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This Housing Options service provides housing advice and support to residents who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. We manage all applications for housing and only help customers with rehousing where they meet certain criteria and a need for housing has been identified. We are currently recruiting Customer Services Officers/Housing Options Officer for the front line of our service. Given the nature of the team, officers will be on duty most days either taking calls from our contact centre, managing and responding to clients via our online customer portal, conducting triage assessments with customers or responding to/making enquiries that have come through via our Housing Advice email inbox. At all times, they would be expected to provide comprehensive housing advice on homelessness, prevention options, housing options, other more general housing advice and signposting to other agencies where we cannot assist.
The role is full time Monday-Friday 9am-5:15pm. We are currently operating a hybrid model of working with some working from our offices in Colindale (approx. 2 times a week) and the remainder from home. It is important that any candidate is able to travel to our offices on a regular basis as well as having an appropriate set up at home to carry out the role successfully.
No experience in housing is required although would be ideal. Similarly experience of working in a front facing contact centre would be beneficial.
Potential candidates should be:
* Excellent communicators who will give clear and concise advice to customers
* Good listeners who will be empathetic when helping customers facing challenging personal circumstances
* People with a good attitude, show initiative and are willing to learn
* Quick learners who will be motivated to take ownership of their caseloads and think innovatively to find solutions for their customers' housing problems
* Able to work effectively in a team and independently
* Good IT skills
* Flexible and able to adapt quickly to the changing needs of our service
* Ability to operate effectively in a changing environment, to develop and acquire new skills and knowledge
* The ability to apply learning in the workplace to support continuous improvement of business systems for the benefit of customers
* Excellent oral and written communication skills and the ability to effectively engage with a diverse range of audiences, including managers, landlords, solicitors and vulnerable customers, in a courteous and professional manner and at times in stressful situations
* Ability to prioritise well within a challenging workload, particularly to ensure the most urgent matters are dealt with appropriately
* Ability to liaise effectively with other agencies and voluntary groups
* Ability to resolve difficult and confrontational situations
* Ability to capture and maintain highly accurate information ensuring it is completed in a timely manner within target timescales and to maintain accurate information on databases