Dorset Council is looking to recruit a Complex Needs Housing Caseworker, to join the team. The postholder will be working proactively with our adult social care community based integrated care teams as well as hospital discharge teams to identify those in need of additional support either because their housing isn't currently meeting their needs or because they are at risk of homelessness. By working in close conjunction with other key professionals such as Social Workers, Occupational Therapists and voluntary organisations the post holder will be able to direct and advise both professionals and service user as to the options available. This could be by assisting them to be able to remain in their current accommodation with necessary aids, adaptations and support or when this is not an option to explore alternative pathways such as extra care, housing register. You will; Work closely with colleagues in the Housing Options team and respond promptly and efficiently to all homelessness approaches and all referrals received under the ‘Duty to Refer’ arrangements from colleagues in Adult services, hospitals and discharge planners, in order to meet customer’s needs and tackle, prevent and reduce homelessness in the Dorset district area. Work collaboratively and proactively with health and social care professionals, social landlords, private landlords, and advice and support providers to assist people in remaining in their own homes when safe to do so. When this is not a long term option then work in a planned way that avoids people having to be placed into temporary accommodation. Provide applicants with comprehensive advice on their housing options, taking into account their overall financial situation, their needs and aspirations, their eligibility for assistance under the homelessness legislation, their priority on the Housing Register, and whether or not they are able to sustain a tenancy in the private rented sector. Ensure that applicants are able to access when appropriate funds for goods and services such as white goods, deep clean of accommodation, lock changes if such action enables them to live in suitable accommodation. You will work with colleagues in Dorset Council and across the integrated care system in Dorset to raise awareness, knowledge and understanding of housing related needs and build strong working relationships. Do you have experience working with people in difficult circumstances? We need applicants who can be sensitive to difficult situations whilst having the ability to negotiate and investigate individual client circumstances. There will be occasions when you may need to provide challenging advice to clients in stressful circumstances. You will also need to be skilled at ensuring that any bias does not affect the service that you offer to clients. Are you able to learn new skills? Our successful applicants will need to demonstrate their ability to learn new skills and legislation and work with clients with complex needs and issues. Applicants will need to be computer literate, and have a flexible, organised approach to their work to cope with a challenging and varied case load. Do you develop positive and professional relationships? We need people who can work in partnership with other agencies to assist and support our clients. The successful applicants will need to maintain and develop professional relationships with colleagues, landlords and a wide range of agencies. Are you customer focused with good communication skills? We need applicants who can adapt their communication style to provide specialist advice with a wide range of people and organisations. Our successful candidates will be able to communicate well verbally and in writing. Find out more about working in Housing: Unable to show this video due to your cookie preferences Further Information This is a full time role at 37 hours per week. This role is fixed term for 2 years. This post requires significant travel. You must have a vehicle (or transport we deem suitable) available for use as needed. This post involves working with children and/or vulnerable adults and/or having access to significant information about them. It will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check. See our policy on the employment of ex-offenders. See our policy on safeguarding children and young people. See our adult safeguarding policy. If you have previously made an application for the Hospital to Home post then there is no requirement to submit a further application as it will be considered alongside. About Us Dorset Council: A great place to work We’re passionate about making Dorset a great place to live, work and visit. Working for us should be no exception. At Dorset Council we: provide more than 450 services to over 300,000 residents have ambitious aspirations are excited about our future care about Dorset and all the people who live here know that all roles make a difference and that our employees are key to our success You will: have access to a range of employee benefits be part of an organisation that supports each other to grow and succeed have access to range of training opportunities which will help with your personal development and career progression We are challenging ourselves to become a more diverse and inclusive organisation. We recognise that recruitment and inclusion of individuals with diverse skills, perspectives and backgrounds will bring real strength to the council and our communities. We have a commitment to equality and welcome applications from everyone. We are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. We offer an interview to everyone who declares a disability and meets the essential criteria for the role. We are keen to make our interviews accessible. Let us know on your job application if you have a disability and need any reasonable adjustments. We also look for applicants who share our commitment to our behaviours. We will ask you to evidence when you have demonstrated them as part of the selection process. If appointed, the personal information we collect from you will be shared with Cifas who will use it to prevent fraud, other unlawful or dishonest conduct, malpractice, and other seriously improper conduct. If any of these are detected, you could be refused certain services or employment. Your personal information will also be used to verify your identity. Further details of how your information will be used by us and Cifas, and your data protection rights, can be found at https://www.cifas.org.uk/fpn. This role is UK based and we will need to establish your Right to Work as part of the appointment process. We use generic job descriptions and person specifications. This means the job title on any attachments may differ from the job title in the advert. We may provide specific information in a context statement if relevant. Find out more about how to apply .