Housing Repairs Administrator

Thorngate; Gosport; Hybrid; GBP 21,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

Thorngate in Gosport is seeking a diligent Housing Repairs Administrator to provide administrative, scheduling and operational support to the housing repairs and maintenance service, ensuring residents receive a responsive, reliable and customer-focused repairs service.

You will coordinate and schedule responsive and routine maintenance, manage diaries and repair records, communicate with residents, colleagues and contractors, and monitor jobs from report to completion.

Responsibilities

• Receive, record and process requests for responsive and routine repairs, ensuring information is accurate and sufficiently detailed for the work to be undertaken.
• Raise repair orders and schedule appointments using the organisation’s housing, repairs and/or workforce scheduling systems.
• Manage operatives’ diaries, allocating work according to priority, geographical location, availability, trade skills and required completion times.
• Schedule emergency, urgent and routine repairs appropriately and rearrange workloads when priorities change.
• Make effective use of available operative capacity and identify opportunities to reduce unnecessary travel, missed appointments and unproductive time.
• Monitor outstanding jobs and take appropriate action to help ensure repairs are completed within agreed service standards and timescales.
• Arrange follow-on works, additional appointments, contractor visits and other actions necessary to bring repairs to completion.
• Update, close and maintain repair orders and associated records accurately and promptly.
• Support the coordination of responsive repairs, void works, communal repairs and other maintenance activity as required.
• Act as a key point of contact for residents regarding repair appointments and the progress of maintenance work.
• Contact residents to arrange and confirm appointments and provide clear information about planned attendance.
• Keep residents informed where appointments or works need to change and arrange alternatives promptly.
• Respond professionally and constructively to enquiries, concerns and complaints, resolving straightforward issues and escalating matters where necessary.
• Recognise the needs of vulnerable residents and ensure relevant information is communicated appropriately to colleagues and operatives.
• Use practical maintenance knowledge to help identify the nature of reported repairs and ensure work is allocated to an appropriate operative or contractor.
• Provide operatives with clear and relevant information to help them arrive prepared for the work required.
• Liaise with maintenance colleagues regarding access, materials, equipment, follow-on works and other operational requirements.
• Where required, provide practical assistance to colleagues undertaking maintenance and repair work, provided the activity is within the postholder’s skills, experience and competence.
• Support straightforward maintenance activities appropriate to the role when operational circumstances require additional assistance.
• Recognise work requiring a qualified or specialist trade and ensure it is referred appropriately rather than undertaking work outside the postholder’s competence.
• Follow all relevant health and safety procedures when supporting practical maintenance activities.
• Use housing management, repairs, scheduling and other IT systems confidently as an integral part of the role.
• Maintain accurate electronic records of repairs, appointments, communications, operative activity and job outcomes.
• Use Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Word and Excel, effectively.
• Develop familiarity with new systems and digital processes and use technology to improve the efficiency of the repairs service.
• Produce routine information and reports relating to workloads, outstanding repairs, appointments, completion performance and other service measures as required.
• Maintain appropriate standards of data quality, confidentiality and information security.
• Work closely and constructively with maintenance operatives, housing colleagues, contractors and other teams to provide a coordinated service to residents.
• Communicate changes in priorities, appointments and workloads promptly so colleagues have the information needed to deliver their work effectively.
• Assist colleagues during periods of high workload and contribute flexibly to the effective operation of the wider repairs and maintenance team.
• Share relevant information and practical knowledge with colleagues and contribute to resolving day-to-day operational problems.
• Participate positively in team meetings and service improvement activity.
• Build effective working relationships with contractors and suppliers where appropriate.
• Work within agreed repair priorities, service standards, procedures and performance targets.
• Help monitor appointments, overdue repairs, outstanding works and jobs requiring further action.
• Escalate recurring problems, health and safety concerns, safeguarding concerns and other service risks appropriately.
• Ensure repair and maintenance information is recorded accurately to support performance monitoring and effective service management.
• Contribute ideas for improving scheduling, administration, resident communication and the overall efficiency of the repairs service.
• Follow organisational policies and procedures relating to health and safety, safeguarding, equality and diversity, data protection and customer service.

Job description

Each job role requires different attributes. Download our person specification sheet to find essential and desirable qualities for each role.

To provide effective administrative, scheduling and operational support to the housing repairs and maintenance service, helping to ensure that residents receive a responsive, reliable and customer-focused repairs service.

The Housing Repairs Administrator will coordinate and schedule responsive and routine maintenance work, manage operative diaries and repair records, communicate with residents, colleagues and contractors, and monitor jobs from initial report through to completion.

The postholder will have previous practical maintenance experience and a sound understanding of property repairs. While administration and scheduling form the core of the role, the postholder will also be expected, when reasonably required, to provide practical assistance with maintenance jobs appropriate to their skills, experience and competence.

Key Responsibilities

Repairs Administration and Scheduling

• Receive, record and process requests for responsive and routine repairs, ensuring information is accurate and sufficiently detailed for the work to be undertaken.
• Raise repair orders and schedule appointments using the organisation’s housing, repairs and/or workforce scheduling systems.
• Manage operatives’ diaries, allocating work according to priority, geographical location, availability, trade skills and required completion times.
• Schedule emergency, urgent and routine repairs appropriately and rearrange workloads when priorities change.
• Make effective use of available operative capacity and identify opportunities to reduce unnecessary travel, missed appointments and unproductive time.
• Monitor outstanding jobs and take appropriate action to help ensure repairs are completed within agreed service standards and timescales.
• Arrange follow-on works, additional appointments, contractor visits and other actions necessary to bring repairs to completion.
• Update, close and maintain repair orders and associated records accurately and promptly.
• Support the coordination of responsive repairs, void works, communal repairs and other maintenance activity as required.

Resident and Customer Service

• Act as a key point of contact for residents regarding repair appointments and the progress of maintenance work.
• Contact residents to arrange and confirm appointments and provide clear information about planned attendance.
• Keep residents informed where appointments or works need to change and arrange alternatives promptly.
• Respond professionally and constructively to enquiries, concerns and complaints, resolving straightforward issues and escalating matters where necessary.
• Recognise the needs of vulnerable residents and ensure relevant information is communicated appropriately to colleagues and operatives.

Maintenance and Operational Support

• Use practical maintenance knowledge to help identify the nature of reported repairs and ensure work is allocated to an appropriate operative or contractor.
• Provide operatives with clear and relevant information to help them arrive prepared for the work required.
• Liaise with maintenance colleagues regarding access, materials, equipment, follow-on works and other operational requirements.
• Where required, provide practical assistance to colleagues undertaking maintenance and repair work, provided the activity is within the postholder’s skills, experience, training and competence.
• Support straightforward maintenance activities appropriate to the role when operational circumstances require additional assistance.
• Recognise work requiring a qualified or specialist trade and ensure it is referred appropriately rather than undertaking work outside the postholder’s competence.
• Follow all relevant health and safety procedures when supporting practical maintenance activities.

IT, Systems and Records

• Use housing management, repairs, scheduling and other IT systems confidently as an integral part of the role.
• Maintain accurate electronic records of repairs, appointments, communications, operative activity and job outcomes.
• Use Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Word and Excel, effectively.
• Develop familiarity with new systems and digital processes and use technology to improve the efficiency of the repairs service.
• Produce routine information and reports relating to workloads, outstanding repairs, appointments, completion performance and other service measures as required.
• Maintain appropriate standards of data quality, confidentiality and information security.

Team and Collaborative Working

• Work closely and constructively with maintenance operatives, housing colleagues, contractors and other teams to provide a coordinated service to residents.
• Communicate changes in priorities, appointments and workloads promptly so colleagues have the information needed to deliver their work effectively.
• Assist colleagues during periods of high workload and contribute flexibly to the effective operation of the wider repairs and maintenance team.
• Share relevant information and practical knowledge with colleagues and contribute to resolving day-to-day operational problems.
• Participate positively in team meetings and service improvement activity.
• Build effective working relationships with contractors and suppliers where appropriate.

Performance and Compliance

• Work within agreed repair priorities, service standards, procedures and performance targets.
• Help monitor appointments, overdue repairs, outstanding works and jobs requiring further action.
• Escalate recurring problems, significant delays, health and safety concerns, safeguarding concerns and other service risks appropriately.
• Ensure repair and maintenance information is recorded accurately to support performance monitoring and effective service management.
• Contribute ideas for improving scheduling, administration, resident communication and the overall efficiency of the repairs service.
• Follow organisational policies and procedures relating to health and safety, safeguarding, equality and diversity, data protection and customer service.

Scope of Role

This is a varied role combining repairs administration, customer contact, scheduling and practical maintenance knowledge. The majority of the postholder’s time will normally be spent coordinating and administering the repairs service; however, the postholder must be comfortable working in a maintenance environment and providing appropriate hands‑on assistance when operationally required.

The postholder is not expected to undertake specialist or regulated trade work for which they are not appropriately trained, qualified or competent.

General

The postholder will be expected to undertake other reasonable duties consistent with the purpose and level of the role and to work flexibly to support the effective delivery of the housing repairs and maintenance service.