Project manager jobs for the Housing and Homelessness sector

At YMCA DownsLink Group, our mission is to help children and young people have a fair chance to be who they want to be. We do this by providing a safe home, building life skills and self-confidence, and supporting emotional wellbeing and mental health.

Our Values - we do what’s right, we work with heart, and we build real connections - guide and shape how we show up for children and young people we support and for each other.

YMCA What is Sexual Exploitation (WiSE) is our child sexual exploitation project which works with children and young people across Sussex and Surrey. Our primary focus of work is supporting young people affected by exploitation through raising awareness, education and empowerment.

We have an exciting opportunity to join the WiSE team as a Male Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) Practitioner. This role involves providing specialist support, working across Sussex and Surrey to provide case work support and group interventions to boys and young men at risk of or experiencing sexual exploitation, as well as those exhibiting harmful sexual behaviour. You will deliver outreach sessions in various settings, collaborate with professionals to support interventions leading to prosecutions, and provide training on boys/young men and sexual exploitation.

Due to the sensitive nature of the client group and in order to ensure that the young people feel safe, supported and understood, there is a genuine occupational requirement for the post holder to be male, as permitted under the Equality Act 2010.

A full driving licence and access to a car are essential due to the wide geographic area covered by the service. You will be required to visit head office in Hove once a week for an anchor day. The other days will be across Sussex and Surrey in the community

In delivering the role, the key responsibilities are:

• Carry a caseload of boys and young men identified as exhibiting harmful sexual behaviours and/or being sexually exploited
• Work collaboratively with other professionals to provide intensive and holistic support
• Maintain detailed case notes and contribute to reports
• Facilitate group work interventions in schools, accommodation projects and youth groups
• Deliver detached sessions in various settings to engage at-risk boys and young men
• Provide expertise and increase awareness of harmful sexual behaviour and sexual exploitation
• Contribute to WiSE Child Exploitation training and awareness campaigns

About You – If you are enthusiastic about this opportunity but don’t meet every single requirement, we still encourage you to apply. Your skills and experiences may be more transferable than you think, and you could be exactly the person we are looking for.

Experience and Knowledge:

• Proven experience in safeguarding young children
• Experience providing casework support to boys and young men
• Group work experience with young people
• Safeguarding children and young people at risk of serious harm
• Delivering and risk assessing outreach work with young people
• Knowledge of risks posed to vulnerable young people through sexual exploitation and harmful sexual behaviour
• Significant knowledge and understanding of boys and young men and their lives

Qualifications:

• Qualification in Youth Work/Social Work or equivalent, or comparable experience working with vulnerable young people.

CLOSING DATE: Sunday 4 January at midnight. We reserve the right to close this advert early if a successful candidate is found, so please submit your application as soon as possible.

Successful candidates will already have the right to live and work in the UK without restrictions. We are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role

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 are required to undertake an Enhanced DBS (including the Children’s and Adults’ barred lists) check, along with a reference and background check carried out by a third-party service provider. 

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 are required to undertake an Enhanced DBS (including the Children’s and Adults’ barred lists) check, along with a reference and background check carried out by a third-party service provider. 

Salary: Grade 1.2 - £26,227 per annum

Contract: Fixed term until end of March 2026

Full time: 37.5 hours per week

Location: Manchester

Closing date: Sunday 14th December 2025 at 11.30 pm

Interviews to be held on Monday 22nd December 2025 in Manchester

We’re looking for an enthusiastic individual with office administration and customer service experience to join us as an Administrator and provide the support we need to help us deliver an effective local service. This is an exciting opportunity and you will play a key part in standing up to the housing emergency.

About the role 

You will provide administrative support functions and have responsibility for designing and developing office systems and processes, data input, extraction and analysis and finance administration.  You will be a first point of contact for in-person and telephone callers to the service which involves taking client details, providing information and working with advisers to direct enquiries to the right people. Helping the front - line team with case administration, assisting the Hub management with ad-hoc projects and making sure that our office equipment is properly maintained – these are all aspects of this interesting, varied and vital role.

We are happy to talk about flexible working, personal growth, and to promote a workplace where you can be yourself and achieve success based only on your merit.

About you 

With proven office administration and customer service experience, you will be a confident user of Microsoft Office, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Outlook. Someone with a passion for social justice, who thrives in a fast paced and busy office environment, you have a flexible and tenacious approach and enjoy learning new skills. You will be able to input, extract and analyse data and be able to review processes, introducing new ways of working where needed.

In return we can offer a competitive salary and 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.

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.

About the team

You will be part of an existing multi-disciplinary team that offers housing and homelessness advice and support across Greater Manchester. It consists of a solicitor led legal team providing advice and representation, and an advice service providing advice, support and guided self-help to people with housing, debt or welfare benefit issues. There is also a committed and skilled team of volunteers that offer peer support, mentoring and more general volunteering adding significant value to our core service offer.

About Shelter 

Home is a human right. It’s our foundation and where we thrive. Yet every day millions of people are being devastated by the housing emergency.

We exist to defend the right to a safe home. Because home is everything.

We need ambitious, passionate people to join us. This is your chance to play a part in the fundamental change we are striving to achieve.

Our enemy is the social injustice at the core of the escalating housing emergency. To win this fight, we must be representative of the people we are here to help and those who support our movement.

In all our people decisions, we take pride in being inclusive, equitable and transparent. We are committed to combating racism both within and outside Shelter. We welcome you on our journey to becoming truly anti-racist.

Safeguarding Statement

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.

How to apply 

Please click ‘Apply for Job’ below. You are required to submit a CV and a supporting statement with responses to points 1 - 4 in the ‘About you’ section of the job description, of no more than 350 words per point

Please provide specific examples following the STAR format and ensure you demonstrate how you address the behaviour below throughout your responses.

• We prioritise diversity and have an inclusive and open mindset.

CVs without supporting statements will not be considered.