Lead Officer for Housing Options and Outreach

Lead Officer for Housing Options and Outreach

Pay & Contract

Salary - £45,718.00 to £50,788.00

Permanent/Full Time

Closing date: 26 May 2025

Interview date: 3 June 2025 - interviews will be in person at Winchester City Council City Offices

To apply, please click the 'apply' button above or send your CV and covering letter.

Could you support positive change in people’s lives?

Do you have experience implementing the Homeless Reduction Act 2017 and leading a team of front-line Housing Options and Outreach Officers?

We are looking for an enthusiastic and resilient, person to join the Housing Options Team as the Lead Officer for Housing Options and Outreach team. The role will predominantly focus on supporting our residents who have or will soon becoming homeless.

This role will challenge you every day to use your excellent customer service and problem-solving skills within a supportive and motivated team and wider service.

If you can:

• Help to motivate and guide the team to manage homeless approaches and exit plans for support and accommodation.
• Communicate effectively with clients, face to face and over the phone to maximise engagement and positive housing and support outcomes.
• Work with a varied workload and be able to juggle ever changing priorities.
• Represent Strategic Housing at case conferences and multi-agency meetings.
• Work in partnership with relevant agencies to ensure that we offer holistic support for clients to access and maintain accommodation.
• Have experience in working with the Homelessness Reduction Act and proactively work to prevent and relieve homelessness including full housing needs assessments and personalised housing plans.
• Undertake management responsibilities for 5 Housing options officers and 1 Outreach worker.
• Assist in the delivery of and development of homelessness prevention pathways, homeless forum and the prevention homelessness and rough sleeping strategy.
• Assist in the delivery of the Renters Rights Bill and the Supported Housing reform programme.
• Oversee the role of the council’s outreach worker, ensuring that any sleeping rough is rare, brief and non-recurrent and lead on the delivery of SWEP.

Then we want to hear from you!

In return, we offer an excellent package of benefits including:

• Hybrid-working (50% in the office, 50% at home - after first 3 weeks in office)

• Employer paid health cash plan
• Salary sacrifice scheme for cars and bikes
• 26 days annual leave per year rising to 33 days - dependent on length of service
• 13 days additional flexi leave per year (subject to operational requirements)
• Option to buy up to 5 days additional annual leave
• Free parking (during work hours) at any Winchester Park and Ride
• Membership to the Local Government Pension Scheme
• Discounts at a range of major high street brands and the two leisure centres in the district
• Season Ticket loans
• Excellent working environment
• Support for continuous professional development

Are you as passionate about housing as we are? Please read the job description and person specification and apply now!