Homelessness Prevention and Relief Officer

London Borough of Brent; Wembley; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 43,000; Full time

Job summary

London Borough of Brent is seeking a committed Housing Needs Officer to join the specialist homelessness service. You will assess households, identify housing solutions, and work with landlords and social services to prevent and relieve homelessness.

This frontline role focuses on timely, compassionate support, statutory duties under housing legislation, and maintaining robust case records while delivering outcomes for families facing housing distress.

Qualifications

• Experience in Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 (as amended by the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017)
• Customer-focused mindset with strong communication skills
• Ability to manage complex caseloads in a front-line environment
• Proven negotiation, advocacy or mediation skills
• Collaborative team player with internal/external partners
• Excellent casework record-keeping and IT skills
• Experience working with vulnerable households in housing needs
• Understanding of inner-London housing market challenges including LHA and welfare reforms

Responsibilities

• Be the first point of contact for families and pregnant individuals facing homelessness
• Assess circumstances and immediate needs under housing legislation
• Provide practical advice and identify sustainable housing solutions
• Work with landlords, social services and external partners to prevent/relieve homelessness
• Manage a caseload and drive early intervention to sustain tenancies
• Deliver early interventions by identifying risk factors for homelessness
• Facilitate mediation between tenants, landlords and networks
• Provide guidance on welfare benefits, income maximisation and private rented pathways
• Conduct statutory housing assessments and Personalised Housing Plans

Skills

Customer service

Communication

Problem solving

Negotiation

Job description

Salary range: £41,511 - £43,449 per annum inclusive of London weighting

Contract: 2 Permanent and 1 Fixed term/Secondment/internal transfer until October 2027

Hours of work: 36 hours per week

Location: Civic Centre and New Horizon centre from time to time

We're looking for passionate, resilient individuals to join our specialist service, helping families and pregnant people facing homelessness. In this fast-paced and dynamic role, you will:

• Assess the circumstances and needs of households facing homelessness
• Identify practical and sustainable housing solutions
• Work collaboratively with partners to prevent and relieve homelessness

Brent is one of the most diverse boroughs in the country, with communities, ideas and experiences from across the world helping to shape who we are. Working here means joining a council that is focused on fairness, open to new thinking and committed to improving life for local people.

Our values shape how we work and what people can expect from us. We collaborate proactively, lead inclusively, embrace change, are bold and curious, and celebrate and share our success. For people who care about public service and want their work to matter, Brent offers the chance to make a meaningful difference.

About the role

We're looking for passionate, resilient individuals to join our specialist team, helping families and pregnant people facing homelessness.

In this fast-paced and dynamic front-line role, you will sit at the very heart of Brent Council's transformed Housing Needs Service. You will step in at critical moments to provide rapid, compassionate, and life-changing support, acting as a crucial line of defense to keep local families safe and securely housed.

In this role, you will:

• Be the first point of contact for families and pregnant individuals facing homelessness, assessing their circumstances and immediate needs under relevant housing legislation.
• Provide practical advice and identify sustainable housing solutions that prevent the trauma of displacement or the reliance on emergency temporary accommodation.
• Work collaboratively with internal teams, landlords, social services, and external partners to proactively prevent and relieve family homelessness across the borough.

In this role, you will:

• Manage a caseload of families and pregnant individuals at risk of homelessness, driving early intervention in tenancy breakdowns and providing practical support and advice to both tenants and landlords.
• Deliver early interventions by actively identifying risk factors for family homelessness and proactively managing a caseload to sustain tenancies and prevent evictions.
• Facilitate mediation and negotiation between tenants, landlords, and family networks to resolve complex tenancy breakdowns and domestic housing disputes.
• Provide expert advice and tools to empower families, including guidance on welfare benefits, income maximisation, and accessing alternative private rented sector pathways.
• Conduct statutory housing assessments under relevant legislation, implementing Personalised Housing Plans (PHPs) to secure stable, long-term housing solutions.

Wider Scope & Impact:

Operating out of our state-of-the-art Wembley Civic Centre and New Horizon centre, you will report directly to a Housing Needs Team Leader. You will maintain a highly collaborative relationship with multi-agency networks, including social care, benefit agencies, and external crisis support groups, ensuring a holistic approach to case management. By prioritizing prevention over emergency crisis placements, your work directly impacts Brent Council's wider corporate priority to reduce reliance on temporary accommodation and foster long-term community resilience.

About you

• Someone who has experience in Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 (as amended by the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017), with a proven track record of investigating applications, determining statutory duties, and writing legally robust decision letters.
• Demonstrates a customer-focused mindset backed by exceptional communication skills, allowing you to deliver empathetic, high-quality service to families and pregnant individuals experiencing severe housing distress.
• Exhibits strong proactive problem-solving abilities and emotional resilience, ensuring you can effectively manage complex caseloads calmly in a high-pressure, front-line environment.
• Has proven negotiation, advocacy, or mediation skills, with the confidence to intervene early in tenancy breakdowns and challenge landlord non-compliance or legislative breaches constructively.
• Works collaboratively as an effective team player, capable of building strong, professional partnerships with internal departments like Private Housing Services, as well as external multi-agency networks.
• Maintains accurate casework records, showing strong administrative capability and the IT proficiency required to manage performance metrics and data reporting systems efficiently.
• Brings extensive experience working directly with vulnerable households in a front-line housing needs or local authority environment, managing cases through a trauma-informed lens.
• Holds a comprehensive understanding of inner-London housing market challenges, including Local Housing Allowance (LHA) frameworks, welfare reforms, and affordability metrics relevant to family placement

Closing date: Friday 20th November 2026 at 23:59

Brent Council values the diversity of its community and aims to have a workforce that reflects the people we serve. We welcome applications from all sections of the community and encourage applicants to complete the diversity survey section of the application.

We are committed to fostering an inclusive workplace where everyone is treated with dignity, respect and fairness. We expect all employees to demonstrate a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and to promote inclusive, non-discriminatory practices in their work. This commitment forms part of our recruitment process, and candidates may be assessed on their understanding of and ability to contribute to an inclusive working environment.

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role. This includes people with hidden disabilities, long-term health conditions, diagnoses and mental health conditions. We also guarantee an interview to care-experienced applicants who meet the essential criteria. Information shared for this purpose will be treated fairly and used only to confirm eligibility under these schemes.

To contact for reasonable adjustments, please contact [e-mail].

Brent has a positive approach to flexible working.

Job Description

Internal Transfer Form - This must be completed and attached to your application form to be considered for the internal transfer opportunity