Job Description
The Housing Team is looking for a Senior Choice Based Lettings Officer who will play a key role in coaching and mentoring staff, oversight of case management and providing expert housing options advice to support the team.
About us
This role sits within Buckinghamshire Council’s Housing Service within our busy and friendly Housing Options & Supply team. We provide advice and support to customers in relation to social housing applications, lettings of housing, housing supply and procurement, management of temporary accommodation and the councils private rent schemes.
Your role will be to act as Senior Choice Based Lettings Officer within the Council’s Housing Options and Supply Team, reporting to the Choice Based Lettings Team Leader, with flexibility to provide support to the wider Housing Options and Supply teams as required. The role will provide coaching and mentoring to staff, senior technical guidance to staff within the team and wider service area, including the undertaking of statutory reviews under Part VI of the Housing Act and project work relating to policy changes and implementation. The role will also include responding to customer complaints and member enquiries.
Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities, and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and to provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally.
About the role
The role will work across the service, particularly with regards to nominations and direct lets of properties to the Councils homeless clients and will share responsibility to oversee the allocation of social housing, application of legislation, statutory guidance and adopted policies and procedures. You will have a shared responsibility to work with the management team to develop, manage and preserve relationships with housing providers, to assist in financial monitoring and payments, undertake complaints, member enquiries, SAR and FOI requests and will act as a mentor to staff, including induction, training and some direct line management.
Key accountabilities
- To act as line manager, coach and mentor to officers within the choice-based lettings service, reporting to the Team Leader where required. To assist with recruitment and to be responsible for case management of the teams officers and inductions of new starters.
- To provide senior oversight and technical guidance in relation to casework, issues, undertaking statutory reviews under Part VI of the Housing Act, raising of concerns always ensuring information is handled sensitively and to always observe the need for confidentiality.
- To undertake project work and act as subject matter expert on projects across the service area.
- To be an expert on wider housing options for residents and to embed that knowledge within the team for the benefit of our customers.
- To attend case conferences, complex case panels and represent the service at multiagency or development meetings both internally and externally.
- To deputise for the Choice Based Lettings Team Leader where required.
Any-Desk:
As an ‘any-desk’ worker, you’ll need to be connected to our network to access digital folders and resources, but this can either be from home or an office location when required. You will be required to work from the office a couple of times a week, depending on your role and team requirements.
About you
You’ll thrive in a fast-paced environment and be able to manage working to tight deadlines. If you’re good at using your initiative and thrive on thinking on your feet we want to hear from you! Our service is customer centric and you must have demonstrable experience of building strong relationships with our customers at all points of contact into the service and to be able to communicate at all levels, including with elected members.
With a number of different tasks coming into the team on any given day, you’ll need to be able to prioritise work quickly, have good time management skills and have excellent communication and written skills. You will need to be an excellent problem solver and highly adaptable. You will be able to build relationships quickly and provide an empathetic and non-judgmental service to customers. You will need excellent ITC skills and a broad knowledge and understanding of the service area including legislation, systems, welfare benefits and policies. You will be a capable and experienced manager, or potentially have relevant management training along with highly developed experience of coaching and mentoring staff.
Other information
This is a permanent role based within Buckinghamshire. We have offices in Aylesbury and Wycombe and you will be expected to spend a couple of days a week in our offices to undertake your duties, with the remainder of your work normally undertaken from home. The team is predominately based in Wycombe but there will be flexibility for some office days to be carried out in Aylesbury, should this better met the needs of the successful candidate (once training and induction have been completed).
This post is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:
- All unspent cautions and/or unspent convictions
We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.
Our values and culture
We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.
By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:
- a fair and inclusive culture
- the chance to really make a difference to those around you
- health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
- a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
- ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
- opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events
At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.
From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.
We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.
About the Business Unit
Our Planning, Growth and Sustainability directorate works with partners to help shape the future of Buckinghamshire. We deliver services on planning, economic growth, regeneration, strategic infrastructure, transport and property.
Our key priorities include developing the economic narrative for Bucks, creating more jobs and delivering the right infrastructure to help businesses and residents thrive. We also aim to provide a proactive planning service that is responsive, whilst making the best use of the Council’s land and property portfolio. This will in turn support community services and create housing, jobs, regeneration and income to support public services.
It’s a great time to join one of our teams. As part of the Planning, Growth and Sustainability function you will not only get to help shape the economic future of Buckinghamshire; you’ll also be involved in delivering high-profile development projects and work on some of the biggest infrastructure projects in the UK. You will support us to deliver the results that our local residents and businesses deserve.
We recognise and reward you
Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. We also offer a salary sacrifice personal car lease scheme to those who are eligible and have passed their probation period. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.
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