Support & Housing Manager

ABOUT GROWTH

GrowTH is a Christian charity in Tower Hamlets, working with local churches to house and empower people experiencing homelessness to start a new life. Through shelter, advocacy, and supported housing, we create environments where people are welcomed, listened to, and supported as part of a community. Our aim is not only to meet immediate needs, but to help each person rediscover their self-worth, unlock their potential, and encounter the transforming love of Jesus.

SUMMARY OF SUPPORT & HOUSING MANAGER

The Support & Housing Manager is a management role responsible for leading frontline staff, overseeing the quality of frontline support, and ensuring GrowTH’s Housing Project and wider support work operate safely, effectively, and in alignment with GrowTH’s purpose: enabling people experiencing homelessness to receive an excellent quality of holistic support in the practical, emotional, and social areas of their lives – as well as to encounter Jesus and experience genuine life transformation.

The role ensures that services not only function well operationally, but consistently deliver on GrowTH’s mission, promise to people, and values – supporting individuals to move from crisis towards stability, community, and restored identity.

ABOUT FRONTLINE SERVICES

GrowTH’s Frontline Services are:

1.      Night Shelter (church based, rotating model)

2.      Housing Project

GrowTH’s Frontline Staff currently are:

1.      Night Shelter Advocate Workers (x2)

2.      Housing Worker (x1)

As GrowTH develops its new Hub model, the Support & Housing Manager will play a key role in ensuring that the Night Shelter, Housing Project, and wider support functions operate as part of one joined-up pathway. Through effective management of frontline staff, the role will help create a culture in which staff are developed in their roles, work closely together, share insight appropriately, collaborate around complex cases, and ensure that guests and residents experience consistent support as they move between different parts of GrowTH’s work.

 RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Operational Oversight of Frontline Services

The S&HM will oversee the quality and consistency of support delivered across GrowTH’s frontline services, including support provided to Night Shelter guests through the Advocate Workers, while holding direct management responsibility for the effective running of the Housing Project.

1.     The S&HM ensures frontline services consistently embody GrowTH’s promise by creating an environment where individuals are welcomed with dignity, experience belonging, are supported to move forward, and have opportunities to explore the Christian faith.

2.     Managing the effective running of Frontline Services through monitoring the quality and consistency of support delivered by staff using the following: Line Management reports (monthly); statistics; casework files; support plans; move on plans; resettlement processes and regular calls to referral agencies and churches to gather feedback on GrowTH staff.

3.     Manage and support frontline staff in resolving operational issues and practical service delivery challenges.

4.     Holding a small, focused frontline caseload, alongside their wider management responsibilities. This will include direct casework with a limited number of guests and residents, particularly within the Housing Project, where additional management input, continuity of support, or more complex casework is required. The S&HM will also work alongside frontline staff on complex cases, support plans, move-on planning, key meetings, and periods of increased frontline need, modelling high-quality, relational, well-recorded and appropriately boundaried support. This casework involvement should also be used to model good practice, strengthen casework quality, and support the development of frontline staff in their roles.

5.     Manage and support frontline staff to improve the quality and effectiveness of guest and resident move-on by:

o   Monitoring referral levels into services

o   Monitoring move-on pathways and move-on discussions

o   Assist frontline staff in identifying system blockages (e.g. move-on, referrals) and facilitating solutions to unblock them.

6.     Ensuring consistency and clarity in how frontline services operate

7.     Ensure GrowTH accommodation is safe, well maintained, and compliant with all relevant requirements.

8.     Ensuring appropriate boundaries and expectations are maintained

2. Overall Management and Oversight of the Housing Project

The Support & Housing Manager will hold overall responsibility for the safe, effective, and mission-aligned running of GrowTH’s Housing Project, which currently provides accommodation for 16 residents. Working closely with the Housing Worker, the S&HM will ensure that the project provides stable, affordable, well-managed accommodation alongside clear, tailored support that helps residents move towards independence, community, and long-term housing stability. Responsibilities include:

1.      Providing overall day-to-day leadership and management of the Housing Project, ensuring it operates safely, consistently, and in line with GrowTH’s values, policies, and purpose.

2.      Supporting and overseeing the Housing Worker in their work with residents, ensuring support plans, risk assessments, case records, move-on plans, and resident engagement are of a high standard.

3.      Ensuring residents are welcomed, treated with dignity, and supported to make progress in practical, emotional, social, and spiritual areas of life.

4.      Overseeing referrals into the Housing Project, including suitability discussions with the shelter/support team, referral partners, and prospective residents.

5.      Ensuring that residents are appropriately inducted into the project, understand the expectations of their licence agreement, and are supported to sustain their placement well.

6.      Monitoring rent, licence fee, service charge, arrears, and housing-related financial processes in liaison with the relevant administrative/finance staff, ensuring that residents are supported to keep payments up to date and that financial issues are addressed promptly.

7.      Ensuring Housing Project properties are safe, well maintained, appropriately furnished, and compliant with relevant health and safety, fire safety, gas, electrical, and housing requirements.

8.      Managing day-to-day operational relationships with key housing stakeholders, including landlords, housing associations, contractors, maintenance providers, and other relevant agencies, particularly in relation to repairs, lettings, inspections, safety checks, rent/service charge issues, property standards, and resident sustainment.

9.      Ensuring that Housing Project policies, procedures, house expectations, and resident agreements are clear, up to date, implemented consistently, and reflect actual practice.

10.   Overseeing resident support, including budgeting, benefits, employment, training, life skills, wellbeing, relationships, community engagement, and preparation for independent living.

11.   Ensuring appropriate boundaries, accountability, and standards of behaviour are maintained within the Housing Project, responding to concerns, complaints, safeguarding issues, and breaches of expectations in line with GrowTH procedures.

12.   Managing move-on planning for Housing Project residents, ensuring residents are supported to prepare for suitable accommodation and that links are developed with appropriate move-on providers and pathways.

13.   Working with the Director to review and develop the Housing Project, identifying strengths, gaps, risks, opportunities for improvement, and future development needs.

3. Staff Leadership, Performance, and Development

Ensure frontline staff are supported, effective, and accountable. Responsibilities include:

1.      Line management of frontline staff

2.      Performance management and addressing challenges in service delivery

3.      The S&HM will model and cultivate GrowTH’s values within the team, ensuring that staff:

a.      Demonstrate compassion and consistency in their work

b.      Follow through on commitments to guests and partners

c.      Take responsibility for delivering high-quality support

d.      Work collaboratively as part of a unified team

4.      Supporting staff in decision-making, particularly with complex or challenging cases.

5.      Ensuring staff receive appropriate training and development

6.      Building a healthy, collaborative, and mission-focused team culture

4. Faith 

As part of a Christian organisation, the Support & Housing Manager will:

1.      Contribute to maintaining a Christ-centred culture across frontline services

2.      Support staff to create environments of Christian community, care, and hospitality

3.      Ensure accessible opportunities for guests to explore the Christian faith

4.      Encourage staff to integrate GrowTH’s Christian ethos into their work in a way that is authentic and non-coercive

5. Other responsibilities

These include:

1.      Being an active member of GrowTH’s Senior Management Team

2.      Ensuring that safeguarding is embedded across all frontline services.

3.      Participating in complaint resolution where appropriate

4.      Escalating issues where necessary in line with organisational procedures

5.      Ensuring frontline service procedures reflect actual practice on the ground

6.      Supporting development of operational processes (e.g. referral pathways, service flow)

7.      Occasionally representing GrowTH in external conversations where appropriate