Are you compassionate, proactive and collaborative with experience, knowledge of and/or proven ability in housing and homelessness advice and advocacy? Looking for an exciting new career opportunity? Then join Shelter as a Housing Rights Worker and you could soon be delivering high quality and vital housing advice and advocacy to those who need it.
About Shelter
A home is a fundamental human need, as essential as education or healthcare. Yet millions of people across Britain struggle on a daily basis with homelessness, bad housing conditions, soaring rents, discrimination and the threat of eviction. So, we are striving for change, with individuals, in communities, across society, and leading the way to a safe home. We need ambitious, best-in-class individuals who are passionate about our cause to join us at this exciting time. This is your chance to play a part in the fundamental change we are striving to achieve.
At Shelter we are united by our purpose to defend the right to a safe home. Our enemy is the social injustice at the core of the escalating housing emergency. We believe that to win that fight, we must be representative of the people we are here to help and those who support our movement for change. In all our people decisions, we take pride in being inclusive, fair, equitable and transparent. We have committed to combat racism both within and outside Shelter and welcome you on our journey to becoming a truly anti-racist organisation.
About the team
Our Birmingham hub specialises in providing housing advice and homelessness work, with a particular focus on families and people experiencing multiple disadvantage. We work in partnership with a range of organisations to improve the underlying systems that prevent people from living securely in suitable, safe, affordable accommodation.
About the role
As Housing Rights Worker, you will deliver high quality housing advice and advocacy in line with the hub’s local community priorities and work alongside people who are experiencing homelessness and bad housing to identify issues facing local communities. You will plan and deliver casework to individuals and communities to resolve their housing situation and listen, network with, and engage with community groups, local organisations and individuals to understand local housing issues and raise awareness of people’s rights.
We will also count on you to work within local community settings and alongside community groups to deliver advice and rights awareness workshops and to ensure that people with lived experience of homelessness have opportunities to share their story, give their views and participate in the design and delivery of Shelter services. Offering day to day support to volunteers, providing learning, shadowing and mentoring and being a consistent role model for our values are also key aspects of the role.
About you
A natural communicator, you will have the ability to listen to, engage and work with individuals and communities and with all stakeholders, including people with lived experience of homelessness. You will have experience, knowledge of and/or proven ability in housing and homelessness advice and advocacy and the ability to progress to specialist level knowledge, as well as the ability to carry out casework related interviews, maintain detailed case records, advise and support clients to make informed decisions. A proven record of delivering group workshops and presentations is essential, as is a collaborative, flexible and professional approach to your work.
How to apply
Please click ‘Apply for Job’ on the advert. You are required to submit a CV and a supporting statement with responses to the following points in the ‘About you’ section of the job description of no more than 350 words each. Please provide specific examples following the STAR format:
- Knowledge and experience of housing and homelessness advice and advocacy and the ability to progress to specialist level knowledge
- Ability to listen to, engage and work with individuals and communities
- Experience of delivering and/or ability to deliver group workshops and presentations
Please ensure you demonstrate how you address the behaviours below throughout your responses:
- We prioritise diversity and have an inclusive and open mindset
- We create change and align behind our strategy
Benefits
We offer a wide range of benefits, including 30 days of annual leave, enhanced family friendly policies, pension and interest free travel loans. Our employees also have access to a tenancy deposit loan, payroll giving, cycle to work scheme and an employee assistance programme.
Shelter helps millions of people every year struggling with bad housing or homelessness through our advice, support and legal services. And we campaign to make sure that, one day, no one will have to turn to us for help. We’re here so no one has to fight bad housing or homelessness on their own. Apply to be part of our team and be the change you want to see in society.
Safeguarding is everyone's business. Shelter is committed to protecting the health, wellbeing and human rights of those we support, and enabling them to live free from harm, abuse and neglect. All our staff will be expected to observe professional standards of behaviour and conduct their work in line with our Safeguarding Policies.
Shelter does not accept unsolicited CVs from external recruitment agencies nor accept the fees associated with them.