Team: HSL - Housing Demand Team

Job Family: Managing - CBG14

Salary: £50,584 - £53,840 per annum pro rata

Hours: 37 hours per week

Base Location: Working from home and any CBC offices, including Priory House, Shefford. You will be expected to attend a CBC office location on a monthly basis, and as needed to carry out your role

Contract Type: Hybrid; Fixed Term for 12 months (Maternity cover)

Closing Date:  2nd April 2023

Interview Date: 10th April 2023

About Us

Central Bedfordshire is an ambitious authority, determined to be an exemplary one. Our strategic location and high quality of life mean we are one of the fastest growing areas in the country.

As a council we face the same challenges every business does - investing in the right places and delivering great results. Except for us, it’s all about our 289,000 residents. We’re totally focussed on helping to improve their lives and making Central Bedfordshire a great place to live and work.

We have set values and principles to represent the way we work and how we operate as an organisation. You can view a list of these in detail on our website.

This is a great time to join us on our journey.

About the role

We are looking to recruit a Team Manager with knowledge and experience in Housing Allocations (Housing Act Part 6).  This is an Interim position to cover maternity leave and the successful candidate will manage and support the day-to-day operations of the Housing Advice and Demand Team for a 12 month period.

As the Team Manager you will manage and support two Team Leaders (who each manage a small team of Officers), carrying out special projects and tasks to effectively manage the demand for social housing across Central Bedfordshire. You will lead on policy and procedures to support the team to assess housing need, helping households to find suitable, alternative accommodation and empowering the residents of Central Bedfordshire to live independently. You can find your greatness by encouraging a team to provide a person-centred service, by meeting housing need and contributing to the prevention of homelessness. 

The successful candidate is required to have demonstrable knowledge of housing allocation legislation and practice, experience in the application of best practice and should be able to demonstrate experience of working with both internal and external bodies in order to achieve successful and positive outcomes for customers. Central Bedfordshire Council will be implementing a new Allocation Scheme in the summer of 2023. Experience and knowledge of project management/implementation and of managing a team through change is essential.

The role requires a degree or equivalent qualification, or experience of the key job responsibilities.  You will need to demonstrate evidence of personal development and leadership with a management qualification or training. Further training will be provided to further develop leadership skills aligned to the Councils vision and values. It is essential that the post holder has the ability to listen, motivate and support the team as required and is able to build good working relationships with colleagues within Housing Solutions as well as the wider housing service.

Join us, and take advantage of a generous rewards package, agile working and the chance to learn and progress. Find your greatness by helping us to deliver better services to the local community as a key part of an ambitious Housing Service that is improving the quality of Housing within Central Bedfordshire.

What we can offer you

As well as joining a friendly, dedicated, and hardworking team you will have access to numerous benefits, including:

• A hybrid working arrangement giving you the option to work from home and access any CBC office location. We recognise and value the importance of supporting our employees to balance their home and work life and to be able to work in the most efficient way.
• A £250 one-off hybrid worker payment to help you adapt your home for safe and suitable working conditions
• A comprehensive IT package to support you to work safely and effectively
• The ability to work abroad for up to a month a year
• Generous family friendly policies and practices
• A welcoming and inclusive environment that empowers differences
• Friendly and supportive staff networks
• Annual leave allowance 24 days + statutory holidays rising to 31 days with length of service.
• Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). This is a valuable part of our rewards package for employees and includes Life Assurance. You can find out more on the Bedfordshire Pension Fund website.
• An exceptional Employee Assistance Programme which helps support employees with workplace changes as well as other work, family and personal issues
• A huge variety of courses and role-specific training and learning to help you succeed and develop
• Access to discounts on top UK retailers and local retailers

Central Bedfordshire Council has its own vision and values that are integral to everything we do. Our area vision is to make Central Bedfordshire 'A great place to live and work’.

Sustainability matters to us. We aim to lead by example in tackling climate change. Read more about the action we’re taking on our website: Climate change – tackling it and our strategy

Our aspiration is to be a truly flexible employer.  We welcome discussion on location, hours and working pattern as part of the application process.

You will be expected to demonstrate how you meet the key accountabilities and competencies detailed within this Recruitment Pack; Housing Advice & Demand Manager

For an informal discussion about this position, please contact: Siobhan Breheny Housing Demand Manager at Siobhan.breheny@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk or on 0300 300 5592.

For queries related to the recruitment of this vacancy, please contact The Recruitment Team at recruitment@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

Safeguarding:

Central Bedfordshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all employees, volunteers and contractors to share this commitment. This post is subject to the disclosure of criminal records.  

Central Bedfordshire Council is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to improving the diversity of our workforce to better reflect the communities we serve.  Therefore we welcome applications from everyone. In addition we are a  Disability Confident employer, we are working to become a Disability Confident leader in our community.

To maintain a fair and consistent approach for applicants, it is Central Bedfordshire Council's policy to only consider applications made via our online application system and we therefore thank you for not submitting your application offline.

If you require assistance to apply for our roles, help with writing your CV, interview techniques or careers advice please contact our team of careers advisors at ncs@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk Our service is confidential, impartial and free for all.