Job Title: Income Officer
Location: Stockwell, London
Salary: £36,000 per annum
Job Type: Full Time, Permanent
SW9 Community Housing is a resident-led social housing charity responsible for the delivery of housing management and maintenance services for around 1,800 homes and several commercial and community buildings in Stockwell/Brixton on behalf of a G15 Housing Association, Sovereign Network Group (SNG). Being a community-based organisation, we are seeking to recruit an experienced Customer Services Officer, with a focus on service delivery and a people-centre approach. With a turnover of £11m, and rising, and in excess of £150million of inward investment provided by (SNG) previously Network Homes over the last 10 years we have ambitious plans for the future, and we want a like-minded visionary to join us on this journey.
About the role:
To ensure that SW9 Community Housing (SW9) maximises its income through the effective collection of rent, service charges, parking and other income owed to it by current and former tenants, leaseholders, Local Authorities and Department of Work and Pensions, working supportively and proactively with the aim of keeping people in their homes.
Knowledge and skills
The ideal candidate will have experience of meeting tight deadlines, working in a fast paced ever changing environment as well as being very flexible to cover tasks outside of the normal job specification being part of a small, growing team.
Education/Qualification
- Maths and English GCSE (Grade C or above) or equivalent (required)
- Degree or equivalent training or experience
- Professional Housing Qualification or willing to work towards
Key Accountabilities
Income collection
- To be responsible for the collection of all arrears including rent, service charge, parking, cyclical works, and other housing management related debts.
- To be responsible for the management of the Direct Debit process, including creation, amendment, and closure.
- To liaise with local authorities/DWP regarding the processing and progress of individual Housing Benefit/Universal Credit claims. Chase the progress of Housing Benefit/Universal Credit applications and overpayments where appropriate.
- To prepare all paperwork for the service of notices, possession proceedings, formal demands, County Court Judgements, and evictions. To attend Court, First-Tier Tribunals and carry out D.I.Y possession action representing SW9 in rent and service charge related cases.
Arrears prevention
- To provide an excellent customer focused service for all SW9's residents ensuring that residents are aware of their responsibility to pay their rent and/or service charges on time and regularly, and to advise on preventative action to be taken to stop them falling into arrears.
- To keep up to date with legislation regarding arrears collection within the sector also keeping up to date on welfare benefit entitlements, particularly housing related benefits.
- To advise residents from sign up on welfare benefits - to offer advice and encourage debt counselling and refer residents to specialist advice. To complete claim forms on behalf of residents and verify claims on behalf of the Local Authority.
- To keep up to date with best practice on arrears prevention, putting forward ideas and suggestions for service improvements.
General
- To work in partnership with other customer facing teams, being flexible over tasks and responsibilities to ensure the best customer service to residents.
- To process all balance transfers and refunds as and when required.
- To investigate and respond to all complaints and informal comments about service delivery.
- A flexible approach to working hours will be required in order to meet the needs of residents.
- Attend evictions on behalf of SW9 CH and SNG whenever necessary.
- Provide active cover and support across the service
Standard Responsibilities
Adopt and comply with SW9 CH values, policies and procedures, and regulatory frameworks including:
- Code of Conduct
- Health and Safety
- Data Protection, privacy, and use of IT resources
- Regulatory standards and probity
- Risks and internal controls framework
- Human Resources policies and procedures
- Equality and diversity
Benefits:
When you work at SW9, you are directly impacting on the lives of our residents. In return for your energy, innovation, and commitment, we offer:
- defined contribution Pensions Scheme (employer match up to 8%)
- 5 x annual salary life assurance cover
- competitive annual leave entitlement
- Interest-free loans (including season ticket loan, Cycle-to-Work scheme, rent deposit loan)
- MediCash Health Cash Plan
- Employee assistance programme
- excellent learning & development opportunities
- Discount Gym membership
- a modern office and facilities
Our values define who we are. They are the fundamental beliefs of our social purpose. They guide our actions and behaviour. They influence the way we work as a team - and the way we serve our customers and engage with our stakeholders.