Milton Keynes has been named the youth homeless capital of the UK. At YMCA Milton Keynes, we’re doing all we can to change this, starting with our new YMCA campus.

Since 1980, we’ve worked to support more than 10,000 young people. We don’t just provide a bed, we also seek to help them gain the training, skills and confidence to help them belong, contribute and thrive. Many of the young people who come to us have experienced family breakdown and have nowhere left to turn. This has a huge impact on their well-being, and many are left feeling isolated and alone.

Our team are trained to provide the right support to our young people, and our aim is to give them access to the right resources to help them grow and succeed. Working at YMCA MK is more than just a job; it’s a career with a future and a chance to make a positive change for local young people in our community. We are looking for someone who will play a key part in our next chapter, as we move into our new premises and can begin to offer improved tailored housing support.

JOB PURPOSE

YMCA Milton Keynes is currently building a brand new, purpose designed campus to provide accommodation and support for formerly homeless young people. Our new hostel will offer emergency accommodation for 30 young people in Milton Keynes.  

The Hostel Manager will oversee a dedicated team of Hostel Support staff who are vital in offering a range of skills and activities to vulnerable and challenging young people. The Hostel Manger will also oversee staffing and upskilling the staff to work as effectively as possible with our young people.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The role will involve managing the lettings process of our hostel rooms to our young people, ensuring that housing applications are managed effectively, and that staff are providing an excellent service. The Hostel Manager will work closely with other members of staff to provide support for our young people, including independent living skills, wellbeing, building confidence and preparing them to move to our second stage of accommodation, where the focus of our support will be employment.

The Hostel Manager will ensure that rent arrears are managed effectively, voids are kept to a minimum and anti-social behaviour is responded to appropriately.

The Hostel Manager will work with a team of support staff to enhance on their skills and continue to build on their personal and professional development.

The role may require the holder to provide emergency cover for shifts and to be available on an on-call basis if required.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

You will be working with vulnerable people, who have often faced homelessness, family breakdown and trauma. It is key that you are open minded, positive and committed to supporting our residents. You will have charisma, enthusiasm and resilience. Most importantly though, you will have a desire to make a difference to the lives of others.

You are likely to be someone who has demonstrable experience of delivering a successful accommodation service. It is ideal if you have experience managing challenging behaviour. Our staff take on a lot, so being able to motivate a team as well as enhance their skills is crucial. Similarly, you will have the ability to identify individual skill gaps and will be able to use motivational interviewing to coach others.

You will receive;

·        A competitive salary

·        A 37.5 hour working week

·        25 days annual leave plus bank holidays

·        A contributory pension scheme

·        Regular support and ongoing development

Interviews for this role will take place on 9^th July 2019.