Housing Support Project Worker

Location: Erith House, 7 Queen St, Erith DA8 1RP

Salary: £28,000 – £30,000 (negotiable)

Hours: 09:00 – 17:00, Monday – Friday

Contract: Permanent, Full Time

Changing Lives Housing Trust (CLHT) is a registered charity that has been providing supported housing for people experiencing homelessness since 2009. We manage 269 housing units and work with councils including Greenwich, Bexley, Croydon, Merton and Dartford. We’ve just moved into a new headquarters in Erith, and we’re growing.

We’re looking for a Housing Support Project Worker to give person-centred support to clients living in our supported housing services. You’ll help people build independence, keep hold of their accommodation and improve their wellbeing, always with dignity and respect. Many of the people you support will have complex needs, such as homelessness, mental health challenges, substance misuse histories, offending backgrounds or social exclusion. You’ll report to the Team Leader.

Your day will centre on key working. You’ll run structured sessions with clients, then develop and review their support plans and risk assessments. You’ll help people work towards goals around housing, health, money and independence, and build everyday skills like budgeting, cooking and managing a tenancy. You’ll also encourage them towards education, training, volunteering or work, and visit our hostels regularly to check in on how people are getting on.

Keeping people safe is a big part of the job. You’ll spot and respond to safeguarding concerns, complete risk assessments and help shape risk management plans. You’ll also help clients understand their licence agreements and meet their obligations, which means working with housing providers to sort out tenancy issues before they lead to eviction or homelessness.

You won’t be doing this alone. You’ll build good relationships with social services, mental health teams, probation and health providers, and attend reviews and professional meetings when needed. You’ll keep accurate, confidential case notes, update our systems and contribute to service reports. You’ll also help keep our properties safe for clients and staff, report incidents and hazards, and work flexibly as our needs change.

You’ll have experience of working with single homeless clients who have support needs (or equivalent experience you can point to), and a strong understanding of safeguarding and risk management. You’ll be able to build trusting, professional relationships with vulnerable adults, and you’ll have good communication and de-escalation skills.

You’ll be comfortable with record keeping and IT systems, and used to working with other agencies to get good outcomes. You’ll also be able to prioritise your workload in a fast-paced environment, and work well both on your own and as part of a team.

Just as important is who you are. We’re looking for someone resilient, with real empathy for people who are homeless and a non-judgemental approach. You’ll be committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and to your own professional development. You’ll need at least 5 GCSEs (A*–C / 9–4) or equivalent, including Maths and English.

A qualification in Health & Social Care, Housing, Psychology or a related field would help, as would knowledge of housing law and tenancy sustainment. Experience supporting people with complex needs, such as mental health, substance misuse or offending behaviour, is also useful. A valid driving licence is desirable too.

You’ll be joining a growing charity with a new headquarters in Erith and plans for satellite offices across London. We put staff wellbeing and professional development first, and you’ll see the difference your support makes as clients move on to independent living.

You’ll have access to our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) and an annual leave bonus for work anniversary milestones. Annual leave starts at 20 days (excluding bank holidays) and rises by one day for each completed year of service, up to 25 days after 5 years. In our non-accommodation services, you’ll work a 38.5 hour week with flexible hours (core hours 8am – 6pm).

This role requires an enhanced DBS check.

You may have experience in the following: Housing Support Worker, Support Worker, Homelessness Support Worker, Key Worker, Hostel Support Worker, Tenancy Sustainment Officer, Housing Officer, Supported Housing Worker, Resettlement Worker, Outreach Worker, etc.