Review Officer – Housing (PO2)

Job Description

Job Category : Housing
Location : Enfield, Enfield Council
Hours Per Week : 35.00
Start Date : Immediate Start
Start Time :09:00
End Time : 17:30
Salary: £24.24
General duties of a Review Officer with excellent knowledge and practical application of the law. Experience of carrying out robust enquiries and sound decision making is essential. Candidates must have experience of dealing with solicitors and other advocates representing clients requesting reviews under section 202 of the Housing Act.

Purpose of the Role:

To carry out the statutory function of reviewing all homeless decisions, offers of accommodation, housing register assessments, where a review is requested.

To ensure that statutory reviews are carried out within the statutory time limits.

To liaise with the Legal Department and Head of Service to defend legal challenges whether that is from judicial review proceedings or Section 204 Housing Act 2004 appeal to the County Court.

In liaison with Head of Service to develop procedures and guidelines for officers.

To develop training programs and train staff in relation to changes in legislation/caselaw/regulations

To ensure that complaints, MP, Member & solicitor enquiries are logged and responded to within target timeframes

Accountabilities
• To ensure that all housing reviews and appeals (housing register, homelessness decisions, offers of permanent and temporary accommodation), are logged, monitored, and carried out efficiently, and within prescribed time limits

• To be responsible for the recruitment of staff, appraisals, disciplinary issues, sickness monitoring, staff training and development and monitoring staff workloads to build and maintain an effective workforce capable of meeting its objectives

• Supervise an officer in respect of preparing the budget return for the service, and logging and monitoring complaints, members, MP & Solicitor enquiries.

• To liaise with the Allocations Team, Accommodation Services, and the Housing Options & Advice Team to ensure that all relevant information has been gathered to address the requests for reviews of homeless and housing register assessments, and permanent and temporary accommodation offers.

• To have regular meetings with the council’s Legal Department in order to ensure that Section 204 appeals and judicial review proceedings are defended and to ensure that deadlines are met for witness statements and skeleton arguments in defence of County Court or High Court appeals.

• To ensure that legal costs are minimised in relation to threatened/actual court action.

• To monitor and prepare reports for the Head of Service and members, on performance in respect of decision reviews and court cases.

• To be responsible for developing procedures, guidelines and model letter templates, in relation to taking and processing applications. To take account of good practice initiatives developed by other local authorities and the Communities & Local Govt. Offices.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES (You are not restricted to 2 criteria for each category)
Job Specifics – Skills, Experience
(In this section you should list between 4 and a maximum of 8 essential recruitment and selection criteria and 2 desirable criteria). The information you provide in this section will be used in the recruitment application process to assess the suitability of job applicants.

Essential:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Good standard of education

Desirable:
• Experience in researching, interpreting and explaining complex legislation and policy.
• Experience of developing and delivering training, presentations etc.
• Experience of successfully dealing with members, MPs enquiries and complex solicitors enquiries etc.
• Experience of Managing Staff

Competencies*:

Please choose a maximum of 6 most important competencies for the role from either the Staff Competency Framework (up to SO2) Leadership Competency Framework (PO1 and above) and list here in ranked order. Candidates will be asked to address these when making their application.

1. Self confidence 4.Working in Partnership
2. Personal Integrity 5.Intellectual Adaptability

3. Communication & Influence 6.Political Awareness
Knowledge*

• 1. Highly detailed knowledge of current and emerging housing legislation and case law related to housing advice issues including private sector landlord and tenant law, security of tenure, homelessness law, housing benefit and other welfare benefit regulations, possession proceedings in the county court including court procedure rules, Community legal Services funding rules etc.

• 2. Detailed knowledge of the legal challenges local authorities
 may face and of the procedures for dealing with them, for
 example; the judicial review process, county court appeals,
 court of appeal hearings, court attendance, liaising with the
 council’s Legal Team and barristers.