Housing Needs Officer

Job Description

Housing Needs Officer Salary: £29,766Location: Haringey, North LondonContract: 7 MonthsHours: 36 hours per weekAbout the roleTo provide a high quality service for households in housing need irrespective of tenure; emphasis on the prevention/relief of homelessness and the provision of advice and support to achieve best outcomes; engaging with customers to deliver housing services that work for them. To help residents improve life chances through the provision of broad and holistic advice which encompasses employment and welfare benefits.About youYou will be confident in using technology such as Excel and Word, alongside complying fully with Landlord and Tenant legislation, public policy issues affecting temporary accommodation and have a good knowledge of housing options and homelessness prevention approach.Key Responsibilities• Advising people with housing needs on issues such as housing, welfare benefits and employment; signposting them to appropriate sources of advice and support.• Carry a case load of clients, working with each household to prevent and relieve homelessness and offer an individual and empowering service, via a variety of solutions including accessing the private sector and supported accommodation• Carry a caseload of clients who have made for an application for assistance, assessing each case individually and issuing decisions on these in line with service standards, and legislation.• Undertake affordability assessments to enable appropriate advice to be given to residents about where they can afford to live.• Carry out and determine homeless assessments - homelessness, local connection and eligibility• Prepare statistics and data analysis to demonstrate your own performance and outputs.• Work collaboratively with the housing supply team, accommodation providers and other stakeholders to maximise availability of suitable units of accommodation and meet customers needs• Actively engage with the community to promote and develop understanding of Homes for Haringey’s approach to housing need.• Aware of local housing policy and legislation as it affects the Homes for Haringey Ltd Housing Solutions Officer - Job description and candidate specification Page 4 of 8 remit of this post• Understand and implement local housing policy and legislation as it affects the remit of this postEssential Experience• Experience of delivering a housing or housing related serviceKey Knowledge and Skills• Good IT skills• A good knowledge of housing options and homelessness prevention approaches• Understanding of legislation pertaining to homelessness, temporary accommodation and offers of accommodation• An awareness of Welfare Benefits, particularly Housing Benefits.• An awareness of occasions that require liaison with other public services (e.g. child protection, domestic violence)• Knowledge of Landlord and Tenant legislation and best practice• Knowledge of the principles of good customer care & ability to implement these• Good communication skillsAbout usHomes for Haringey are a fully-fledged Arm’s Length Management Organisation (ALMO) of the London Borough of Haringey. We are firmly committed to working collaboratively toward building a spirit of team working and a supportive one culture in which innovation is encouraged and individuals can thrive.We are offering an excellent opportunity to grow and develop a key department whilst making a huge impact on the future of the organisation.We offer an attractive salary and access to a wide range of learning and development opportunities.Homes for Haringey offers flexible working, generous leave entitlement, and access to the Local Government Pension Scheme.The closing date for completed applications will be 09/09/2020• Contact: Tia Perry • Job ID: REF-3U-M5UNHUL