Maintain accurate financial records and supporting documentation to ensure audit compliance and financial transparency.
• Maintain and update financial spreadsheets, ensuring accurate records of expenditure.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of financial processes and procedures to enhance efficiency and service delivery.

General Administration and Secretarial Support

• Provide individual secretarial assistance for Officers within the Statutory Assessment & Review Service (SARS) which includes checking correspondence, screening and distribution of mail/telephone calls, making appointments, receiving visitors and maintaining officers’ diaries.
• Arrange appointments, preparation of materials for meetings and general correspondence for Senior Officers.
• Attend meetings as required acting as Secretary, preparing minutes for circulation to all involved.
• Maintain databases/spreadsheets.
• Ensure the appropriate and timely issuing of all documentation in relation to the SARS.
• Deal with telephone queries and engage in follow-up action, where appropriate.
• Provide a confidential and discreet service when dealing with information of a personal and sensitive nature having regard to GDPR legislation.
• Provide information and support to schools, parents, other professionals and EA Officers.
• Preparation and compiling of documentation as required.
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade of the post.

This job description will be subject to review in light of changing circumstances and is not intended to be rigid and inflexible but should be regarded as providing guidelines within which the individual works. Other duties of a similar nature and appropriate to the grade may be assigned from time to time.

In accordance with Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act (1998), the post-holder is expected to promote good relations, equality of opportunity and pay due regard for equality legislation at all times.

To view the summary of terms and conditions for this post, click here.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

NOTES TO JOB APPLICANTS

1. You must clearly demonstrate on your application form under each question, how, and to what extent you meet the required criteria as failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted. You should clearly demonstrate this for both the essential and desirable criteria, where relevant.
2. You must demonstrate how you meet the criteria by the closing date for applications, unless the criteria state otherwise.
3. The stage in the process when the criteria will be measured is outlined in the table below.
4. Shortlisting will be carried out on the basis of the essential criteria set out in Section 1 below, using the information provided by you on your application form.
5. Please note that the Selection Panel reserves the right to shortlist only those applicants that it believes most strongly meet the criteria for the role.
6. In the event of an excessive number of applications, the Selection Panel also reserves the right to apply any desirable criteria as outlined in Section 3 at shortlisting, in which case these will be applied in the order listed. It is important therefore that you also clearly demonstrate on your application form on how you meet any desirable criteria.