Private Sector Access Officer

West Northamptonshire Council; Northampton; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 36,000; Full time

Job summary

West Northamptonshire Council is seeking an enthusiastic Housing Solutions professional to help shape and deliver the private rented sector leasing scheme and homelessness prevention initiatives. You will collaborate with landlords and agents to place customers in suitable accommodation and drive development of key schemes.

Applicants should have experience in housing management (temporary accommodation, supported housing or rented housing) and knowledge of PRS legislation; driving licence is

Qualifications

• Experience managing temporary accommodation, supported housing or rented housing.
• Knowledge of private rented sector legislation, policy and practice.
• Desirable training in Decent Homes Standard or Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

Responsibilities

• Build relationships with private landlords and letting agents to sustain the private sector leasing scheme.
• Develop opportunities for customers who are homeless or threatened with homelessness to secure accommodation.
• Develop and administer initiatives like landlord incentive schemes and homelessness prevention funds.
• Manage private rented sector processes with initiative.

Skills

Driving licence

Communication

Negotiation

Tenant relations

Job description

About the role

This is an exciting time to join our Housing Solutions service!

We are on a journey of shaping what the new Housing Solutions service looks like. West Northants is a great place to work, with a focus on career development, wellbeing, flexibility and support.

This is an opportunity for you to take the next step on your career journey in a supportive environment.

We have a 8 month fixed term contract position, and a permanent position available. Please state on your application which is your preference.

What will you be doing?

Working alongside our colleagues in the Private Rented Access Team, you'll build effective relationships with private landlords and letting agents to develop and maintain the private sector leasing scheme, and create opportunities for customers who are homeless or threatened with homelessness to secure accommodation in the private rented sector market.

You will develop and administer key initiatives to maximise the use of the private rented sector, including the landlord incentive scheme and the homelessness prevention fund.

Applicants must possess a valid driving licence and access to a car.

About you

You don't need experience across all aspects of the job as that will form part of your development journey, but you will need experience of managing temporary accommodation, supported housing or rented housing and knowledge of private rented sector legislation, policy and practice, as this is central to the role.

We would be particularly interested in hearing from you if you have training or experience in the application of the Decent Homes Standard or the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

You will have previous experience of using your excellent communication skills to negotiate and communicate with a wide range of people, including customers, colleagues, landlords, letting agents and other partnership agencies.

You will be able to smoothly manage the private rented sector processes whilst being able use your own initiative to 'think outside of the box'.

Our benefits

You can also see our full list of employee benefits on our careers site here: Why you should work for us | West Northamptonshire Council.

About us

At West Northants Council, it's about our people. People who thrive with ambition, bubble with new ideas, demand better ways of working, caring about every detail, and who never shy away from a challenge. Our culture is a gateway for new experiences. A place to forge new opportunities. To empower you in your career and unite you with like-minded people.

Our vision is 'to make West Northants a great place to live, work, visit and thrive'. We truly stand by this and work hard every day to make this a reality. Our corporate values, THRIVE, stand for: Trust, High Performance, Respect, Innovate and Empower, they underpin everything we do and how we deliver services.

We are committed to ensuring diversity, equality, equity, and inclusion is woven into the fabric of WNC and everything we do, to enable all colleagues to develop and maximize their full potential. We are a disability confident employer, a member of the Armed Forces Covenant, and a Care Leaver Covenant partner

The following film was created by us to communicate our intentions - watch WNC colleagues explain what DEI means to us.

If you need additional support or reasonable adjustments during the application process, including needing the job description in another format or language, please email [e-mail] for support.

Please note we reserve the right to close the advert early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications, so we recommend applying as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

West Northants Council, where careers thrive.