Housing Complaints Officer – AR

Job Details

Housing Complaints Officer

Responsible to: Housing Services & Strategy Manager

About the Role

We are looking for an organised, motivated and customer-focused Housing Complaints Officer to join the Housing Services and Strategy team.

The role will be responsible for managing Stage 1 complaints relating to the Council’s Housing Service, ensuring complaints are investigated thoroughly, handled professionally and resolved wherever possible.

You will work directly with residents and internal Council teams to understand concerns, investigate issues and identify appropriate solutions. You will also analyse complaints and identify lessons learned and service improvements that can help improve the experience of residents.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage and investigate Stage 1 housing complaints from initial receipt through to resolution.
• Act as the main point of contact for residents throughout the complaints process.
• Listen to residents’ concerns, establish the facts and identify appropriate solutions.
• Work with Housing teams and other Council services to investigate complaints and resolve issues.
• Use knowledge of Housing policies, procedures and legislation to ensure complaints are investigated appropriately.
• Provide clear, accurate and professional written responses to complainants.
• Explain actions being taken to put things right and keep residents informed of progress.
• Handle difficult or sensitive conversations professionally and work to rebuild trust with residents.
• Act as an advocate for complainants where appropriate, working with relevant stakeholders to achieve the best possible resolution.
• Identify service failures, recurring issues and opportunities for improvement.
• Produce reports covering complaints, findings, recommendations and lessons learned.
• Make recommendations to managers on how services can be improved and support the implementation of agreed improvements.
• Ensure complaints are managed in line with relevant statutory requirements and the Council’s complaints procedures.

Key Skills & Experience

• Experience of handling and investigating formal complaints, ideally within a housing or local authority environment.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to investigate issues thoroughly, gather relevant information and reach evidence-based conclusions.
• Confident dealing with difficult, sensitive or challenging conversations.
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple complaints and deadlines.
• Ability to build effective relationships with residents, colleagues and stakeholders.
• Good understanding of customer service and complaint resolution.
• Ability to identify trends, lessons learned and opportunities for service improvement.
• Knowledge of Housing services, policies and procedures would be beneficial.
• Knowledge of the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code would be an advantage.

Key Relationships

The role will work closely with:

• Members of the public and housing residents
• Housing Service teams
• Housing managers
• Corporate Complaints team
• Other Council departments and stakeholders

Additional Information

Full training will be provided on the Council’s systems. However, candidates should already have the communication, investigation, organisational and complaint-handling skills required to deal effectively with residents and formal complaints.