Housing Support and Resettlement Officer Ref: 13-25

Job Description

Job summary

Grade:	9
Responsible To:	Rough Sleeper Support and Resettlement Team Leader
Responsible For:	No reporting responsibilities
Job Purpose:	To provide support to our service users as they transition through the pathway from homelessness into sustainable tenancies. To help clients find and plan move on accommodation and continue to work with them for a period to ensure they are settled, are able to live independently and sustain their tenancies. Working closely with other agencies to promote and safeguard the welfare of clients and provide welfare benefits advice to ensure maximization of income, accessing education, employment and training, help with setting up a new home and general tenancy support. Deliver deliver wrap-around intensive, trauma informed support to service users with multiple and complex issues.
Location of Job:	Elizabeth House, Dereham, at a variety of temporary accommodation locations within and outside of the district and in people's homes.
Directorate/ Service Area:	Housing and Health

Description of duties

To provide a range of support to clients in temporary accommodation including welfare benefits advice, tenancy support and to work with other agencies to promote and safeguard the welfare of clients in temporary accommodation.
To establish and maintain contact with residents in temporary accommodation liaising with Housing Solutions Officers and other agencies to ensure any support needs are identified.
To signpost residents to appropriate support agencies to ensure effective tenancy sustainment and intervene where necessary to ensure that residents have appropriate support and advice to claim benefits.
To support clients with maximising income, claiming benefits, eligibility issues (i.e. NRPF), debt management, accessing education, employment, and training, etc.
Practical help with setting up a new home including help to arrange and attend viewings, secure funding for furniture and fittings, white goods, setting up utilities, moving in, support with budget planning and ongoing regular support to maintain the accommodation.
To liaise with accommodation providers in relation to any issues relating to resident's behaviour and provide support where necessary to ensure residents understand the consequences of any breach of accommodation conditions including in relation to the Council's ongoing duties towards them.
Carry out regular checks that residents are correctly banded on the Housing Register and are bidding through Key Select, encouraging them to bid and supporting those who need additional help to do so.
Support residents to access alternative supported accommodation where the Council does not have an ongoing accommodation duty, including making referrals to specialist supported housing and where necessary accompanying residents to interviews for accommodation.
Perform robust assessments to ensure referrals are made to the most appropriate agency to ensure the required support is provided.
To demonstrate to good practice Safeguarding procedures with a positive risk-taking approach to ensure the wellbeing of vulnerable people.
To be responsible for keeping accurate records of clients making file notes and liaising with other officers as necessary.
To attend training and development opportunities to ensure knowledge and skills are maintained and are current.
Ensure compliance to all policies, procedures, standard operating practices, with recommendations for action and continuous improvement.
To make subjective and objective complex judgements to arrive at logical solutions based on customers housing circumstances.
The post holder will be required to communicate with Members of the public, colleagues within Housing and other departments, elected members, registered providers and other landlords, voluntary and statutory agencies.
Responsible for Council provided laptop, mobile phone and any other IT devices provided.
To be able to meet the physical and travel/mobility requirements of the post and to maintain a vehicle for use within and outside the district in accordance with Council policy and make home and out of office visits as required.
The role is a mix of office based (Dereham and Thetford), working remotely from home or on site.

This job description is not exhaustive.

The job description outlines the current position and will be subject to review in the light of development within the service. This will be in consultation with the post holder, as detailed in your Contract of Employment.