Housing Register Officer WCC624002

As a Housing Register Officer in our Housing Solutions and Homelessness service, you can make your own powerful contribution to people across Westminster. Making a direct impact at the heart of a resident-focused service, you'll help prevent homelessness by managing applications to the Council's Housing Register, supporting those in housing need to get safe, stable, sustainable accommodation. Your day-to-day will be varied and dynamic, and will include everything from assessing the eligibility of new applicants to liaising with healthcare professionals to coordinate medical assessments. Responsible for keeping residents and relevant parties informed on developments, you'll prepare decision notices and reports where necessary. Where applicants experience a change in circumstances, you'll conduct periodic reviews to ensure the Housing Register is kept accurate and up-to-date. Everything you do will put residents first, and you'll work to continuously improve your skillset to better serve Westminster's communities.

An established professional with good knowledge of safeguarding responsibilities and homelessness legislation, you'll be familiar with the following:

• The Housing Act 1996 (Part VII)
• The Domestic Abuse Act 2021
• The Localism Act 2011
• The Equalities Act 2010
• The Housing Allocation Scheme
• The Homelessness Reduction Act 2017
You might have some experience working in a customer-focused environment, and you'll have the communication and collaboration skills to work effectively with a wide range of residents, colleagues and partner organisations. On a personal level, you'll be an open, organised and empathetic individual passionate about improving outcomes for people experiencing homelessness. This is a fantastic opportunity to join a supportive, inclusive team putting residents first, and to supercharge your career in the process.

Housing Needs in Westminster City Council is a world of extraordinary stories. For Abbie, a Homelessness Officer, the work is often about stopping a crisis from happening at all This might mean negotiating with landlords, working through financial difficulties with residents, or finding practical solutions that allow people to remain in their homes. In one situation, Abbie worked with a resident who was at risk of losing their home after the rent became unaffordable and possession action had started. By working closely with the landlord, she took the time to understand what had driven the landlord to increase the rent and the residents' financial situation. Through careful negotiation, she was able to secure an affordable agreement that worked for both parties. The possession action was withdrawn and the resident was able to stay in their home. At Westminster, we understand that homelessness is multifaceted and caused by various factors, and addressing homelessness often goes beyond providing emergency accommodation - it requires an in-depth understanding of the root causes. This is why, alongside her negotiation work with the landlord, Abbie worked with officers across the department and the wider Council to help maximise the resident's income. For Abbie, cases like this are not only about securing housing in the interim, they are about ensuring that residents are also able to sustain their tenancies in the long-term. This kind of work requires persistence, judgement and empathy. Across Westminster, this is what our Housing Needs officers do every day: working with residents to turn difficult situations into new beginnings., Westminster is an amazing place. We are home to more than 200,000 residents from all backgrounds, over 50,000 vibrant and vital businesses and three-quarters-of-a-million people work in Westminster. Westminster City Council's strategy is to work towards a Fairer Westminster. A Fairer Westminster is one in which our communities are at the heart of our decision-making and help to determine the city's future. By working directly with our communities and other partners, we can build a more inclusive city that celebrates our diverse communities, and where residents, workers and visitors from all backgrounds will feel welcome and safe. At Westminster City Council, we pride ourselves on being an inclusive workplace and employer of choice. We encourage and welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that, at all levels, represents the communities we serve. We champion equality, diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, has a sense of belonging and is empowered to be their best, that is the Westminster Way. To find out more about how we do this visit https://www.westminster.gov.uk/health-and-social-care/public-health-strategy-policies-and-reports/equality-duties As a forward-thinking Council we appreciate that people work in different ways, therefore our staff benefit from working a range of flexible working patterns as well as Agile working.