Correspondence and Records Assistant

Full-time | Based at the employer's workplace | £26,500–£28,500 per year

An unanswered letter can hold up an otherwise straightforward request. This position helps an office keep its incoming correspondence, outgoing replies and supporting records together. The Correspondence and Records Assistant opens the day's shared correspondence, identifies who owns each matter and makes sure that a reply is sent or a follow-up is visible. The work is administrative, but the quality of the record makes a real difference to the people relying on it.

The office may receive an enquiry by post, through a general email address or from a colleague who has spoken to a customer. You will check for the name, reference number and documents needed to identify the matter. If a routine response is covered by an approved guide, you may prepare it for review or send it within your authority. If the question requires a decision, route it to the appropriate person and record when a response is due. Accuracy matters more than sending an impressive-looking reply that does not answer the question.

Incoming correspondence

• Sort incoming mail and electronic correspondence by subject and urgency.
• Register new items in the office's tracking system.
• Check that attachments are complete and legible.
• Draft standard acknowledgements and straightforward replies.

Replies and records

• Find earlier correspondence before passing a case to a colleague.
• Update the record when an answer or document is received.
• Prepare letters for checking, printing or secure electronic delivery.
• Follow up on unanswered items according to the office's timescales.

A customer may send a document without a reference number. Rather than file it under the first similar name, compare the available details and ask for help if the match is uncertain. A misfiled document can cause a later reply to be wrong. When a colleague corrects a record, note what changed so the next person can follow the history. This is ordinary office administration carried out carefully, not a requirement to make policy decisions or interpret specialist advice.

You will also help maintain a sensible filing structure. Check the correct version of a letter before attaching it to a case; separate a working draft from an approved final reply; and use the employer's rules for information that should be restricted. A well-run office should be able to see what was received, who replied and what is still waiting without relying on one employee's memory.

The person who will do well here

You can write a clear email, check spelling and numbers, and keep several small tasks moving without losing the thread. Familiarity with word processing and shared inboxes will help. Previous office administration or customer service experience is useful, but applicants from retail, education, hospitality or voluntary work may have equally relevant examples of careful records and written communication. You will learn the office’s case categories, templates and filing process.

There will be days when a request looks simple but contains something unusual. Pause when a letter asks for personal information, a change to an account or a response outside an approved script. The responsible colleague can decide what should happen; your contribution is to make the question and the supporting documents easy to understand. You should be comfortable asking for a second check when the record does not support a confident answer.

Pay and progression

The advertised salary is £26,500–£28,500 per year for this full-time, workplace-based role. As you learn the office's correspondence and record system, you may take responsibility for more complex document preparation or help newer colleagues find the right process. No specialist qualification is assumed for the starting duties.

Interested in the role?

Send a CV showing how you handled written requests, kept records or checked details in a previous setting. You may also include a short example of a time you spotted missing information before passing something on. We are interested in the steps you took, including examples outside paid office employment. The hiring team may ask you to describe how you would deal with an attachment that appears to belong to a different customer. Make sure the contact details on your CV are current. If you’re selected for the next step, you may be asked to complete an application on the hiring company’s website.