Post Office Compensation Caseworker
Over a 20-year period, the Post Office wrongly accused many innocent postmasters of stealing cash from their branches, based on evidence from its accounting system Horizon.
After a long fight in the High Court, a group of 555 postmasters revealed the truth about what happened. The case showed that Horizon was flawed and that the Post Office had acted unfairly. The Courts subsequently overturned over 100 convictions: in an unprecedented move, Parliament has recently overturned hundreds more.The Department for Business and Trade is now paying hundreds of millions of pounds in compensation to those affected. A Statutory Inquiry is finding out what went wrong, so that lessons are learned to ensure it can never happen again.
In 2020, the Post Office established the Horizon Shortfall Scheme to provide compensation to current and former un-convicted postmasters who suffered losses as a result of the Horizon Scandal. In September 2024, the Government announced a new independent appeals process, overseen by the Department for Business and Trade, for postmasters in the Horizon Shortfall Scheme for who feel their financial settlement did not reflect the true extent of their losses.
In March 2023, Government launched the GLO Compensation Scheme in order to ensure that those postmasters who took part in the original High Court case had access to similar levels of compensation as their peers. The scheme has settled over 300 out of the c.500 claims expected, but there remains much to do.
The team is strongly motivated to right the wrongs of the past and highly committed to delivering results. The work is interesting, high profile and fast-paced, including responding to very regular interest from both Houses of Parliament and to regular scrutiny in the media.The work – and the responsibilities of individual posts – evolve over time: as we deliver against one challenge, the next presents itself.
The team works closely with stakeholders and delivery partners to ensure that victims receive compensation swiftly and fairly.
We are seeking motivated individuals to work as caseworkers on Horizon scandal related compensation over the next 24 months. At HEO level we are looking for strong performers who possess sound judgement, have strong attention to detail and can work with discretion and pace. You will need to:
- Have excellent written and verbal communications skills, with an ability to present complex information clearly and concisely.
- Be able to establish and maintain productive working relationships across the team and beyond.
- Be able to maintain, interrogate and report on data, for example using Sharepoint Lists, with an eye for detail and accuracy.