Temporary Accommodation Support Officer

City of Wolverhampton Council; Wolverhampton; Hybrid; GBP 28,000 - 34,000; Full time

Job summary

City of Wolverhampton Council is seeking a Temporary Accommodation Support Officer to assist residents in temporary accommodation, guiding them on responsibilities and next steps, and coordinating with partners to move households towards settled housing. The role requires empathy, strong communication, and the ability to manage a caseload in a busy environment.

The post supports the Homelessness and Accommodation Pathways service, offers flexible work options with home-working plus at least two

Qualifications

• Experience of working in housing, homelessness, temporary accommodation, supported housing, tenancy sustainment, or resident-facing support.
• Understanding of homelessness issues including affordability, safeguarding, trauma, health and wellbeing.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills with residents, colleagues and partners.
• Ability to manage a caseload, prioritise demands, keep accurate records and follow safeguarding and risk procedures.
• Understanding of homelessness duties, equality, safeguarding, confidentiality and person-centred support.
• Practical, resilient and solution-focused, able to work independently and in busy environments.
• Commitment to supporting vulnerable households and helping move on from temporary accommodation.

Responsibilities

• Provide practical support, guidance and signposting to households in temporary accommodation.
• Help residents understand occupancy responsibilities, placement conditions and next steps.
• Identify support needs, risks and barriers and work with partners to address them.
• Support engagement with housing options, benefits, health, social care, employment and education services.
• Maintain accurate support records, monitor engagement and escalate safeguarding concerns.
• Maintain calm, compassionate and professional approach while supporting households.

Skills

Communication skills

Empathy

Interpersonal skills

Caseload management

Job description

Temporary AccommodationSupportOfficer

Salary - Grade 6

Hours - 37

Contract type - full time, permanent

Work Style -Flexible: working from home with a minimum of 2 days in a council location,

Are you passionate about supporting households in temporary accommodation to stabilise their housing situation and move towards settled accommodation? Do you have strong communication skills, empathy and the ability to work with residents who may be experiencing housing crisis, uncertainty or complex personal circumstances?

We are seeking a committed and organised Temporary Accommodation Support Officer to join our Homelessness and Accommodation Pathways service. This is a key role supporting households living in temporary accommodation, helping residents understand their responsibilities, access appropriate advice and support, and take positive steps towards move-on.

About the Role

As a Temporary Accommodation Support Officer, you will work directly with residents placed in temporary accommodation, providing practical support, guidance and signposting to help them sustain their placement and prepare for longer-term housing options. You will work closely with colleagues, accommodation providers and partner agencies to identify risks, respond to issues and support positive outcomes for households.

Providing practicalsupport and guidance to households living in temporary accommodation.

Helping residentsunderstand their occupancy responsibilities, placement conditions and next steps.

Identifying support needs, risks and barriers to move-on, and working with colleagues and partner agencies to address them.

Supporting residents to engage with housing options, benefits, health, social care, employment, education and specialist support services where appropriate.

Maintaining accurate support records, monitoring resident engagement and escalating concerns in line with safeguarding and service procedures.

The role will involve regular contact with households who may be experiencing distress, uncertainty or complex needs. You will need to be calm, compassionate and professional, with the ability to build trust, maintain clear boundaries and work with residents to reduce risks, sustain placements and support progress towards settled accommodation.

About You

We are looking for someone who can bring:

Experience of working in housing, homelessness, temporary accommodation, supported housing, tenancy sustainment, advice services or another resident-facing support role.

A good understanding of the issues affecting households experiencing homelessness, including affordability, safeguarding, trauma, health, wellbeing and barriers to accessing settled accommodation.

Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to work constructively with residents, colleagues, accommodation providers and partner agencies.

The ability to manage a caseload, prioritise competing demands, keep accurate records and follow safeguarding and risk management procedures.

An understanding of homelessness duties, equality and diversity, safeguarding, confidentiality and the importance of person-centred support.

A practical, resilient and solution-focused approach, with confidence in working independently, visiting residents and responding to issues in a busy operational environment.

A commitment to supporting vulnerable households, improving resident experience and helping people move on from temporary accommodation wherever possible.

At City of Wolverhampton Council, we are committed to preventing homelessness, improving housing outcomes and ensuring residents are treated with dignity and respect. You will join a busy, supportive and ambitious service where your work will make a direct difference to households in housing need.

This role is central to ensuring that households are placed into temporary accommodation safely, efficiently and appropriately, while supporting the Council to make best use of available accommodation and reduce unnecessary disruption for residents.

This post is subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Our working arrangements

All council roles are allocated to either a fixed, field or flexible work style. Some roles are agile which enable and empower employees to maximise their performance and productivity, whilst maintaining a healthy work life balance. Roles with a fixed workstyle work in a fixed permanent council location. Roles with a field workstyle are usually allocated where employees are required to be out working in the community with a minimum requirement for 'touch down' space at any council location. Roles with a flexible workstyle have a flexible base location to meet the needs of the business and employees can work from a mixture of home or any council office, partner/client, or external location, as required to meet service requirements.

Please refer to the Job Description for further information on the workstyle assigned to the role you are applying for.

Diversity

We are committed to building a workforce that is reflective of the diverse community we serve. We want to attract the best applications from people of all backgrounds and underrepresented groups because we strongly believe in adding value through diversity, inclusion, and equality. Our employees enable us to deliver services that are accessible, inclusive, and reflective of Wolverhampton residents.

Our status as a Disability Confident Employer showcases our commitment to people with disabilities or health conditions, advocating for their opportunities and potential.

We've received the Stonewall Gold Award, emphasising our dedication to the LGBT+ community by nurturing an inspiring, inclusive, and equal workplace.

As part of our commitment as a Disability Confident employer, a Gold Award Armed Forces employer and our commitment to supporting care leavers - we offer a guaranteed interview as long as your application meets the essential criteria for the post.

We encourage, inspire and value an inclusive culture here at the council where employees have ... we have four staff equality forums for employees to join. These help to ensure our employees have a voice, they feel empowered to speak up and where everyone is treated with respect - Learn more about the staff equality forums here

Recruitment of Ex-Offenders

We arecommittedto the fair treatment of all our employees, potential employees, or users of our service regardless of offending background. The Council uses the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for any vacancies that require a DBS check to obtain information about applicants to assess their suitability for employment in positions of trust. We do not discriminate unfairly against anyindividualon the basis of a conviction or any other information revealed as a result of a DBS disclosure -

Employment Information & Support

If you are considering applying for an apprenticeship or a role where the salary is (Grade 2-5), and would like to visit us to learn about the application, interview process and what it is like to work for the council,

Attached documents

Temporary Accommadation Support Officer JDPS.pdf