Benevolent Fund Coordinator - Swindon
Part Time (20 hours per week over 5 days)

We are looking for a Benevolent Fund Coordinator to join the WHSmith Pensions team in our Swindon Head Office. This individual will work closely with the Pension Fund Manager to support the WHSmith benevolent fund and its members with a range of administration tasks. As the Benevolent Fund Coordinator you will be responsible for the day to day administration of the WHSmith Benevolent fund that supports WHSmith members with financial support during times of financial difficulty.

What you'll do
The Benevolent Fund Coordinator will be responsible for processing applications for financial support and adhering to procedures, policies and appropriate legislation. The Benevolent Fund Coordinator will prepare applications from serving, retired or ex-staff for presentation to the Grants Committee meeting on a quarterly basis as well as annual Trustee meetings and any supplementary meetings as required. They will also liaise with the Principal Trustee for the payment of agreed emergency grants to individuals who are unable to wait for the next Grants Comiittee meeting
They will be responsible for making regular payments to supplement to income beneficiaries and Christmas cheque beneficiaries via cheque or online bank payments to; beneficiaries, banks, utilities and service providers as authorised by the Grants Committee.

The Benevolent Fund Coordinator will work closely with our external Benevolent Fund Auditors and other charities, establishing themselves as the main point of contact for day to day queries. They will also assist the Pension Funds Manager in the production of the annual trustee reports in cooperation with the Benevolent fund auditors and support with routine monthly cheque records, circulating minutes from meetings.

Who we're looking for
Ideally the successful applicant will have some basic knowledge of the benefits system, and have some previous background legislation knowledge surrounding charities. They will be able to provide advice and counsel where appropriate, providing applicants with the best points of contact for help (I.e. CAB etc.).

The successful applicant will need to be able to communicate with empathy, understanding and in an engaging manner; able to articulate process guidance and advice to beneficiaries, members and external third parties.

Some experience within Health & Safety, Finance or similar previous experience would be useful, but an understanding of the sensitivity of information and previous compliance experience to GDPR/Data protection standards are a must. The position requires excellent PC skill especially Microsoft Office, as well as a high level of attention to detail and the ability to prioritise the workload independently and to deadlines.