Housing Officer – Housing Options

Cyngor Sir Ceredigion County Council; Aberystwyth; Hybrid; GBP 28,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in Aberystwyth is looking for a Housing Officer to join their Housing Service. This role focuses on preventing homelessness and providing housing advice. Candidates must have a minimum of 3 years experience in a similar role and fluency in Welsh is essential. The successful applicant will benefit from flexible working, comprehensive employee benefits, and opportunities for career development.

Benefits

Flexible working

Competitive annual leave allowance

Enhanced family benefits

Lifestyle savings

Health and wellbeing packages

Generous employer pension scheme

Cycle to work scheme

Learning and development

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience in a housing or homelessness role.
• Ability to respond calmly in emergencies and manage conflicting priorities.
• Strong working knowledge of public and private sector housing policy.

Responsibilities

• Provide support and advice to prevent homelessness.
• Assess service users' housing and support needs.
• Determine eligibility according to the Housing Act 2014.

Skills

Crisis management

Relationship building

Knowledge of housing legislation

Education

Fluency in Welsh

Degree in relevant field

Job description

We operate a bilingual policy. All applicants are invited to apply in Welsh, any application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application made in English.

We are looking to recruit a Housing Officer – Housing Options to join our Housing Service on a permanent, full time basis.

To deal with a diverse range of complex situations and problems in line with the statutory requirements under Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014.

Take appropriate action to prevent or relieve homelessness and develop practical solutions by providing timely interventions, comprehensive housing advice, information and advocacy.

As and when homelessness cannot be prevented, investigate and determine homelessness applications in accordance with the legislation taking account relevant case law.

On a day to day basis you will:

• work with service users to provide focused support, advice and assistance to prevent homelessness on a range of issues
• determine eligibility in accordance with the Housing Act 2014
• assess and determine service users’ housing and support needs
• identify and arrange suitable interim accommodation in conjunction with the Housing Officer – Temporary Accommodation

We are looking to recruit an individual:

• with minimum 3 years’ experience of working in a similar environment /client group along with experience and a working knowledge of homelessness / housing options
• able to build effective working relationships within and outside of the service
• ability to react in an emergency in a calm manner and deal with daily conflicting work priorities
• good working knowledge of housing legislation, case work and policy relating to the public and private sector

In addition to the above, we require an individual with a degree of fluency in the Welsh language. A successful applicant without the required Welsh language skill will be fully supported to reach the desired standard within two years of appointment.

Our offer to you

We are committed to developing our people and will not only provide support to enable you to quickly and confidently take ownership of this role’s key areas of responsibility but in addition, we are committed to supporting your development in order that you can progress your career with us.

In exchange for your skills and commitment we will offer you a range of employee benefits including flexible working, competitive annual leave allowance, enhanced family benefits, lifestyle savings and employee health and wellbeing packages.

More information about our wide-ranging employee benefits can be found here.

We believe work-life balance is very important. To support you in achieving this, you will have access to the following discretionary benefits:

• Hybrid Working: Subject to certain conditions being met, you may choose to work from home or in an office location. Due to the nature of the role, it will be necessary for you to travel within Ceredigion on a regular basis.
• Flexi-time: Hours may be worked within a defined bandwidth, Monday to Friday, subject to service needs.

Note: We reserve the right to extend the application closing date.

What we offer

• Work-life balance
• Lifestyle savings scheme
• Generous employer pension scheme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Learning and development

Where you'll work

Porth Cymorth Cynnar – Community Wellbeing and Learning

We provide early help, prevention and intervention services to a range of groups and individuals across the County. Our aim is to identify need and offer support before issues and concerns become too great and more formal intervention is needed. Our key functions include:

• Lifelong Learning and Skills
• Leisure & Wellbeing
• Early Intervention Services
• Support and Prevention Services
• Ceredigion Pupil Referral Unit

Canolfan Rheidol Our Aberystwyth office, Canolfan Rheidol is an award winning building. The office, with its open plan design, provides an excellent space for collaborative working.
Read more Aberystwyth Aberystwyth is a lively university town, seaside resort complete with promenade and pier, and the setting of atmospheric TV drama Hinterland.
Read more