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Assistant Director: Housing & Communities

Employer
Solace Group
Location
Reading, Berkshire
Salary
up to £92k
Closing date
13 May 2019

Recently named the second-fastest growing city in the UK, and already a regional powerhouse, Reading’s forward momentum is remarkable. High employment levels, a well-qualified local population, and an established and respected university all contribute to Reading’s appeal to inward investors. The Council is playing a central role in creating the right environment for growth and ensuring that benefits are reinvested to support financial sustainability and effectively dispersed to address inequality.

Team Reading is central to this making this happen – assembling a new management team across a range of services, to create consistently high expectations, shared corporate accountability and an unswerving focus on high quality services. We have already delivered £26m of savings, stabilised our revenue budget and have a £0.5bn capital programme to invest in Reading’s future. We’re redefining how the Council delivers, influences and brokers on behalf of our community. For those who want to be at the vanguard of modern local government: Reading is where it’s happening.

You will take the lead role in managing the Council’s housing stock of circa 7,000 properties (1,300 managed under a PFI contract). The council is already in the top quartile performance in rent collection, so there is an excellent foundation on which to build. You’ll also lead on the co-ordination of the town’s response to homelessness and rough sleeping, working with a range of partners to support those in need and offer practical alternatives to those affected by this. With reducing numbers of rough sleepers in the town, we’re already making a positive impact in this area. You can expect extensive collaboration with colleagues in Adults’ Services and our children’s company to identify and deliver appropriate housing solutions to vulnerable families. Our complete cessation of using shared Bed and Breakfast accommodation for families, is part  of a wider picture of overall reduction in B&B solutions – helped greatly by the delivery of 28 units of modular constructed temporary accommodation. And you’ll manage our community safety and enablement team securing a partnership response to neighbourhood matters, including the Council’s response to unauthorised encampments.

Visit www.teamreading.co.uk to find out more or contact Steve Guest at Solace in Business for a confidential discussion on 020 7976 3311.

Closing date: 13th May

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