Tenancy Sustainment Officer - 1 Year contract covering Maternity until March 2026 Working as part of the Income Recovery Team, the Tenancy Sustainment Officer (TSO) will be responsible for delivering a highly professional customer focussed service to Hightown's general needs tenants, providing information and short-term help to tenants to assist them to establish and sustain their tenancies, and to prevent tenancy breakdown. The TSO will manage a caseload of households requiring assistance to help them to maintain their tenancies, taking referrals from members of the Operations Team, as well as acting as a source of information and guidance to work colleagues. The service aims to minimise the financial and social costs of tenancy failure for the individual, and the financial costs to the Association associated with possession action and eviction. The Tenancy Sustainment Officer will assist in maximising Hightown’s rental income by providing information and assistance to tenants and applicants for housing on welfare benefit entitlement, fuel poverty and household budgeting. Key Responsibilities Provide specialist advice and practical support on a range of issues to help tenants to establish and maintain a tenancy such as housing, mental health (including tenancy breaches associated with mental ill-health), grants, furniture, fuel poverty, utilities, low-cost contents insurance, and setting up a basic bank account. To be aware of specialist agencies in the area to which tenants can be referred and maintain an up to date knowledge of housing, welfare benefits and best practice to support tenants to access appropriate welfare benefits advice and/or debt advice/guidance. Develop effective working relationships with external agencies, such as local authorities, DWP, Housing Benefit departments, Social Services, Community Mental Health Teams, and support workers; making referrals as required. To work in partnership with outside agencies to ensure that Hightown is delivering a responsive service and maximising tenancy sustainment. To carry out home visits with tenants, to include support to manage hoarding cases, assisting with applications for benefits, and household budgeting exercises. To carry out comprehensive financial assessments of applicants for general needs housing, including benefits calculations. To carry out risk assessments of new tenancies to identify those at high risk. To provide proactive intervention on those tenancies. To keep accurate and confidential tenant records and share information appropriately taking into account data protection requirements, ensuring that all cases are logged, tracked and reported in order to demonstrate positive outcomes.It's essential that you hold a Full UK Driving Licence and have access to a car The Benefits We offer a range of benefits which include: • Generous annual leave allowance of 33 days per year, including statutory bank holidays, rising to 35 days with service • £39,039 pa for a 35 hour a week contract • Regular support from your line manager and colleagues • Annual bonus based on satisfactory performance (Dependant on start date and contract length) • Monthly attendance bonus on top of your basic salary • Annual salary and cost of living review • Commitment to health and wellbeing with the Five Ways to Wellbeing • Ongoing professional development and support to deliver outstanding support • Workplace pension scheme and life assurance of three times your annual salary • Refer-a-friend scheme: Earn a £130 bonus for each friend you refer to work for us • Friendly and supportive team environment • Employee assistance helpline • Mileage paid for car usage • Well-equipped on-site gym Closing Date: Monday 20thJanuary 2025 Interview Date: Thursday 30th January 2025 We are an Equal Opportunities & Disability Confident Employer