Housing Solutions Officer

About the role

We are focused on the prevention of homelessness, and our Housing Solutions Officers play a key role in the delivery of our homelessness service, working to fulfil the statutory duties in respect of homelessness and access to housing, whilst working in line with the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017. As one of our team of Housing Solutions Officers, you will work directly with people facing a housing crisis, providing expert advice and taking proactive steps to prevent homelessness. The role involves managing a busy caseload, creating personalised housing plans, making statutory homelessness decisions, and working closely with partner agencies and landlords to secure sustainable housing options. Focusing on preventing homelessness, you will assist households in sustaining their current accommodation or securing alternative options to meet their housing and support needs by undertaking comprehensive assessments and carrying out enquiries into each case to establish the council's responsibilities under the homelessness legislation. This is a fast-paced, problem-solving role, where you will help households find safe, stable accommodation while ensuring legal duties are met, working on your own initiative but also as part of a dedicated team committed to the prevention of homelessness. About you We are looking for someone who is an excellent communicator, motivated and passionate in their approach to assisting homeless households. You will: have a strong understanding of housing or homelessness issues and the ability to interpret legislation and apply it to individual cases have experience of making decisions on homelessness applications and understand the legal tests that need to be applied when reaching a decision demonstrate comprehensive experience of Welfare Benefits, including Universal Credit be able to manage a busy and varied caseload, work independently, and respond effectively to changing priorities be able to handle sensitive situations with professionalism, communicate clearly and maintain high standards of accuracy and fairness work well with colleagues and partner agencies and will be committed to delivering a respectful and inclusive service to all customers. At Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils we are passionate about building communities that people want to live, work, visit and invest in. We serve around 200,000 residents across our two districts and are well known for our collaboration and partnership working across public, private and voluntary sectors. We believe that the heart of Suffolk is an incredibly special place to live and work, with: 60 conservation areas two National Landscapes many picturesque market towns It is no surprise we are ranked among the top 50 places to live in the UK (United Kingdom).