Lettings Officer

Lettings Officer/Co-Ordinator

Office Location: Northampton (NN5)
Working Pattern: Office-based, Monday-Friday
Pay Rate: £16.50 per hour

Requirements:
Must have a full driving licence and use a car for employment

Purpose of the Role: To provide a customer-focused, well-informed Housing Register service to the public via a Choice-Based Lettings Scheme.

Key Responsibilities:

• Property Advertising: You'll be responsible for advertising all available affordable housing properties by Northampton Borough Council, Housing Associations, and Private Homeowners in Northampton.
• Applicant Shortlisting: You will shortlist applicants for all lettings covering Council, Housing Association, and Private Homeowner properties. On average, this involves around 1,300 lettings each year.
• Scheme Administration: You'll administer the Council's Choice Based Lettings Scheme in line with current legislation, procedures, and best practice. This involves updating customer applications on the IBS IT system, offering accommodation, producing performance reports, and ensuring properties are correctly advertised.
• Nomination Management: You will shortlist applicants for nomination to properties held by Registered Social Homeowners, ensuring nomination rights are maximised. You'll also nominate households to other providers, such as hostels, to meet their housing needs.
• Scheme Development: You'll contribute to the development and marketing of the Council's Choice Based Lettings scheme.
• Void Management: You'll play a key role in controlling the Council's performance on void management, aiming to maintain top-quartile performance in this area.
• Performance Reporting: You will produce key performance management information regularly to demonstrate the service's effectiveness and operational efficiency to all partners.
• Invoice Generation: You'll be responsible for raising invoices for Registered Social Homeowner (RSL) partners for the adverts.

Main Areas of Work:

• Property Marketing Execution: Ensure all available vacant properties for the scheme are marketed to clients in the prescribed format, at the right time, and via designated media (e.g., website/local press).
• Direct Lets Administration: Administer any approved direct lets that fall outside the Choice-Based system, following policy guidelines.
• Allocations & Nominations Process: Shortlist applicants and ensure allocations/nominations are made to housing providers for vacancies in line with policies, practices, and targets. You'll also update and maintain records on allocations/nominations and associated applications.
• Void Period Minimisation: Ensure properties are correctly advertised, and the void period is always kept to a minimum.
• Internal Collaboration: Liaise regularly with Northampton Borough Council's Maintenance/Voids and Housing Management Teams to ensure properties are advertised and let according to Council policies and procedures.
• Data Analysis & Monitoring: Obtain and analyse lettings returns from Housing Associations and CORE data, comparing them with Council records to ensure appropriate nomination rights are received. You'll highlight any concerns to the Rehousing Team Leader and attend operations and monitoring meetings with Housing Associations as requested.
• Meeting Attendance: Attend required meetings, including regular sessions with other sections, to check on household movements, offer refusals, and changes in homeless duty. This ensures that information on applicants across all housing needs databases is current, allowing for record updates and necessary follow-up actions.
• Statistical Data & Monitoring: Collate and provide statistical data as requested for the service area. You'll also monitor service plans and equality plans as directed.
• Equality Impact Assessments: Conduct regular Equality Impact Assessments to ensure customers are being rehoused in line with the Borough's housing needs and profile.
• Service Improvement Projects: Work on specific projects to improve service provision for those in housing need, introducing practice changes that align with meeting housing needs and delivering the Council's Allocation Policies and Homelessness and other related strategies.
• Correspondence & Complaints Management: Respond to correspondence, complaints, and enquiries from individuals/agencies related to the service area. You'll maintain computerised correspondence and medical assessment logs, conducting fortnightly reviews.
• External Forum Participation: Attend Forums and Panels with outside agencies as requested, including Social Services, Mental Health Resettlement Panels, and private homeowners.

Essential Knowledge, Skills & Experience:

• Casework Expertise: Proven experience of casework, including fully assessing applications under the terms of Part VI Housing Act 1996 (as amended).
• Housing Law Knowledge: An understanding and working knowledge of Part VI, related case law and the Code of Guidance.
• Homelessness Prevention Understanding: An understanding of the Homelessness Prevention agenda and how this is interpreted from strategy to service delivery.
• System Proficiency: Experience of operational duties within a CBL and/or IBS system.
• Driving Requirement: Have a full driving licence and use of a car for employment.
• Communication Skills: Proficient at communicating, both verbally and in writing, with a wide range of audiences, including clients, colleagues, and other voluntary and statutory employees and members.
• Report Writing: Ability to prepare and interpret documentation and write clear and concise reports.

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