Housing Support Worker

Permanent, full-time and part time post available
Location Swindon
Salary £22,509 – £24,775

Emerging Futures’ greatest resource is its people, so we also offer our employees generous annual leave, pension, employee assistance programme and other benefits.

As a Housing Support Worker, you will provide housing related support and recovery support for people who have a history of failed accommodation placement, substance and/or alcohol misuse, issues with mental health, criminality, and often challenging and negative behaviours. Working within a psychologically informed environment you will be responsible for case coordination of individuals residing in the project and the provision of both opportunistic and structured interventions.

Working with a blend of Housing First and harm reduction techniques, you will be assessing need, preparing tenancy support plans and supporting tenants to achieve their individual goals. Part of your role will include advocating for residents where appropriate, helping residents arrange and attend scheduled appointments, for example, GP, Probation, Job Centre, and substance misuse services.

This role is initially based in Swindon but you may be required to work in other areas of the county as the housing provision expands. Working flexibly on a rota basis, the role will involve covering evening shifts, waking night and weekends and public holidays.

This job is for you if…

• You are someone who is committed to our passion statement and shares in our belief in the inherent capacity and potential of all individuals, and that empowering individuals to support each other leads to positive change; not only for themselves, but also for their communities.
• You are passionate about improving the health and wellbeing of those experiencing homelessness and rough sleeping and can support complex individuals from first point of contact to resettling in their own home.
• You are fun, approachable, energetic, confident, warm, empathetic, ambitious, flexible, resilient, discreet, organised and professional.

What you will be doing:

• Providing housing and tenancy support to people who have a history of failed accommodation placement, substance and/or alcohol misuse, criminality and challenging behaviour.
• Working within Psychologically Informed Environments to case manage individuals residing in projects providing both opportunistic and structured interventions.
• Managing accommodation for individuals, enabling residents to access pathways to meet their more immediate needs before moving on to full independence, their own tenancies and meaningful activity.
• Supporting tenants to maintain their tenancy by providing hands on, practical help and advice across our network of shared, supported housing.
• Liaising with Housing Services to ensure benefit claims are submitted and processed efficiently and effectively.
• Collecting, recording and banking rent and other incomes received by tenants.
• Working with a blend of Housing First and harm reduction techniques, you will be assessing need, preparing tenancy support plans and supporting tenants to achieve their individual goals.

Some of the skills, knowledge and experience you will have

• Experience of housing management or working in a residential setting with those with complex needs including challenging and/or negative behaviour.
• An excellent understanding of boundaries, confidentiality, and risk.
• Experience of supporting individuals to initiate and sustain long term recovery and tenancy sustainment in the community.
• Ability to undertake accurate and comprehensive assessments of need, identifying levels of risk, recovery potential and to establish immediate and longer-term recovery goals.
• Experience of providing a range of evidence-based interventions to individuals affected by homelessness, substance misuse and/or offending.
• An in-depth understanding and knowledge of the harmful effects associated with rough sleeping, homelessness, drug and alcohol misuse and offending in relation to health, social welfare, housing, and personal relationships.
• IT skills including the ability to use Microsoft Office Applications.

How to apply

Please find attached job description and person specification. If you are interested in applying for this new and exciting role within Emerging Futures, please send your Application Form or CV along with a covering letter detailing why you are suitable for the role to James Lock – Service Manager

We would be grateful if you could complete the Equal Opportunities Form attached along with your Application Form to help monitor the effectiveness of our recruitment practices and assess the success of different advertising methods in attracting applications.

This information is separated from the application and used for statistical purposes only.  It will not be made available to anyone directly involved in the selection process.

If you would like to discuss the roles in more detail, please contact James on 07498 602181.

Anticipated interview dates are to be confirmed.