Principal Review Officer - AR

PRIMARY JOB FUNCTION

To be responsible for statutory reviews of homelessness applications in accordance with the Housing Act 1996 as amended by the Homelessness Reduction Act 2018. To be responsible for medical appeals and other Part VI reviews in accordance with Islington's Allocations Policy.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

1. To manage and conduct the review process relating to Part VI and Part VII applications, including preparation of papers, minuting, following up decisions in writing and liaison with applicants and their advocates and other outside bodies.

2. To conduct, determine and issue decisions on homeless reviews in compliance with statutory timescales, regulatory framework, the Homelessness Reviews Procedure, the Homeless Code of Guidance .

3. To be senior in rank or grade to the officer who took the original decision, in compliance with statute.

4. To conduct, determine and notify applicants of review decisions in line with legislation, good practice and case law.

5. To write complex review decision letters , ensuring they comply with law, good practice and the need to communicate complicated legal concepts to Part V1 and Part V11 applicants in plain, accurate English.

6. To ensure that statutory decisions are able to withstand, political, media and legal scrutiny.

7. To provide effective, professional Review and Appeal service on behalf of the Housing Options and Homelessness service.

8. To maintain a knowledge of relevant legislation, statutory guidance and caselaw.

9. To ensure reviews are dealt with in accordance with the law and council policy.

10. Manage a caseload and own time efficiently to ensure all deadlines are met

11. To liaise with applicants and their representatives regarding their application for review and review decisions in line with legislation, good practice and caselaw

12. To instruct legal services and provide recommendations concerning legal challenges arising from Part V1 and Part V11 decisions including attending court, giving evidence and providing witness statements.

13. To determine and issue decisions regarding the provision of temporary accommodation pending 204 appeals .

14. To determine the statutory requirements of the s202 Review and s204 Appeal processes, to ensure that the Council complies with these requirements on every case which is reviewed.

15. To manage and control the use of costly temporary accommodation during the review and Court appeal process.

16. To conduct, determine and issue all Part V1 reviews where necessary, in accordance with Islington's Allocation scheme, including decisions to exclude person/s from the housing register.

17. To conduct, determine and issue medical reviews, be responsible for the re-assessment of applications from people seeking housing on medical grounds and to consider and determine the provision of Welfare points

18. To develop and maintain high standards of timely decision-making on homelessness reviews, housing register appeals and complex customer complaints, for example, stage 2/3, ombudsman etc.

19. To liaise with Legal Services to ensure that decisions regarding legal challenges are made in the best interest of the Council.

20. To recommend and implement changes in procedure where necessary.

21. To liaise with applicants and their representatives regarding their application for review and review decisions.

22. To disseminate good practice and to provide feedback decisions to relevant managers and staff

23. To enter, update and extract information from the Council's IT systems as required and to maintain performance information on the review function.

24. To prepare applicants file for disclosure where necessary.

25. To develop, disseminate and train on procedures for dealing with reviews and appeals and any other related matters

26. To investigate and respond to enquiries received from applicants, other council officers, MP's councillors and external bodies

27. To undertake other duties commensurate to the grade of the post.

ADDITIONAL:

• To use and assist others in the use of information technology systems to carry out duties in the most efficient and effective manner.

• To achieve agreed service outcomes and outputs, and personal appraisal targets, as agreed by the line manager.

• To undertake training and constructively take part in meetings, supervision, seminars and other events designed to improve communication and assist with the effective development of the post and post holder.

• To carry out duties and responsibilities in accordance with the council's commitment to customer service excellence and ensure compliance with the customer care standards.

• To be committed to the Council's core values of public service, quality, equality and empowerment and to demonstrate this commitment in the way duties are carried out.

• To ensure that duties are undertaken with due regard and compliance with the Data Protection Act and other legislation.

• To carry out duties and responsibilities in accordance with the Council's Health and Safety Policy and relevant Health and Safety legislation.

• At all times to carry out responsibilities/duties within the framework of the Council's Dignity for all Policy. (Equal Opportunities Policy).

PERSON SPECIFICATION
The person specification is a picture of skills, knowledge and experience required to carry out the job. It has been used to draw up the advert and will also be used in the short-listing and interview process for this post.

You should demonstrate on your application form how you meet each of the following essential criteria. Please ensure that your address each one of the criteria as this will be used to assess your suitability for the post.

EDUCATION and EXPERIENCE
E1 Extensive experience of working with applications for social housing
E2 Experience of working with homeless people in a multi-racial inner city environment
E3 Experience of legal procedures and court work

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS and ABILITY
E4 Knowledge of relevant legislation relating to homelessness and housing need, with particular reference to the Housing Act 1996 and Homelessness Act 2002.
E5 Knowledge of equalities legislation and good practice and its application in relation to housing services
E6 Knowledge and understanding of the Housing Department's objectives and policies and the ability to communicate these to colleagues and customers to help them understand decisions and service practices
E7 Ability to explain complex legal issues verbally and in writing
E8 Ability to make sound decisions in a high pressured environment
E9 Ability to set up and maintain systems and procedures to monitor performance
E10 Ability to prioritise and meet targets in accordance with Council policy
E11 Ability to liaise and communicate effectively with with Councilors, senior management, members of the public and other organisations.
E12 Ability to gather, analyse, and interpret complex information and exercise good judgement on data when necessary
E13 Ability to contribute to policy and procure development in rehousing and homeless matters.
E14 Ability to adhere to and deliver services within the framework of the Council's Equal Opportunities Employment Policies
Corporate Requirement for Scale 2 to SO1 for employees who regularly correspond in writing with customers
E12 Ability to pass a literacy test covering spelling and grammar.