Living Independent Advisor

**About Us**

A member of The Guinness Partnership, Guinness Care is a charitable organisation that specialises in services for older people and people with learning disabilities. Our staff are hardworking and enthusiastic. We all want to provide great person-centred service to enable our customers to live positive, independent lives. In return, we offer a rewarding job with excellent benefits alongside outstanding accredited training and management development.

**What’s on offer?**

We offer an excellent benefits package for our care teams to help make Guinness Partnership a great place to work. These include:

- £14,533.57 per annum (FTE £20,347)
- Permanent 25 hours per week, Monday - Friday
- Company enhanced sick pay after a qualifying period and a variety of generous pension schemes to choose from
- Professional development support
- Free enhanced DBS
- £250 refer a friend scheme
- Work mobile
- Paid mileage, 45p per mile
- Excellent lifestyle benefits portal including Cycle to Work scheme and fantastic discounts at supermarkets and many other shops and on-line retailers
- Simply Health cashback programme
- Employee Assistance Programme which provides free counselling and much more

**About the Role**

You will mainly be based at Lewes but will need to be flexible as you may need to travel between schemes as and when required so a full driving license will be desirable for this role.

The purpose of this role is to provide an intensive housing management service to Guinness sheltered housing and care customers.

**Your key responsibilities will include**:

- Develop successful customer relationships and provide a quality customer service which reflects our Guinness service style, warm and friendly, make things easy and get things done
- Assist prospective customers to view properties, explain services and assist new customers to settle into their accommodation
- To assist in tenancy management matters; ensuring existing and new customers understand their rights and responsibilities in accordance with their tenancy agreement
- To provide assistance to access correct housing benefit assistance or financial advice to pay rent/service charges
- Carry out periodic site inspections and tests to ensure scheme is fully operational, Health and Safety compliant, including the completion of appropriate risk assessments and fit for use including lifts and communal areas
- To be responsible for monitoring the quality of contractors providing services on scheme (services paid for via service charges such as grounds maintenance, window cleaning, laundry)
- Develop and maintain good working relationships with other colleagues across Guinness to ensure a seamless service is delivered to customers around the general management, maintenance, and security of the scheme
- To respond and report any evidence of on-going disputes amongst customers
- Complete referrals for assistive technology, aids and adaptations which will help to maintain customer independence
- Respond to any emergencies that have been raised through Guinness housing colleagues

**What we’re looking for**:

- A People centred individual, perhaps previous experience of working with the elderly and proven ability to foster a spirit of co-operation and sense of independence within this group
- Demonstrable commitment to Equality and Diversity
- Ability to adapt communication style to suit individual needs or when explaining technical information
- Previous experience of carrying out administrative work including numeracy work
- Ability to work on own initiative and as part of a team
- Good oral and written communications
- Good knowledge of Microsoft Office

**Desirable**
- Any experience dealing with bereavement and loss and an understanding of housing management/support services or knowledge of housing benefit would also be advantageous, but is not essential