Housing Fraud Officer
Please visit our website for more information and to complete our online application form
Working hours: 37.5 per week (banking 30 minutes per week to be used towards the shut down between Christmas and the New Year)
Are you a motivated and experienced Housing professional looking for an opportunity to work proactively in a friendly, efficient and effective customer focused environment?
This is an exciting and challenging opportunity to work in an environment that encourages initiative and an innovative approach to deal effectively with any misuse of council properties and protect our resources.
We are looking for the post holder to be an experienced officer used to working in local government, working as part of the Housing Management Team to proactively carry out fraud investigations and pursue all aspects of social housing fraud, including audit and inspections of council owned properties, unlawful sub-lettings, ineligible succession claims, non-occupation or non-use of Council property as principle home; fraudulent right to buy applications, mutual exchanges for payment and fraudulent housing applications.
The post holder will require extensive experience of housing management work, including experience of carrying out housing fraud investigations with knowledge of housing law and legislation relating to tenancies and housing fraud and be able to work in conjunction with other councils, registered social providers or the local police force to prevent Housing Fraud.
We require an experienced officer who will maintain a high standard of investigations, using their initiative to lawfully gather evidence; draft concise reports to their line Manager on each investigated case and prepare case files for potential legal proceedings. They will be expected to visit residential properties, gather witness statements, which will sometimes be outside of the normal office hours, as well as attend Court to give evidence as and when required.
The post holder will be responsible for ensuring service standards are achieved, have good communication skills, be able to communicate with a wide range of people, have the ability to prioritise tasks against competing demands and deadlines, be able to deal with sensitive issues in a confidential manner and display a calm and confident persona in difficult situations.
The post holder will be required to hold a full driving licence and have access to a car as well as having a clean DBS check.
For an informal discussion about this role, please contact Wayne Mitchell, Area Housing Manager on 01279 446340
Our policies support our employees by enabling a positive work/life balance. Employees will attend their contractual place of work at least 4 days each week (pro rata for part-time). The Council offers many excellent employee benefits which include pension scheme, generous annual leave entitlement, health and wellbeing initiatives, and development opportunities.
Harlow Council is committed to equal opportunities and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. People with disabilities will be offered an interview where they meet the Essential Criteria on the Employee Profile.
Salary range
- £37,280 - £39,152 per year