Job Description

Why Lancaster?

We\'re an award-winning, kind and responsible council, and we\'re incredibly proud of our district and communities that reach from the coast to the mountains, including the historic City of Lancaster, Morecambe, Carnforth and many other beautiful places.

The Role

An exciting opportunity has arisen within the Housing Options Team to provide advice and assistance to clients who present to the Service as either homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. This post will focus on working with refugees to provide housing advice and to prevent homelessness through interventions. The key objective will be to prevent homelessness, and the post holders will be required to produce innovative solutions to help clients either to remain in their homes, or to help them find alternative accommodation.

Housing Advice Officers undertake homeless assessments and make legal decisions on the duties owed to clients presenting to the service. You will have experience of carrying out robust enquiries and competently deciding homelessness applications in accordance with Part VII Housing Act 1996 as amended 2002,2011), the code of guidance and case law or substantial experience of competently preventing homelessness with a particular focus on the private rented sector including knowledge of relevant housing laws and good practice.

The post holder will need to have the skills to interpret and apply homeless legislation, team-working skills, the ability to produce innovative solutions and be forward thinking to help develop the service. The post holder will be required to provide excellent outcomes for vulnerable clients, and high-quality customer service.

The post holder will have the ability to work under pressure in what can be a busy environment and have the ability to prioritise workloads and be able to work in a person-centred, holistic way.

A full current UK driving licence is essential, as the post holder will be required to carry out home visits. Reasonable adjustments can be made for those who are unable to drive due to a disability.

This position is fixed term for a period of 24 months. The hours of work for this position are 37 hours per week, working Monday to Friday 9.00 until 5.00 pm. The Council currently operates a Flexible Working Hours Scheme which applies to this post dependant on the operational needs of the service. This post is based at Morecambe Town Hall but the post holder will be required to operate from other Council sites within the District and there may be some co-location in partner organisation offices in the district.

The successful applicant will be subject to a basic clearance with the Disclosure and Barring Service.

You will be required to undertake Standby duties to cover out of hours work on a rota basis.

Our Benefits

Lancaster is a great place to work, as well as being part of something special you will also benefit from:

• Generous annual leave allowance
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• A range of employee benefits including discounted gym membership, cycle to work scheme, the opportunity to purchase extra time off, as well as discounts on days out, activities and retail.

Lancaster City Council has unanimously declared a climate emergency and will therefore work towards reducing carbon emissions to net-zero by 2030. As part of this role, you will be expected to participate and work towards reducing both carbon emissions and the impacts of climate change.

We are an Investor in People, Forces Friendly employer, and an Armed Forces Covenant committed organisation. We welcome applications from defence reserves and other members of our armed forces community. We are an inclusive employer and welcome applications from all parts of our community.

At Lancaster City Council we aim to have a diverse workforce that is representative of the district that we serve, and provide a working environment where each employee feels able to bring their whole self to work. We welcome applications from all sections of our community and provide several supportive and inclusive workplace networks and safe spaces for employees to feel connected. Our workplace wellbeing strategy drives our commitment to staff wellbeing initiatives and ensuring that our organisation is a great place to work for all.

We are a disability confident committed employer.

Please note that due to the volume of applications we receive we are unable to update all applicants individually. If you do not receive a response from us within 2 weeks of the closing date then your application will have unfortunately been unsuccessful in progressing to interview.

Further information on this vacancy

Lancaster City Council