Senior Practitioner (Supported Housing, Brighton and Eastbourne Based)

Stonewall Housing is looking for a highly capable, grounded, and values-driven Senior Practitioner to join our Supported Housing team at a pivotal time of growth. This new leadership role will oversee the operational delivery of our LGBTQ+ supported accommodation services in Brighton and Eastbourne, helping residents to live safer, more independent lives.

This is a high-impact role that requires a resilient, proactive professional who thrives in complex environments. You ll need emotional strength, sharp operational judgment, and a deep understanding of the barriers faced by vulnerable LGBTQ+ individuals with intersecting needs. We re looking for someone who is solution-focused and tenacious, someone who brings warmth, professionalism, and purpose to the work, and isn t afraid to roll up their sleeves, manage competing demands, and get the job done.

You will supervise a small team of specialist caseworkers while holding a caseload yourself. You ll bring calm, thoughtful leadership, drive up quality and operational excellence, and support your team to work in a trauma-informed, person-centred way.

This role involves working across both our Eastbourne and Brighton locations, with regular travel between sites expected.

The advertised salary includes London Weighting. As such, you will be responsible for covering the cost of travel to London for our monthly all-staff meetings. If additional travel to London is required as part of your role, these costs will also need to be covered by you.

What You ll Need

This role is for someone who is:
- Resilient under pressure and thrives in fast-paced environments
- Comfortable with complex cases and juggling priorities
- Empathetic and LGBTQ+ informed, with excellent safeguarding instincts
- A natural problem-solver and decision-maker who doesn t need handholding
- Someone who keeps boundaries clear, knows when to escalate, and when to lead from the front
- Committed to trauma-informed, anti-oppressive working practices

Key Responsibilities

Leadership & Supervision

- Lead, supervise and motivate a team of LGBTQ+ Supported Housing Caseworkers
- Conduct regular supervisions, case reviews, and file audits in line with policy
- Identify and address poor practice with clarity and compassion
- Provide reflective supervision and annual appraisals focused on performance and wellbeing
- Promote a team culture of learning, accountability, inclusion and mutual respect

Resident Support & Casework

- Hold a reduced caseload of residents, delivering strengths-based housing support
- Conduct risk and needs assessments, and co-produce personalised support plans
- Collaborate with external agencies to meet residents health, legal, and housing needs
- Provide support around housing sustainment, safeguarding, mental health and community integration
- Offer crisis intervention and harm-reduction-based support where required

Operational Excellence

- Monitor service delivery to ensure it meets quality standards and funder outcomes
- Ensure timely and accurate recording, case management, and data entry
- Contribute to service reviews, evaluations and the development of improved working practices
- Support the Director of Services to innovate and expand the housing programme

Community and Partnership Working

- Represent Stonewall Housing at key forums and community events
- Build strong local relationships with statutory and voluntary sector partners
- Promote the service and act as an LGBTQ+ housing champion in the region
- Advocate on behalf of residents, particularly in relation to Part VII of the Housing Act, local allocations policies, and safeguarding frameworks

Person Specification

Essential Experience & Knowledge

- Lived experience of being LGBTQ+, or significant professional experience working with LGBTQ+ people
- Direct experience working in supported housing, homelessness or social care
- Sound working knowledge of homelessness law (Housing Act 1996, Homelessness Reduction Act 2017)
- Familiarity with Local Authority housing systems, allocations, and safeguarding processes
- Experience supporting vulnerable people with multiple and complex needs

Essential Skills & Attributes

- Calm, confident and resilient under pressure
- Emotionally intelligent and values-led, with strong professional boundaries
- Excellent organisational, planning and communication skills
- Comfortable with change, fast-paced work, and a role where no two days are the same
- Skilled at motivating others and leading with clarity, empathy and purpose
- Competent in IT systems (Word, Outlook, Excel, case management software)

As with all members of Stonewall Housing s Team, the postholder will also:

Be an adept and nimble multitasker who relishes being busy and can keep multiple plates spinning.

Have strong networking and relationship-building skills.

Have a positive and can-do attitude.

Be able to adapt to changing circumstances with flexibility, and to work well under pressure.

Be required to support the wider Stonewall Housing team when needed, to ensure the smooth running of the organisation.

Join Stonewall Housing s All Team meeting in person (held near Liverpool Street Station) once per month.

Be able to travel occasionally around the UK for key events.

To work as part of a mostly-remote team, embracing online communication and collaboration tools.

To receive regular supervision from the line manager and attend training courses as required.

Your attitude and personal attributes

A commitment to equal opportunities in all aspects of work.

A commitment to the aims, values and beliefs of the organisation.

Ability to empathise with vulnerable LGBTQ+ people.

Conditions:

This job description does not constitute a terms and conditions of employment . It is provided only as a guide to assist the employee in the performance of their job. Stonewall Housing is an evolving organisation and therefore changes to the employees duties may be necessary from time to time. The job description is not intended to be inflexible or a finite list of tasks and may be varied from time to time after consultation/discussion with the post holder.

More about who we are:

Stonewall Housing is the UK s leading LGBTQ+ homelessness charity. We help LGBTQ+ people in the UK who are experiencing homelessness or living in an unsafe environment.

Founded in 1983, we provide specialist housing advice, advocacy and support for LGBTQ+ people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. We have specialisms in Mental Health, Domestic Abuse and Supported Accommodation.

We re a team of caring, driven people, fighting to end homelessness and ensure that everyone has a safe and secure space to call home.

Our Values:

We are LGBTQ+ informed.

We are tenacious.

We are empowering.

We are collaborative.

We are inclusive.

What we can offer you:

Whatever stage of your career you may be at, we ll support you with the training and development that you to reach your goals.

Our benefits include:

Competitive salary

Flexible working

Generous annual leave 30 days (FTE)

An additional Stonewall Housing day off per year

Pension scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

BHSF health cash plan

Stonewall Housing s core hours are between 10 00 and staff can agree regular working patterns with their line manager.

Applying for the role:

No formal qualifications are needed for this role, and we encourage everyone with the appropriate skills, experience and potential to apply. We welcome applications from those who are able to understand and show empathy with our mission and purpose.

We re committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce that represents the people we support. We particularly welcome applications from people who are Black, Asian or from other minority backgrounds. We welcome difference whether it s gender, gender identity or expression, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital status, national origin, or pregnancy and maternity status; so please be yourself! Additionally, we particularly encourage applications from candidates with lived experience of homelessness who we believe are an essential asset in our sector.

For more information about us, please visit our website and follow Stonewall Housing on our social channels.

Equity is important to the success of our team and work. We don t want any barriers to applying so if you want to discuss particular aspects of our approach, or get a better understanding of whether Stonewall Housing (or this role) is right for you, then please contact John, our Director of Services, on john at stonewallhousing dot org.

Interesting in researching more about us? If you're looking us up online to help with your application, bear in mind that Stonewall Housing is both a Community Benefit Society and Charitable Foundation. Our company number is IP24277R and our charity number is . You can find Stonewall Housing Charitable Foundation (SHCF) on the Charity Commission Register, and Stonewall Housing Association (SHA) on the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) Register.