4 Housing support worker jobs

The Housing First Worker will be responsible for coordinating and providing a person centred, strength based support service to create long term sustainable tenancies by empowering customers, increasing independence, and maximising connectivity with the local community.

All activity will be underpinned by the following Housing First Principles:

1. People have the right to a home

2. Flexible support is provided for as long as it is needed

3. Housing and support are separate

4. People have choice and control over all aspects of their lives

5. The service is based upon individual’s strengths, goals, and aspirations

6. An active engagement approach is used

7. A harm reduction approach is used.

Reporting to the Housing First Team Leader, the Housing First Worker is responsible for coordinating and providing a personalised, trauma informed support service to people with complex needs facing multiple exclusion in line with Housing First Principles.

Organisation Context:

Oasis Community Housing (OCH) is a Christian response to homelessness and disadvantage providing housing, support and other specialised services. The support provided aims to develop life skills that will enable people to live successful independent lives.

Oasis Community Housing is part of the Oasis group of charities. The group includes national charities dedicated to education, housing, and campaigning against human trafficking and we work to a common vision of creating communities in which everyone can thrive and reach their God-given potential.

We welcome applicants from all faiths or none, but it is important that all employees understand and sympathise with the Christian vision, ethos, and culture of the organization. However, it will be an 1 occupational requirement that a practising Christian be needed for some specified roles. This will be highlighted in the qualifications section of the job description and will be clearly stated in the job advert.

Oasis Community Housing is a growing charity, with its Central Office in Gateshead. 

Duties & Responsibilities:

• To assist the Project Team Leader/senior worker in ensuring holistic (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual) support is provided to people in accordance with the ethos and values of Oasis Community Housing. 

• Work with Housing First individuals to help them articulate their goals and aspirations offering personal, therapeutic, and emotional support. The work will be informed by core Housing First principles.

• Undertake comprehensive needs and risk assessments with each allocated resident. 

• Develop and maintain relationships with Housing First individuals to enable person centred support, promoting personal choice and wellbeing. This will be done through regular contact, including visits to individuals’ homes and appropriate community settings.

• Be adaptive and flexible, resilient to challenges and rejections, to support the stability and progression of Housing First individuals to achieve personalised outcomes. 

• Liaise with accommodation providers and actively encourage Housing First individuals to move into appropriate Housing First accommodation of their choice. 

• Identify barriers to acquiring and maintaining accommodation and provide support, including practical help with furniture, benefits advice, budgeting, neighbour relations and liaising with landlords.

• Offer advice, guidance, and support on ways in which substance misuse and other harmful activities can be practiced more safely. This includes anticipating and supporting the reduction of harmful challenges while maximising opportunities.

• Support individuals in attending AA/NA and taking first steps to address their substance misuse issues.

• Be empowered and persistent in advocating for individuals to access all services, including reconciliation work with agencies, if required. 

• Develop, maintain and coordinate effective working relationships with external agencies, promoting effective communication for and about individuals ensuring the Housing First project is widely known and promoted.

• Identify cases requiring further help (specialist advice, alternative support) referring and supporting engagement as appropriate.

• Support individuals to access community resources to develop positive peer networks and meaningful leisure opportunities, including social, recreational, sport, faith, learning and arts.

• Regularly review individuals support plans to update, maintain accurate monitoring and evaluation records using InForm, including detailed information on people worked with.

• Actively participate in achieving targets as set by the Housing First senior/Manager. 

• Actively engage with supervision with line manager, including review of training needs. 

• To be responsible and accountable for the delivery of high-quality support.

• Undertake any other duties consistent with the role. 

• To assist in the recording of access to, participation in and evaluation of services; to encourage and facilitate consultation and participation at all levels of service development. 

• Supporting in the active participation of people resident in Housing First project design, delivery, and evaluation 

• Providing support in the process surrounding the refusal of applicants and move on decisions for Housing First referrals. 

• To be involved with, and facilitate, group work activities e.g. Life and Employability Skills Workshops, Social Events, Personal Development Programme activities and keep records of such activities. 

• To ensure safeguarding policies and procedures are adhered to in your practices, and that concerns are reported appropriately and expediently.

• To signpost and support people to access other professional services.

Personal Specification/Key Competencies:

Qualifications:

• Relevant qualification to NVQ Level 2 (Desirable)

• Professional qualification in a related field (housing management, social work etc.) (Desirable)

Work Experience:

• At least 2 years’ experience as a support worker (Essential) 

• Good understanding of housing first principles. 

• Experience of using person centred support plans (Essential) 

• An awareness of the impact of worklessness on homeless people (Desirable) 

• Knowledge of drug and alcohol misuse (Essential) 

• Knowledge of mental health issues (Desirable) 

37.5 hours per week / permanent / working onsite on a seven-day rolling rota, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays.

YMCA DownsLink Group is the leading charity for children and young people across Sussex and Surrey. We offer safe homes, mental health support and trusted advice.

We believe that every child and young person has the right to be safe, heard and to shape their own future. We work alongside them to make that happen.

We are here for children and young people, many of whom face multiple challenges and need our support.

Our Values - we do what’s right, we work with heart, and we build real connections – guide us in all our actions.

Horsham Y Centre provides 24-hour supported housing services offering medium levels of housing-related support for young people aged 16-25 with 50 bedspaces and shared communal facilities. We adopt a trauma informed and psychologically informed approach to supporting our residents to help them build essential life skills, identify their goals and work towards aspirations so that they can move on to enjoy fully independent futures. We have a dedicated team of Support Workers, Night Workers and additional Bank Workers who provide support, guidance, and signposting around areas such as housing, budgeting, living skills, jobs, relationship building and wellbeing. Situated in the middle of Horsham, the service has strong links with and contributes to the local community.

We adopt a trauma informed and psychologically informed approach to supporting our residents to help them build essential life skills, identify their goals and work towards aspirations so that they can move on to enjoy fully independent futures.

We are looking for a Supported Housing Support Worker to join our Horsham Y team, who will hold a caseload of residents and meet with them weekly to build a support plan. Main areas of responsibilities are:

Housing and Compliance

• Support young people to understand and comply with their occupancy agreements, including coaching them to meet house rules and responsibilities as part of preparing for successful independent living.
• Promote a strong rent‑payment and credit culture, encouraging residents to maintain regular payments and understand their financial obligations.
• Maintain up‑to‑date knowledge of housing legislation, welfare benefits, and statutory requirements affecting young people, ensuring practice aligns with current housing law and organisational policies.
• Respond promptly and effectively to breaches of agreement, including rent arrears, antisocial behaviour, or property damage, using restorative approaches where appropriate and working collaboratively with the wider team.

Coaching and Engagement

• Coach young people so they can articulate their aspirations and ambitions and take the lead in acquiring the skills they need to live independent and fulfilling lives.
• Ensure young people are encouraged to take responsibility for their own personal development, to engage with the services on offer and build strong networks and connections within the local community.
• Ensure consistent standards of safeguarding and Trauma Informed Practice when supporting young people, observing our safeguarding procedures, and keeping yourself and residents safe by respecting professional boundaries.
• Maintain client records on In-Form (client database) detailing the young person’s journey in relation to their strengths and needs, any risks, and any outcomes (to monitor service performance).

There will be times when lone working will be a requirement for this role, but you will get to know the team and service, along with an induction and training prior to starting on a rota. 

If you are enthusiastic about this opportunity but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every requirement, we encourage you to apply anyway and demonstrate how your experience is transferrable.You may be just the right candidate. 

This is a dynamic and varied role; you will be passionate about being involved in the support and growth of young people.

Experience and Knowledge

• Experience in housing or supported accommodation, ideally supporting young people with multiple and complex needs.
• Strong understanding of occupancy agreements, rent management, welfare benefits, and tenancy sustainment.
• Ability to manage arrears, ASB, and other non‑compliance issues using appropriate and restorative approaches.
• Good knowledge of housing legislation, safeguarding procedures, and compliance requirements, with the ability to maintain clear professional boundaries.
• Familiarity with statutory and voluntary services available to young people and ability to work proactively with a caseload to support progression towards independent living.

Skills and Abilities

• Confident in record‑keeping, including case notes, incident reporting, and health and safety checks.
• Ability to communicate clearly both verbally and in writing for appropriate recording of a resident’s progression, and to evidence outcomes achieved.
• Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with all stakeholders, including signposting and advocating for clients as necessary.
• Ability to work autonomously, and use own initiative, as well as being part of a team.
• Clear verbal and written communication skills, good IT, and keyboard skills.
• Ability to de-escalate volatile situations and manage challenging behaviour appropriately.

CLOSING DATE: Sunday 27 September at midnight. 

PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to provide work permits or visa sponsorship for this role, so applicants must already have the right to live and work in the UK independently.

An inclusive workplace We are committed to policies and practices of equity, diversity, and inclusion and to supporting our people to make sure our culture is consistent with this commitment. 

Accessibility If you require assistance or have questions regarding the application process, please do contact us.

YMCA DLG requires all staff and volunteers to be committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and to respond proactively to safeguarding concerns. 

Successful applicants will undergo a thorough background screening process, conducted by an accredited third-party provider. This includes an Enhanced DBS check (with Children’s and Adults’ Barred Lists) as well as comprehensive reference and activity checks.

37.5 hours per week / permanent / working onsite on a seven-day rolling rota, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays.

YMCA DownsLink Group is the leading charity for children and young people across Sussex and Surrey. We offer safe homes, mental health support and trusted advice.

We believe that every child and young person has the right to be safe, heard and to shape their own future. We work alongside them to make that happen.

We are here for children and young people, many of whom face multiple challenges and need our support.

Our Values - we do what’s right, we work with heart, and we build real connections – guide us in all our actions.

Our 16+ Older Looked After Young People (OLYP), Care Leavers and Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) services delivers specialist 24-hour supported accommodation where young people are supported to acquire the necessary skills in preparation for living independently, safely explore their increased freedom of choice and develop responsibilities associated with adulthood, whilst still having the appropriate level of support from an experienced team.

We adopt a trauma informed and psychologically informed approach to supporting our residents to help them build essential life skills, identify their goals and support residents into independent accommodation. We have a dedicated team of Support Workers, Night Workers and additional Bank Workers who provide support, guidance, and signposting around areas such as housing, budgeting, living skills, jobs and relationship building.

We are looking for a Supported Housing Support Worker to join our Ewhurst Road, Crawley team, who will hold a caseload of residents and meet with them weekly to build a support plan. 

Main areas of responsibilities are:

Housing:

• Coach young people to manage their occupancy agreement and adhere to house rules, in preparation for independent living
• Promote a credit culture, encouraging young people to keep up to date with all payments for rent
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of housing and welfare benefits for young people and be well-informed on significant changes to housing law
• Deal effectively with non-compliance issues, such as non-payment of rent or damage to room, using restorative practices and working collaboratively with the rest of the team

Coaching and Engagement:

• Coach young people so they can articulate their aspirations and ambitions and take the lead in acquiring the skills they need to live independent and fulfilling lives
• Ensure young people are encouraged to take responsibility for their own personal development, to engage with the services on offer and build strong networks and connections within the local community 
• Ensure consistent standards of safeguarding and Trauma Informed Practice when supporting young people, observing our safeguarding procedures, and keeping yourself and residents safe by respecting professional boundaries
• Maintain client records on In-Form (client database) detailing the young person’s journey in relation to their strengths and needs, any risks, and any outcomes (to monitor service performance)

General:

• Work as part of a team, on a rota shift pattern, ensuring young people at the service have non-judgemental, objective, and supportive staff during the day/evening, along with taking responsibility for personal safety during periods of lone working
• Contribute to a great working environment, with a calm, yet assertive manner, being able to handle potentially difficult situations
• Participate in relevant continuing professional development and utilise Reflective Practice Supervision as part of leading psychologically informed practice

There will be times when lone working will be a requirement for this role, but you will get to know the team and service, along with an induction and training prior to starting on a rota. 

If you are enthusiastic about this opportunity but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every requirement, we encourage you to apply anyway and demonstrate how your experience is transferrable.You may be just the right candidate. 

This is a dynamic and varied role; you will be passionate about being involved in the support and growth of young people.

Experience and Knowledge:

• Experience relating to housing, support work, and/or working with young people at risk
• Experience of working proactively with a caseload of young people with multiple and complex needs to enable them to achieve independent living
• Knowledge of statutory and voluntary resources available to young people with multiple and complex needs
• Knowledge of good safeguarding procedures in relation to young people and the ability to maintain effective professional boundaries
• Demonstrated confidence and competence in recording notes/actions in service log, incident forms and health and safety check lists

Skills and Abilities: 

• Ability to communicate clearly both verbally and in writing for appropriate recording of a resident’s progression, and to evidence outcomes achieved
• Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with all stakeholders, including signposting and advocating for clients as necessary
• Ability to work autonomously, and use own initiative, as well as being part of a team
• Clear verbal and written communication skills, good IT, and keyboard skills
• Ability to de-escalate volatile situations and manage challenging behaviour appropriately

CLOSING DATE: Sunday 27 September at midnight. 

PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to provide work permits or visa sponsorship for this role, so applicants must already have the right to live and work in the UK independently.

An inclusive workplace We are committed to policies and practices of equity, diversity, and inclusion and to supporting our people to make sure our culture is consistent with this commitment. 

Accessibility If you require assistance or have questions regarding the application process, please do contact us.

YMCA DLG requires all staff and volunteers to be committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and to respond proactively to safeguarding concerns. 

Successful applicants will undergo a thorough background screening process, conducted by an accredited third-party provider. This includes an Enhanced DBS check (with Children’s and Adults’ Barred Lists) as well as comprehensive reference and activity checks.