Housing Support Officer – Rough Sleepers (Gr F)

Job Description

Job Title : Housing Support Officer – Rough Sleepers (Gr F)
Job Category : Housing
Location : Royal Borough of Kingston
Hours Per Week : 36.00
Start Date : Immediate Start
Start Time : 09:00
End Time : 17:00
Salary: £16.74

Delivery
● To deliver all aspects of an effective resettlement & support service to vulnerable
service users, including former rough sleepers in accordance with contract
requirements, relevant legislation and best practice.
● To assist the Rough Sleeping Coordinator and Housing Support Manager with all
aspects of service planning, policy support and administration.
● To provide specialist advice to colleagues within the Council with regards to support
services for vulnerable people and the needs of service users and to provide advice
on the impact of legislative change
● Ensure adherence to performance targets and to provide statistics for the same.
● To contribute to the joint review and/or planning of protocols, services and supported
accommodation relating to the client group, including the development of new or
expanded services in conjunction with Adult Social Care/Health/and voluntary sector
partners.
● To participate in joint reviews of homelessness services and/or services for older and
vulnerable people, ensuring the implementation of initiatives to minimise
homelessness amongst vulnerable households and maximise the effective use of
accommodation.
● To contribute to the teams work with other specialist teams to assess individual
needs and to review and implement care and support plans, and to work with
colleagues and partners to identify appropriate housing and support strategies where
clients have complex or multiple needs.
● To ensure development and regular review of individual re-housing and support plans
for all clients open to the service,
● To attend all relevant forums, meetings and seminars as required and to represent
the Service at working parties, meetings and training events as required. This may
involve occasional evening working.
● To convene and attend Professional Meetings, and all other housing and/or social
services panels, case-conferences and working groups as appropriate.
2 December 2023
● To maintain an up to date knowledge of relevant legislation in relation to provision of
support to vulnerable households and safeguarding.
● To provide specialist advice regarding housing, benefits, health care, etc. ensuring
that appropriate services are accessed and tenancy sustainment is achieved.
● To effectively manage all casework ensuring efficient record keeping and
administration and to lead on more complex cases.
● To work with all agencies to ensure that clients’ income is maximised to avoid rent
arrears.
● To work to meet and exceed performance targets, and to submit to information and
performance statistics relating to the work of the service
● Ensure systems are in place to monitor that performance targets are met and
exceeded
● To assist with the identification and implementation of best practice and innovation.
● Review existing policies and procedures to ensure that they remain in line with
legislative requirements and best practice.
● To promote the One Council One Kingston vision and values
● To ensure the effective signposting to support services of vulnerable persons coming
into contact with the service.
● To contribute to the preparation of a draft annual Team Plan for the service and to
assist with the review and development of performance targets.
● To have an awareness of the Adult safeguarding procedures, making referrals and
alerts where there are concerns and attending the resulting meetings if and when
required.

Equality and Diversity
● Embeds equity, equality, fairness and diversity into all aspects of team working and
service delivery
The person
In order to successfully deliver the responsibilities of the role, you will need to possess the
following

Knowledge & Qualifications:
● Possesses extensive knowledge of current issues, policies, benefits, and legislation
relevant to housing support provision.
● Demonstrates excellent understanding of quality procedures, systems, performance
issues, and customer-focused service delivery methods.

Experience:
● Has hands-on experience working in a busy front-line public sector housing team or a
similar environment with vulnerable households and in particular those sleeping rough
● Demonstrates proficiency in conducting high-quality casework.
● Capable of identifying, assessing, and responding to risk, sensitive, or difficult issues promptly to achieve positive outcomes.