Sheltered Housing Co-ordinator. Candidate Information Pack. November 2017

Transcription

1 Sheltered Housing Co-ordinator Candidate Information Pack November 2017 Port of Leith Housing Association Ltd 108 Constitution Street Edinburgh EH6 6AZ Chief Executive: Keith Anderson BA CIHCM MRICS FRSA Scottish Charity No. SC

2 Information Pack Contents Port of Leith Housing Association Limited: Information Background The Recruitment and Selection Process Advert Job Description and Person Specification Summary of: Terms and Conditions of Service Downloads of key management documents are available to you available from the Port of Leith Housing Association website 2

3 OVERVIEW THE ORGANISATION: PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE The Association was formed in Registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act of 1965, the Housing (Scotland) Act of 2001 and as a registered Scottish Charity, we operate to generate a profit/surplus, all of which is re-invested into our property and community and not distributed to any shareholder. We are an accredited Investor in People organisation. Control of the Association is vested with a voluntary Board of Management which is elected by Members at the Annual General Meeting. Membership is open to anyone over 16 interested in improving housing conditions in Leith/ North Edinburgh. Tenants are particularly encouraged to become Members. No dividend is payable on shares and no member receives a personal benefit for their services. The Board of Management normally meets monthly. It delegates detailed risk and financial scrutiny matters to a sub Committee, the Audit Committee. Lead Board Members are allocated to the main business areas, discuss key issues for the future within a Strategy Group and work closely with the Senior Management Team on strategic direction. In order for the Association to undertake a wider range of housing products and services in support of the ongoing regeneration of the community, a new wholly owned subsidiary company called Persevere Developments Limited was established in PoLHA is the sole shareholder, and the relationship between this subsidiary and its parent body, PoLHA, is managed through an Independence Agreement. The day to day management arrangements are operated in accordance with a service level agreement established between both organisations. Our purpose is to provide high quality affordable homes, creating neighbourhoods which people consider are great places in which to live. Initially focussing on refurbishing the older semi derelict Victorian tenements of Leith, many of which would otherwise have been demolished without our activity, the development programme since 1989 has focussed primarily on building new homes in Leith and North Edinburgh, including within the new Waterfront regeneration areas in Leith, Newhaven and Granton. In all we have invested over 170m to date in our property. As the largest social landlord in Leith, the Association currently owns over 2,700 homes for rent including 201 mid rent accommodation and 100 for purchase under the Shared Ownership scheme. Information on the Association s current and previous new build development programme can be found on the New Homes page of the Port of Leith Housing Association website. The Association operates a fair and objective allocations policy which prioritises people in greatest housing need. Working with the City Council and other housing associations through EDINDEX, Edinburgh s single access point for affordable housing, homes are allocated using a choicebased letting process. Through Persevere Developments we are now able to offer mid rent accommodation, for the first time, in supporting our objective to widen access and choice for high quality affordable housing in the City. 3

4 OUR AMBITION AND STRATEGIC GOALS Our Ambition To make Leith the best place to be What Is Valued in PoLHA We will respect, support, listen, encourage, challenge and deliver to achieve excellence. Our Strategic Goals 1. To make the PoLHA organisation and service delivery great 2. To make the physical infrastructure and environment of Leith great 3. To contribute towards making the availability of economic opportunity in Leith great 4. To contribute towards making the social fabric of the community in Leith great 4

5 Guidance on next steps with the recruitment and selection process Applicants should submit an application form which includes details of their present salary and benefits package. Your application should also include a supporting statement which demonstrates your suitability, competence and experience to perform the role of Sheltered Housing Co-ordinator with specific reference to the Job Description and Person Specification. Please supply full contact details of two referees whom we may approach, one of which should be your present employer and the other a previous employer. The Association normally only takes up references for the candidate selected for appointment; however, we may contact them prior to inviting you to attend an interview unless you specify otherwise. to: recruitment@polha.co.uk or to by post marked Private & Confidential to: Alison Petretti Corporate Business Co-ordinator Port of Leith Housing Association Ltd 108 Constitution Street Edinburgh EH6 6AZ Please note we do not accept CVs. The information provided by you on the application form and any supplementary forms will be used for the purpose of selection, recruitment and any further subsequent employment administration if the application is successful. If successful, the application form will be held on manual and computerised personnel systems. If you are unsuccessful the information will be retained for one year then destroyed. Key Dates To assist applicants to plan their availability for the selection process the following key dates should be noted: Applications should be received by noon on Monday 20 November 2017 Applicants invited for interview will be notified by telephone after the shortlisting process and a confirmation letter/ will then be sent with further details pertaining to the interview. Selection Interviews will be held week commencing Monday 27 November

6 Employment Policies The Association is a Positive about Disabled People symbol holder and fully complies with the criteria set by JobCentre Plus. You are therefore asked if you consider yourself to have a disability to please regard this as a positive opportunity to let us give you any help you believe you may require by outlining any aspects of the post which may present some difficulty, and any suggestions you may have for overcoming them. The Association s Equality and Diversity Policy provides more information. The Association s office accommodation is accessible to all. As part of the selection process for the vacancy you will be asked to provide, in confidence, evidence of entitlement to work in the UK. Interview Expenses Where applicants are required to travel to attend interview the Association will reimburse reasonable travel and subsistence expenses incurred within the United Kingdom. All expense claims other than car mileage must be supported by receipts. 6

7 To make Leith the best place to be Sheltered Housing Co-ordinator Grade 4: 24,064-26,738 dependent on skills and experience 35 hours per week Based in St Nicholas Court, Leith Port of Leith Housing Association is seeking to recruit a Sheltered Housing Co-ordinator to join our high performing and award winning sheltered team to deliver excellent housing and support services in one of our sheltered developments. The successful applicant will ideally have experience in a similar environment working with older people; must be able to work using their own initiative with, at times, the minimum of supervision and must have strong administrative and interpersonal skills. Although based in one sheltered housing development, the postholder must be prepared to work flexibly across our 3 sheltered developments to provide relief cover for holidays and sick leave. Occasional evening work will be required to assist at social events. The postholder will be expected to have completed their SVQ3 qualification in Health and Social Care or to be able to complete this within 6 months of taking up their employment. We offer an excellent benefits package including flexible working hours and pension. This post will be subject to a check under the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) membership scheme. A candidate information pack is available by download from our website or by ing alison.petretti@polha.co.uk Completed application forms should be returned to recruitment@polha.co.uk or by post marked Private and Confidential to Alison Petretti, Corporate Business Co-ordinator, Port of Leith Housing Association Ltd, 108 Constitution Street, Edinburgh, EH6 6AZ by 12 noon on Monday 20 November 2017 Interviews will be held during week commencing Monday 27 November We are an Equal Opportunities Employer A Registered Charity No. SC No agencies or CV s please Page 7 of 16

8 PORT OF LEITH HOUSING ASSOCIATION JOB DESCRIPTION & PERSON SPECIFICATION JOB DETAILS Job Title: Sheltered Housing Co-ordinator Department: Customer Services Department Team: Sheltered Housing Team Reports to: Sheltered Housing Services Manager Salary Grade: Grade 4 Last JD Review Date: February 2017 Last Evaluation Date April 2016 CONTEXT OF THE ROLE This role sits in the Sheltered Housing Team, which is a sub-set of the Housing Team located in the Customer Services Department. The Housing Team is a key team in the delivery of the direct customer facing services of the Association. The Sheltered Housing team is accountable for delivering effective, efficient and responsive tenancy management and housing support services for sheltered housing tenants, which are valued by our customers, contributing to high and sustained levels of customer satisfaction. PURPOSE OF THE ROLE The key purpose of this role is to manage, and contribute to, the delivery of the housing and support services delivered at the site where the post holder is deployed, and providing cover at other developments. The role holder will be accountable for ensuring that performance targets are met, that health and safety requirements are met and that compliance with regulatory and good practice of the Care Inspectorate is achieved. KEY DIMENSIONS Staff Management Responsibilities: Sheltered Housing Cleaner Budget Accountability: None Page 8 of 16

9 CORE AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY & ACTIVITIES Core Areas Of Key Activities Responsibility People Management Plan and delegate work to staff directly managed Motivate, support and ensure the development of staff directly managed Carry out appropriate performance management activities in line with PoLHA policies and procedures Tenant Support Service Carry out checks on tenants wellbeing Delivery Liaise with support agencies to ensure tenants support needs are met Carry out initial individual housing support plan and subsequent review meetings and update records Develop and support tenants social activity programme File all data to be held by the service securely in line with PoLHA policies and procedures Handle collection, recording, monitoring and reporting of tenants social funds and other finances collected on behalf of tenants and the Association in line with policies and procedures Contribute to compliance with Care Inspectorate regulatory requirements Develop links with external agencies and community organisations to deliver appropriate activities for tenants and promote sheltered Building and H&S Management housing in the community Maintain building security Keep the operational and working areas clean and tidy Carry out equipment and fire safety checks and update relevant records accurately Report day to day repairs for the building and for individual properties as required Control stock of cleaning supplies General Service Support Contribute to, and sometimes lead on, the reviews of systems and processes, bringing forward suggestions for continuous improvement Contribute to the efficient delivery of capital and cyclical maintenance projects in the developments (e.g. SHQS work; lift replacement projects; warden call replacement), ensure tenants are kept up to date and minimise disruption to the service to a vulnerable client group Keep up to date with changes in relevant legislation, standards and best practice Page 9 of 16

10 GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES Comply with all PoLHA and subsidiary company policies and procedures relating to the governance and operations of the organisation at all times. Comply with all Association and subsidiary company policies and procedures appropriate to the role, in relation to professional, regulatory and statutory corporate requirements. Contribute to the public relations, external networking and communications work of the Association as required. Demonstrate at all times high standards of integrity and ethics and behaviours compatible with PoLHA s values. Page 10 of 16

11 Knowledge: PERSON SPECIFICATION FOR ROLE HOLDER Thorough knowledge of Care Inspectorate standards and best practice in relation to sheltered housing and housing support services Full understanding of policies and procedures in relation to the service Skills & Competences Effective organisational skills, able to plan own work, prioritise workload and deliver to targets Good communication skills (oral and written) and able to adapt style to suit the audience and the circumstances Able to work on own initiative, interpreting policies/procedures to resolve problems and with minimal supervision Able to work as part of a team, contributing to team discussion and overall performance Excellent interpersonal skills able to build a rapport and empathise with tenants, respond to the varied needs of older people and develop an effective working relationship with internal/external colleagues Ability to motivate, coach and support others to achieve their objectives Able to uses Microsoft Word, Outlook and Excel effectively Able to use the QL system Personal Attributes Passionate about delivery of excellent customer service and follows principle of getting it right first time. A flexible and adaptable approach interested in continuous improvement of the service Experience & Track Record Experience (typically 2 years+) of working in a sheltered housing environment Experience (typically 6months 1 year min) of using a computer based customer contact management system Education & Qualifications SVQ3 in Health and Social Care Other Requirements for the Role None Page 11 of 16

12 OTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE ROLE COMMUNICATION AND REPRESENTING THE ORGANISATION The post holder will require highly developed interpersonal skills as the role involves daily contact with the Association s sheltered housing customers, their families and other support/care providers. This will at times involve managing sensitive issues around illness and bereavement and the post holder will require the ability to deal with difficult, challenging or upset customers. Communication skills required will include empathy, accuracy and persuasion skills. The post holder will regularly work alone in the development and will visit sheltered tenants in their own home. The role also requires regular communication across the organisation with colleagues and managers to ensure customers issues are effectively communicated to the right people for resolution. The role regularly involves the need to act diplomatically with internal and external stakeholders, particularly around the health, support and housing needs of sheltered tenants. The post holder will require to maintain professionalism at all times as in these interactions the postholder represents the public face of the Association to its customers. Communication includes exchange of information by , phone, letter and in person. Some of this information may be sensitive and/or confidential. The role also involves the postholder in regular communication with their direct report to ensure work is effectively delegated to them and appropriate support and development is delivered. Examples of relationships the postholder will engage in are shown below: Internal Daily contact with sheltered housing customers to resolve issues; obtain information; report progress Daily contact with sheltered staff to provide and obtain information about tenant support and housing issues Regular contact with the housing team to provide and obtain information about housing issues Regular contact with the maintenance team to provide and obtain information about reactive repairs, voids, general maintenance and improvement activities; health and safety matters External Regular contact with community alarm services and support/care providers to obtain and provide information Periodic contact with community groups to arrange social/community events AUTHORITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY The postholder has some discretion over work organisation, for their own workload and for the staff they manage. They will be expected to manage this work with minimal input or direction from management, particularly as they work in a dispersed location, though guidance will be provided when required. Page 12 of 16

13 The postholder has authority to make decisions relating to the health and wellbeing of customers within a framework of policies and procedures, which could have significant impact on the business and on individual customers if misjudgements are made. MANAGEMENT OF PHYSICAL RESOURCES AND INFORMATION The post holder is required to collect and process some confidential and sensitive information on a regular basis. This will include personal details of sheltered tenants and their family/support providers, financial information and support needs. IMPACT OF THE ROLE ON THE ORGANISATION AND PEOPLE This role has some impact on the public image of the Association with customers and their families and support providers. The postholder is the main point of contact for sheltered housing tenants in their own development and, to a lesser extent, in the other developments. They have a significant influence on how the sheltered services of the Association are perceived and on the level of satisfaction with the services received. The postholder has a role in assisting the senior sheltered coordinator and the housing manager (who is the registered manager for the housing support service) in ensuring that the housing support service provided meets regulatory and legislative requirements of the Care Inspectorate and that best practice is adopted by all sheltered staff, including health and safety requirements. Failure to do so could result in a significantly negative public image of the Association and ultimately in removal of registration for the housing support service, if there is a failure to comply with the standards set out by the Care Inspectorate. COMPLEXITY OF WORK AND PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS REQUIRED The role requires the postholder to be able to resolve sheltered tenant issues, some of which may involve some complexity, and to deal with a range of legislative and regulatory requirements. The role will require some analytical ability as well as sound judgement and decision making skills. Issues to be dealt with can, on occasion, span timeframes of up to several weeks and will generally be related to customer needs and service delivery. Most issues will be dealt with in a shorter timeframe. The post holder is expected to be able to handle several problems at the same time and to be able to work in a very reactive environment where there are frequent interruptions. Page 13 of 16

14 Summary of the Association s Total Reward Package Salary The salary applicable to the post is 24,064-26,738 dependent on skills and experience. Pension From 1st January 2018 employees can join the SHAPS defined contribution pension scheme with an employee contribution of 1% (with the option to contribute more) and an employer contribution of 7.5% Hours Monday- Thursday 8:45 to 17:00 Friday 8:45 to 15:45 Leave The leave entitlement for this post is 22 days (increasing annually to a maximum of 25 days) and 13 public holidays in a full year. Sickness Absence Provision If you are unfortunate enough to become ill and depending on your length of service, our sickness absence policy provides you with: Length of Service Under 26 weeks service Over 26 weeks but less than 1 years service Between 1 and 2 years service Between 2 and 3 years service Over 3 years service Entitlement Up to 1 week full pay Up to 4 weeks full pay and 4 weeks half pay Up to 12 weeks full pay and 12 weeks half pay Up to 16 weeks full pay and 16 weeks half pay Up to 26 weeks full pay and 26 weeks half pay Notice Period 4 weeks Page 14 of 16

15 Professional Subscriptions The Association pays for one professional subscription fee if you are required to be a member of a professional institute or association that has a direct link to your job. Training and Development We aim to ensure that all members of staff have the knowledge, skills and experience necessary to be successful in their jobs and to fulfil their career potential. Child Care Vouchers The Edenred Childcare Voucher Scheme is available to all staff on a full time, part time, permanent or fixed term contract with children up to the age of 15, or 16 if the child is disabled. Cycle to Work Scheme The Cycle to Work Scheme offers tax incentives that enable you to enjoy serious savings on the price of a new bicycle (plus related safety equipment such as a helmet and a set of lights). You will have the opportunity to lease the bicycle of your choice via a tax-efficient salary sacrifice scheme. Family Friendly Policies We have a range of family friendly policies to allow staff to balance work with other aspects of their lives. These include flexi-time, special leave provisions, sabbatical leave, flexible working arrangements and remote access via home PCs where appropriate. Maternity/Paternity/ Shared Parental Leave/Adoption provisions The Association pays maternity, paternity and adoption leave: many of these benefits are enhanced beyond statutory entitlements. Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) The Association has an independent, 100% confidential EAP service, delivered through Wellspring, offering professional and impartial advice, information and counselling on a range of issues. Occupational Health Service The Association works with its independent Occupational Health service provider Integral, who provide independent support and advice for staff who have an illness or medical condition affecting their ability to work. Referrals are made through the Corporate Services team. Page 15 of 16

16 Contribution towards the cost of glasses for VDU use Where you have been assessed as a VDU user the Association will contribute towards the cost of glasses. Guidance on Completing your Application We wish to ensure that we do not ask for any unnecessary information which may suggest discrimination. Education and Training: Please give us enough details to assess your attainments in relation to the post for which you are applying. We may wish to see any certificates or qualifications you hold. We will ask you to bring them if you are invited to attend for interview. Employment Record: Please give as much detail as you feel gives us an accurate picture, both about the type of work you are/were doing and the responsibilities you have had. Please start with the most recent, supplying exact dates where possible. Continue on a separate sheet if necessary. Supplementary Information: Please detail any further experience or information relevant to the post for which you are applying, bearing in mind the information you have been given about the post. References: References will only be taken up if you are offered a post. Please indicate if you do not wish your referee(s) to be contacted without your consent. No offer of employment will be confirmed by the Association until satisfactory references have been received. General Information: You are asked to tell us if you are related to a current or former member of the Association s staff or Board. This is so that we can demonstrate that any appointment has been made on merit and in accordance with recruitment and selection policy and procedures. You are asked to tell us if you are currently eligible for employment in the UK. This is so that we can ensure compliance with the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 which requires organisations to ensure individuals to whom they are offering employment have permission to work in the UK eg they hold a British passport/birth certificate/work permit etc. If appointed you will be required to produce such evidence. Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974: Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 it is unlawful for an employer to discriminate on the grounds of a spent conviction. However, some types of jobs are exempt from this Act this means you have to disclose spent convictions as well as unspent ones. Please be aware of your rights and responsibilities when disclosing convictions. Page 16 of 16