Housing Complex Complaints Officer

**About Southwark**
Southwark’s Housing department is one of the largest local authority housing providers in London, responsible for managing over 55,000 homes, for 40% of the borough’s residents. The area plays a vital role in the community, ensuring that tenants and leaseholders receive high-quality housing services that meet their needs.

We’re committed to being a just and fair landlord, prioritising the wellbeing of our residents, and tackling inequalities across the borough. With a focus on transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement, our Housing department aims to exceed expectations, and deliver exceptional services across the borough.

We genuinely believe that our residents deserve to live in safe, well-maintained homes, and we continue to work tirelessly to achieve this through a combination of innovation, dedication, and collaboration with our communities.

This post requires a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service DBS check at enhanced level.

**Benefits and more information**:
In your role, we want you to feel supported, challenged and rewarded. You will benefit from our family-friendly policies including flexible working, home working, and a local government pension scheme, plus many other staff benefits. You will join a motivated, driven and supportive team that strives for excellence and values its members. You will also be part of a successful and high-achieving development team that is making a real difference to the lives of residents in the borough. For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our **Staff Benefits** page.
**What does a Complex Complaints Officer do at Southwark Council?**
As a Complex Complaints Officer, you will support the Housing Complaints Manager in:

- Delivering a high-quality complaints service, investigating, and resolving stage one complaints across the Housing Department.
- You will take responsibility for analysing complex complaints, identifying root causes, and recommending service improvements, while ensuring timely and fair resolutions that meet both the Council’s and Ombudsman’s expectations.
- Prepare detailed reports on key trends, lessons learned, and corrective actions for senior management, helping to drive continuous improvement across the service.

The role will also involve building strong working relationships with internal and external stakeholders, ensuring complaints are handled efficiently and with integrity. You will oversee the complaints database, ensuring it is fit for purpose, while also delivering training and guidance for colleagues.

Ultimately, this role will support the delivery of a resident focused service, making a real difference to the community.

To be considered for this role you will:

- Have significant experience dealing with a range of complex complaints, with the ability to identify and implement suitable resolutions.
- Have a deep understanding of statutory requirements and relevant legislation, including the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaints Handling Code and the Social Housing Regulation Bill.
- You will be an excellent communicator, both written and verbal, with the ability to present detailed reports to senior management, recommending strategic improvements.
- Strong organisational skills and a proactive approach to problem-solving are key, along with the ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines.

Strong organisational skills are critical, which will enable you to prioritise tasks effectively, meet deadlines, and handle high-pressure situations. You will also be able to demonstrate high level of attention to detail, and the ability to handle sensitive information with confidentiality.

**Additional Information**
Advert closing date: 27/12/2024

Interview date: January 2025

**We are recruiting for a combination of Permanent & Fixed Term Contract Posts.**

**Guaranteed Interview Scheme**:
As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:

- Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
- Are currently in care, or have previously been in care
- If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition

Job Reference: SC06919