Housing Officer

Job title: Housing Officer

Reports to: Regional Housing Manager

Perm or contract: Permanent

Full-time or part-time: Part-time

Location: Work from home – patch based

About Golden Lane Housing Limited

Golden Lane Housing Limited is a Community Benefits Society who works with people with a learning disability to provide supported housing around which they can build their lives and to help tackle the immense challenges that people with a learning disability face in finding a home.

Our vision: Our vision is a world where everyone with a learning disability has opportunities to access good quality housing that meets their needs.

Our values:

• Caring: we support our tenants and colleagues and help them to achieve goals.
• Listening: we involve tenants in the review and design of housing services.
• Honesty: we build trust with tenants and families with fairness.
• Reliable: we are dependable and trusted to keep our standards and commitments.
• Creative: we work together in many different ways for great results

About the role

The Housing Officer is responsible for ensuring that housing management services are delivered to GLH tenants for a defined patch of tenancies, ensuring a high quality of service that meets set standards.  The Housing Officer supports tenant wellbeing working with a range of internal and external stakeholders and will support the wider organisation in the delivery of Our Plan goals.
The Housing Officer role is key to the operational delivery and management of financial controls making sure that everything we do is sustainable and provides a platform to develop growth and that the processes we use will identify risk and drive best practice, to develop a plan that supports the well-being of our tenants.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for the housing management service delivery requirements on a defined patch, and provides services including tenancy management, guidance and support to tenants to maintain their tenancies, housing benefit claim support for new tenants, and liaison with prospective tenants and conduction the tenant sign up process.  
• Responsible for all tenancy queries, to resolve and provide a solution or an agreed plan of action that may then involve other internal or external stakeholders
• Investigate and respond to anti-social behaviour reports.
• To provide information, advice and guidance to enable tenants to understand their rights and responsibilities and implement plans to manage those responsibilities.
• Responsible to achieve individual performance objectives, targets, and service standards and contribute to the achievement of the team and organisation plan targets and objectives.
• Ensures that housing management services comply with any regulatory, contractual requirements and meet GLH standards, completing effective records and reports in a timely manner.
• Ensures that service charges are delivered effectively to tenants, in accordance with agreements or contracts, following up concerns with suppliers where appropriate and that tenants have the right services to meet their needs
• Responsible for supporting new tenants with Housing Benefit applications collating all relevant documentary evidence required, only passing to the Income Team for ongoing account monitoring once a determination is made and the full rent is received.
• Assist tenants to apply for council tax exemptions.
• To undertaking property visits, inspections and routine checks as required and as per agreed timescales and schedule, recording actions and outcomes accordingly.
• To support tenants with safeguarding concerns and evidence progression towards desired outcomes, recording these appropriately
• Take responsibility to provide feedback on any property quality issues to colleagues and keep tenants informed of actions
• Ensures the escalation of complex stakeholder issues to the Regional Housing Manager and supports them to manage any concerns raised. 
• Actively seeks new business opportunities within their region to support growth, and fill vacancies
• Responsible for any property related matters brought to their attention and for the resolution of the issues/concerns working with the Property Services teams in the delivery of the resolution, raising concerns to the Regional Housing Manager. 
• Where a tenant has been identified as requiring re-housing, the Housing Officer will explore all relevant avenues with the tenant and stakeholders and liaise with Development colleagues following the reprovision process.
• To support the Development lead with any joint consultation process with existing tenants for larger projects.
• Maintain accurate records of contact with tenants and other stakeholders.
• Undertake any other duties as may reasonably be required in order to meet the changing needs of the organisation.  

Candidate requirements

• Member of Chartered Institute of Housing desirable or working towards qualification
• Good interpersonal skills, empathy and understanding with the ability to build positive relationships and partnerships
• Dealing effectively with potentially difficult situations & managing customer conflict
• Proven experience hitting targets within a target driven role
• A working knowledge of the supported housing sector desirable
• Experience working in a service role, preferably within the housing or care sector.
• Strong customer service skills with the ability to communicate effectively.
• Proven problem-solving abilities and the capacity to work autonomously.
• Proficiency in technology and a willingness to adapt and learn.
• A full driving license and access to your vehicle are essential.