Resettlement Property Manager

About us - making a difference in our communities

Within the Hotel Operations team, this position plays a critical role across West Sussex. The hotel-based Resettlement Property Manager for the Operations Team will lead a small team relating to families and tenancies of properties by providing coordinated support directly to Refugees who wish to find accommodation in the UK.

As a key component of the wider response, this role will be essential to resolving issues at first point of contact by finding solutions for a wide range of query types relating to accommodation (focusing on affordability and landlord relationships), managing escalations for complex / time critical matters and will work closely with other teams across the Directorate. Alongside this, the role will be responsible for overseeing the securing of properties nationally, and the associated finances of the different properties and buildings that the council may need to supply for our different cohorts.

About the job

This is a specialist role to primarily provide a management function within the hotel-based Accommodation Team, answering complex queries where experience is required to resolve problems, and finding solutions in difficult situations relating to affordable private residential rentals.

Underpinning your work will be a good understanding of property and tenancy agreements, whilst also having an insight of cross-cultural issues and sensitivities to different cultures. You will work closely with external partners including Department for Work and Pensions and the Home Office. You will also work closely with the Integration Support Team and wider operations, to provide robust handovers for families moving out of their current accommodation.

This role will support the Hotel Operations Manager with specialist knowledge around residential housing, tenancy agreements and affordability assessments to refugees seeking accommodation, either in West Sussex or other Local Authorities. You will keep updated on the latest Home Office policy, and use this to inform your work.

Salary: £48,226 to £51,356 per annum
Working Pattern: Full time - 37 hours per week
Location: Crawley
Contract type: Fixed Term Contract until 01/04/2027

In this role you may need to be able to travel independently around the county, including to areas that may not be easily accessible by public transport. Pool cars and pool bikes are available.

Please note this role will be subject to a DBS check. There is a regular and intrinsic requirement to communicate in English with members of the public.

WHAT YOU NEED TO SUCCEED

Key Skills

These will be used to shortlist your application so please refer to how your experience to date shows you can demonstrate these skills.

• Clear and effective written communication skills to present technical information clearly, including producing reports and writing non-standard correspondence or staff communications appropriately.
• Excellent verbal communication skills to communicate effectively across the team and with managers and outside bodies, including the ability to provide clear advice to staff, partners and customers and to build professional relationships, liaising as appropriate to deliver a service.
• Excellent literacy and numeracy skills to make sound and accurate data reporting decisions, manual and electronic, working methodically and in detail with an understanding of detail, including checking accuracy and completeness of reports quickly and reliably.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills to analyse complex specialist information and find practical solutions with an understanding of relevant legislation and policies. Including the ability to resolve more unusual or complex cases and develop practical, effective approaches and solutions according to individual circumstances.
• Ability to manage significant property rentals at any given time, and evaluate service improvements, spend, risk and issues. Ability to manage the financial budget and funding related to properties.
• Ability to motivate and raise the skill & capabilities of team members to successfully deliver the assigned work as part of the property team.
• Experienced IT skills in the use of major computerised systems used for operating a similar service.

Qualifications and/or experience

• Degree or equivalent level qualification or demonstrable technical and theoretical knowledge related to the service at this professional level.
• Experienced property manager with an excellent understanding of the property and tenancy market and the ability to oversee the tenancy market.
• Knowledge of refugees and migration, communities, minority groups, partners and stakeholders in order to be responsive to safeguarding and wellbeing issues including racism, domestic abuse, antisocial behaviour and child/sexual/workplace exploitation.
• Relevant advanced theoretical or organisational knowledge and experience of systems, procedures and policies associated with operating a demanding service in a related field.
• Knowledge of relevant practice and procedures, customer service and the application and interpretation of relevant legislation.
• Experience of monitoring and setting budgets effectively to deliver a service within available resources.
• Sound experience supervising/line managing and supporting others including providing mentoring, coaching and on-the-job training to colleagues to maximise their specific capabilities.
• Experience of managing data and production of management reports, including using information systems and reporting tools.

For more information on the Key Skills as well as the Qualifications and/or experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.

BENEFITS

Working for us

As an employer we recognise our employees are central to everything we do. To recognise this, we want to help support your development and provide a great place to work. So, upon joining us, you will have access to a range of benefits including:

For a full list, please visit our Rewards and Benefits page.

How To Apply

Please follow the links below to upload your CV and Cover Letter. In your cover letter please outline your motivations for applying and explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV.

Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to 3 years referencing and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success. We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application helppage.