Homeless Prevention Officer
Location: West Midlands
Contract: 6 months
Rate: £22–£24 per hour
Vivid Resourcing is working with a local authority in the West Midlands to recruit an experienced Homeless Prevention Officer for an initial 6-month contract. You’ll join the Housing Services team, preventing homelessness by helping customers keep their current home or, where that isn’t possible, find suitable alternative accommodation.
The role
- Be the first point of contact for customers, assessing housing situations and eligibility for prevention and relief duties under the Housing Act 1996 and the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017
- Develop and agree Personal Housing Plans, using coaching techniques to encourage positive engagement
- Carry out early intervention work, responding to housing and homelessness queries through the team’s inboxes
- Assess applications for financial assistance awards
- Take proactive steps to prevent homelessness, liaising with landlords, families and other parties and using mediation and negotiation to resolve issues
- Manage your own caseload, monitor progress against plans and keep accurate records on the council’s IT systems
- Build strong working relationships with statutory agencies, voluntary organisations, support providers and private landlords
- Make safeguarding referrals where needed and work in line with data protection, confidentiality and health and safety requirements
What we’re looking for
- Recent experience in homelessness prevention, housing options or a similar frontline housing role, ideally within a local authority
- A sound working knowledge of the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 and Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996
- Excellent communication and listening skills
- Strong problem-solving, negotiation and mediation skills
- The ability to coach and motivate customers to take positive steps
- Resilience and adaptability, with the ability to manage a busy caseload and meet deadlines under pressure