Housing Delivery Programme Manager

Do you have a passion for affordable housing and want to help to make a difference? Do you have the ability to seek out innovative solutions and develop great partnerships? If so, we want to hear from you. West Oxfordshire District Council are looking for a Housing Delivery Programme Manager to accelerate the delivery of affordable homes in West Oxfordshire District.  

We have a strong sense of pride for our District and are ambitious and committed in our delivery of quality services to our communities. Affordable, suitable and decent housing is one of the top priorities in our Council Plans. 

About the role
As Housing Delivery Programme Manager you will be pivotal in supporting West Oxfordshire District Council in accelerating the delivery of affordable homes within the district, and driving forward a new housing strategy. You will have a proven track record of delivering affordable housing projects, a knowledge and practical understanding of best practice in affordable Housing Delivery, along with significant evidence of partnership working across the public, private and voluntary sectors. You will have the ability to be politically sensitive and have the credibility and excellent communication skills to unite our dedicated team and partners.

The role will coordinate Council investment and enabling activity, working in partnership with Homes England, registered providers and other third-party providers in order to develop and implement affordable Housing Delivery Programmes for the Council. You will deliver and develop our dynamic housing strategies, as well as work closely with partners to assess, monitor, and meet existing and emerging housing need. Key to this role is to have excellent oral and written communication skills with the ability to produce accurate and concise information. You will have the ability to lead your team across your service area, with an ambition to drive excellence for our customers and residents. We are seeking a motivated and innovative person, with good attention to detail, who can work proactively with internal and external partners.

You will need

• Proven track record of delivering affordable housing projects
• Understanding of government policy and funding regimes relevant to affordable housing
• Good knowledge and practical understanding of best practice in affordable Housing Delivery
• Familiarity of codes, government programs and regulatory frameworks that may impact affordable housing development and delivery
• Degree or equivalent qualification and/or significant experience in in housing management and/or development.
• Experience of developing housing related policies and strategies.
• Strong negotiating skills and experience of working with Registered Providers and Developers.
• Political awareness
• Understanding of the role that housing needs to play in tackling the climate and ecological emergency

Special conditions

• Ability to travel and have access to a vehicle for work purposes.
• This post designated as politically restricted in accordance with the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. Politically restricted post holders are restricted from canvassing on behalf of a political party or for a person who is, or seeks to be, a candidate for election to a local authority, the House of Commons, or the European Parliament.

You will be employed by Publica Group Ltd which was created by four partner Councils (West Oxfordshire District Council, Cotswold District Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and Forest of Dean District Council) to deliver more efficient and improved services. 
Publica is a unique place to work – we are a local government organisation with a twist! Publica wants to transform the way local services are delivered. To help do this we have started to fundamentally rethink the way we design our services in the digital era so that Publica is a customer-focused organisation driven by real user needs.

What can we do for you

• Agile working allowing a mix of home and office working
• Flexible working arrangements (depending on the role)
• 27 days paid annual leave (pro rata if you are working part time) plus bank holidays and an extra two volunteering days off a year for you to support a charity of your choice
• Health cash plan giving you cash back on health, dental and eye care
• Pension scheme with a good employer contribution of 5% of your earnings
• Employee Assistance Programme 24/7, providing positive, preventative and supportive advice and counselling to deal with everyday events and issues
• Cycle to work scheme
• Salary sacrifice car lease scheme with huge tax and NI savings to be made on electric cars
• Access to digital financial advice (covering your pension scheme, mortgages and other finances)
• Generous sickness cover above statutory entitlements
• Additional income protection, covering 50% of your salary for potentially a further five years if you are unable to work due to sickness or injury
• Life assurance, currently four times your annual salary

To apply for this position please click on "apply now" within this page and submit your CV and supporting statement. Please tell us about your skills, knowledge, qualifications, experience and how they meet the criteria listed above and in the job description/person specification. It’s important that we’re a good fit for each other, so let us know what’s important to you and why you want to work for Publica Group Ltd. Your application will not be considered if you have not provided a supporting statement, in addition to your CV.

Accredited of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies - Please state this within your covering statement or in a separate email.  Safer recruitment practices are applied to all job vacancies. Successful candidates will be required to complete a pre-employment medical questionnaire; provide references;  proof of identity; nationality and immigration status; three years’ employment or education history (if applicable) and, in some cases, verification of criminal record.