A client in the South West is looking for 2 x Housing Options Officer to join the team.
Specifically focus on assisting people (customers) threatened with homelessness to resolve their housing difficulties and retain their existing homes (where safe to do so) through the provision of high quality advocacy, advice and activities in order to prevent and relieve homelessness wherever possible.
Accurately assess and discharge the council’s duty to homeless customers. Actively contribute to the achievement of the council’s strategic objectives and government targets and implement the council’s Homelessness Strategy.
Key Responsibilities:
- Make proactive interventions with both presenting and prospective customers in order to provide comprehensive person-centred advice and advocacy on housing rights, income maximisation, financial management, relevant support services and to inform, support and signpost customers to specialist advice agencies where applicable and to follow up on referrals and outcomes accordingly.
- Ensure that good quality housing advice is given to customers to prevent homelessness and to both encourage and enable applicants to sustainably resolve their own housing difficulties through a jointly agreed regularly reviewed Personalised Housing Plan.
- Proactively take actions to prevent the loss of accommodation either as a short or long term solution using all means available. This also includes immediate interventions to prevent crisis homelessness including where possible and reasonable to help customers retain or re-access their current accommodation (without the need to refer under a statutory homelessness duty).
- To regularly liaise with the customer and other agencies in order to prevent homelessness e.g. families and friends, landlords, supported housing, solicitors, courts, social services and other agencies.
- Liaise with private and social landlords in order to maximise homelessness prevention by both mediating and negotiating on behalf of customers in receipt of a notice to quit.
- Take proactive interventions with customers wherever necessary (e.g. in their own home, hospital, prison) in order to confirm the details of their situation and to prevent the loss of their accommodation wherever possible and to determine the level of intervention required and recommend appropriate courses of action.
- Provide comprehensive advice about housing options within the private rented and social housing sectors including affordability testing, housing-related support opportunities, and tenant and landlord rights and responsibilities including (not exclusively) landlord and tenant law, harassment, eviction proceedings, rights to repairs, additional security measures and discretionary finance options etc.
Key requirements:
- A good standard of general education including a demonstrably good level of numeracy and literacy.
- An in-depth working knowledge of the Housing Act 1996 part VII (as amended by the Homelessness Act 2002, Localism Act 2011 and the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017)
- A minimum of one year’s experience in a similar public facing role working with homelessness and vulnerable clients or a similar challenging client group.
- Experienced in liaising with other statutory and voluntary agencies.
- Effective negotiation skills sufficient to persuade clients and agencies to pursue unpopular courses of action.
- Able to deal effectively and positively with challenging behaviour from clients.
- Ability to maintain enthusiasm and creativity in a challenging environment.
- The ability to work within a team and independently on one’s own initiative.
- General high standard of verbal and written communication, including the ability to create and write well-structured letters and reports.
If you are interested please call 0161 4137290 or email
Vivid Resourcing are committed to equality of opportunity for all applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships or any other characteristic protected by law.
