Housing Services Manager

About the role

Lead, Inspire and Drive Improvement in Housing Services

Are you an experienced housing leader with a proven track record of delivering high-quality services, improving performance and leading successful teams through change?

We are seeking an exceptional Housing Services Manager to join our Housing Management leadership team at a critical time for the service. We are looking for an experienced and dynamic leader who can make an immediate impact from day one, provide visible leadership, strengthen accountability, improve performance and positively influence culture across the service.

Working closely with the Head of Housing Management, you will play a key role in shaping and delivering housing strategies, driving service improvement and transformation, and achieving strategic objectives across tenancy management, income collection, estate services, tenant engagement and housing support.

You will lead operational housing services within a regulated social housing environment, championing innovation, performance and continuous improvement whilst ensuring residents remain at the heart of everything we do.

As a senior leader within Housing Management, you will provide assurance on service performance, regulatory compliance and customer outcomes. You will contribute to inspection readiness, support continuous improvement and help ensure the Council meets its responsibilities as a social landlord.

The successful candidate will be expected to quickly establish credibility, assess service performance, identify opportunities for improvement and implement plans that deliver tangible outcomes for residents and the Council.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead meaningful change, influence service direction, improve resident outcomes and help build safe, sustainable communities where people are proud to live.

What will you be doing?

In addition to the existing responsibilities, the postholder will:

• Drive a culture of accountability, ownership and continuous improvement across housing services.
• Lead service improvement initiatives and deliver measurable improvements in team performance, customer outcomes and resident satisfaction.
• Provide visible leadership and management oversight within a complex and challenging operational environment.
• Use performance data, customer insight and quality assurance information to identify areas for improvement and implement effective solutions.
• Support delivery of the Council's wider housing transformation and improvement agenda.
• Provide assurance on compliance with housing legislation, consumer regulation and service standards.
• Support regulatory inspection readiness and continuous service improvement activities.
• Work collaboratively across services and with elected Members to support the delivery of strategic housing objectives.
• Promote high standards of service delivery, professional practice and customer care across Housing Management.

Why This Role Matters

This is a critical leadership role within Housing Management. You will have a direct impact on service performance, resident outcomes, customer satisfaction and organisational culture.

We are looking for a leader who can bring fresh ideas, challenge existing ways of working, inspire teams, improve accountability and help shape the future direction of housing services.

The successful candidate will play a key role in strengthening performance, delivering service improvement and ensuring the Council continues to meet increasing regulatory and customer expectations within a complex social housing environment.

You will be a visible, approachable and resilient leader who is comfortable making decisions, holding teams to account, managing change and driving service excellence within a fast-paced operational environment.

The successful candidate will support the Council's ambition to deliver high-quality, compliant and resident-focused housing services, ensuring strong operational performance and contributing to ongoing regulatory assurance, inspection readiness and continuous improvement.

About you

Essential

• Degree-level qualification or equivalent professional experience.
• Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) membership, recognised housing qualification or willingness to work towards professional accreditation.
• Evidence of continuing professional development.
• Substantial management experience within housing or a related public service environment.
• Experience leading teams within a local authority, registered provider or similarly complex housing organisation.
• Proven track record of delivering housing services within a regulated social housing environment.
• Demonstrable experience of leading service improvement, performance management and organisational change.
• Experience of developing high-performing teams, managing performance issues and strengthening accountability.
• Strong line management and staff development skills with the ability to drive improvement and implement transformation.
• Thorough knowledge of housing legislation, housing management practice, consumer regulation and relevant case law.
• Demonstrable understanding of the Regulator of Social Housing Consumer Standards, including the Safety and Quality Standard, Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard, Neighbourhood and Community Standard and Tenancy Standard.
• Experience of working within a political environment and supporting elected Members.
• Budget management experience.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to use performance data and insight to inform decision-making and drive service improvement.
• Excellent communication, presentation and report-writing skills.
• Ability to influence, challenge and build effective working relationships with residents, colleagues, elected Members and partner organisations.
• Ability to lead confidently within a challenging and fast-paced environment whilst maintaining a strong focus on delivery, compliance and customer outcomes.
• Experience of preparing services for inspection, audit, assurance activity or regulatory scrutiny.

Recruitment Timetable

• Shortlisting: 14 October 2026
• Interviews: 26 and 29 October 2026

Our Benefits

Here at North Northamptonshire Council, we’re transforming for the better, using all our creativity and imagination to create the best life for our local people.

You’ll find that we have a wide range of careers that may be more surprising than you think!

Why choose us?

We offer a vibrant working environment with:

• a competitive salary
• a pension scheme, where we pay a significant contribution on top of your contribution. It provides life cover and ill-health protection.
• lots of opportunities to develop your skills, knowledge and potential in a large unitary council
• generous leave entitlement (28 days, rising to 33 days) and bank holidays, plus the option to buy up to an extra 10 days
• hybrid and flexible working arrangements, where practicable for service needs to help you with a healthy work-life balance.

We provide a range of great benefits such as an Employee Assistance Programme, an Employee Benefits Scheme, wellbeing support, travel rates at HMRC rates, as well as supporting a range of active Employee Network Groups.

About us

Our Values and Behaviours

Our values define who we are and how we operate, by forming the foundation for how we interact with our customers, colleagues and provide our services. They are also at the forefront of our decision making and delivery and are:

Customer-focused
Respectful
Efficient
Supportive
Trustworthy

Our key commitments help ensure that the priorities we make, now and in the future, maintain the necessary breadth of focus in those areas that we believe matter most.

Disability Confident Employer

We are proud to be a recognised Disability Confident Employer and is committed to providing an inclusive recruitment process and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role.

Our Employment and Disability Service provides bespoke support to individuals facing barriers to employment, helping them work towards their goals to start, stay and succeed in employment. For further information please click here The Employment and Disability Service (EADS) | North Northamptonshire Council

Armed Forces Community

The council obtained the Gold status award for the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS).

Further information can be found at Jobs and careers | North Northamptonshire Council (northnorthants.gov.uk)