Temporary Accommodation Visiting Officer

London Borough of Bexley; Bexleyheath; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

The London Borough of Bexley is seeking an experienced housing professional to support vulnerable households with homelessness, temporary accommodation, tenancy sustainment and welfare benefits. The role involves frequent face-to-face engagement with residents across the borough and requires reliable transport.

You will work as part of the Housing Options team, acting as a negotiator between landlords and tenants to resolve tenancy issues, ensuring compliance with legislation and facilitating

Responsibilities

• Liaise with landlords and tenants experiencing tenancy difficulties, acting as a negotiator or mediator to resolve contractual issues.
• Ensure compliance with tenancy agreements and applicable legal guidance to sustain tenancies.
• Stay updated on welfare reforms, housing policy changes, and state benefits affecting the service area.
• Collaborate with Housing Options team to provide a streamlined service for temporary accommodation residents.
• Respond to service demands with flexibility and perform multiple home visits as required.
• Be office-based at least 2 days per week when not on the road.

Skills

Negotiation

Communication

Teamwork

Relationship building

Job description

About The Role

We are seeking an experienced and proactive housing professional with a strong understanding of homelessness, temporary accommodation, tenancy sustainment and welfare benefits. The successful candidate will be committed to supporting vulnerable households to achieve independent living and secure long term housing solutions. As the role involves frequent face to face engagement with residents across the borough, candidates must have access to reliable transport and be able to undertake multiple home and accommodation visits each day, often at short notice, responding flexibly to service demands and urgent customer needs.

You will be an energetic and an excellent communicator who works as part of a team that always seeks to understand first and create simple ways to keep people informed about things that are important to them.
You will apply huge personal integrity coupled with resilience to be part of a team that is known for delivering and keeping its promises.

You will act as the first point of contact for landlords and tenants who are experiencing difficulties in sustaining tenancies, including acting as a negotiator and or mediator between disputing parties to resolve contractual issues to ensure compliance with the legal framework to sustain tenancies.

You will be responsible for ensuring all landlords and tenants comply with their respective contractual agreements.
You will understand and keep up to date with local and national policies affected by legislation regarding welfare reforms and housing as well as changes in state benefits, landlord and tenant law and other relevant legislation and guidance relating to the service area.

You will liaise with colleagues within the team and the wider Housing Options service to provide a stream lined and seamless service to customers in temporary accommodation to ensure a smooth transition into the private rented sector or social housing.

Please note that the successful candidate will be required to be office based at least 2 days each week when not on the road.

For the full list of essential and desirable criteria for this role then please refer to the Person Specification within the Job Description attached.

Appointment to this post will be subject to the outcome of an Enhanced Disclosure obtained through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

Interviews dates to be confirmed.

About Us

Bexley is a vibrant and diverse outer London Borough nestled in the Thames Gateway between London and Kent which means it combines the perfect blend of city vibe and the tranquillity of Kent. It's got award-winning parks, open spaces, and heritage sites. The borough has excellent transport connections, including the Elizabeth Line and proximity to the M25. Bexley offers fantastic amenities such as libraries, leisure centres, and shopping areas. Our borough is also home to numerous primary and secondary schools, as well as further education institutions.

Our Offer to you

We will offer you in return a package that includes a competitive salary, coaching and mentoring programmes, an excellent pension scheme and generous annual leave plus bank holidays. For more information on the benefits package on offer please refer to the Candidate Information document attached.

Recruitment Information

As a disability confident employer Bexley welcomes applications from people with all disabilities, including hidden disabilities and mental health conditions. We will interview any disabled applicant who meets the minimum criteria. If you require reasonable adjustments to be made to any part of the recruitment process due to your disability, please contact us on [e-mail]

This role may be available as a development opportunity through secondment for the Council's existing employees. The Council's Secondment Scheme can be found here. If this option is of interest, please contact the recruiting manager.

We reserve the right to close adverts earlier than the closing date.