Financial Professional

Colbern Limited; Sittingbourne; Hybrid; GBP 19,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

Colbern Limited is seeking an experienced Accommodation and Housing Finance Officer to join our client in Sittingbourne. The role focuses on delivering a high-quality rental income collection service for Swale-owned temporary accommodation, private providers, and related housing placements.

You will work with external partners such as the DWP, private landlords, and TA providers to reconcile invoices and monitor customer payments, ensuring compliance with Swale's financial regulations.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of housing and homelessness legislation
• Experience in Housing and Homelessness or Housing Finance
• Strong numerical and analytical abilities
• Budget monitoring and accounting skills
• Knowledge of social housing sector and rent setting
• Proficiency in MS Excel and Word
• Excellent communication and partnership skills

Responsibilities

• Support the delivery of rental income collection for Swale TA, private providers and other housing placements
• Achieve income collection targets and manage arrears with Accommodation and Housing Teams
• Collaborate with DWP, landlords and TA providers to reconcile invoices and monitor payments
• Provide accounts payable service ensuring invoices/payments comply with Swale's Financial Regulations
• Use housing management systems for income, debt, reconciliation and reporting
• Undertake data analysis to identify TA trends and support budget monitoring

Skills

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Stakeholder management

Tools

MS Excel

MS Word

Job description

Accommodation and Housing Finance Officer

Sittingbourne

Contract

£16.65 per hour

Our client is looking for an experienced Accommodation and Housing Finance Officer

Training

• For training purposes will be 3-4 days office based and then hybrid can be discussed.

Responsibilities

• Support the delivery and provision of an effective and high-quality rental income collection service for all Swale owned temporary accommodation (TA), private provider and nightly paid TA, private rented landlord and resettlement homes and rough sleeper TA placements.
• Achieve income collection performance targets, including the management of effective arrears actions working with the Accommodation and Housing Teams to support customers to sustain their tenancies.
• Work with external partners such as the DWP, private landlords and TA providers to reconcile invoices and accurately monitor customer payments and debts. Work closely with Finance, Housing Benefit and Council Tax other teams across the Council to support good practice customer account management.
• Provide an effective accounts payable service for Swale's Accommodation and Housing Teams, ensuring procedures and systems are in place to manage invoices and payments to third party providers and contractors, ensuring this remains compliant with swale's Financial Regulations.
• Fully understand and use the housing management system, policies, processes and procedures to provide effective tools for income collection, debt collection, reconciliation, and performance monitoring and other relevant data reporting.
• Undertake data analysis to identify TA trends to maximise income and enable cost effective decisions regarding TA placements. Assist the Accommodation and Housing managers to monitor expenditure against corporate budgets identifying projects to improve services and increase income.

Qualifications

• A practical working knowledge of housing and homelessness legislation, and the welfare benefits systems.
• Extensive experience of working in Housing and Homelessness or Housing Finance.
• Excellent knowledge of analytical and numerical analysis with the ability to deal with complex finances.
• Good working knowledge of managing and monitoring budgets, with proficient financial and accounting skills.
• Good overall knowledge of the social housing sector and the responsibilities of Local Authorities in the provision of Rent setting and account management.
• Good working knowledge of Huume, with advanced level proficiency in MS Excel and Word.
• Excellent communication and partnership skills with a demonstratable ability of building and maintaining effective relationships with key partners and stakeholders.

Colbern Limited along with our clients are an equal opportunities employer