To Enable Homeless People to Access Accommodation

Organisational Background

SPEAR is a voluntary agency providing a full spectrum of services to homeless and marginalised people in and around Richmond, in south-west London. The aim with all our clients is that they are ultimately able to live independently and manage all areas of their life without the support of SPEAR.

SPEAR’s first project was a night shelter which opened in 1987. The organisation has continued to grow and develop ever since and today we offer services to hundreds of homeless and vulnerable people, successfully transforming lives.

We have a mission statement, which we hope states matter-of-factly what we are trying to do:

To enable homeless people to access accommodation, and those at risk of homelessness to maintain their accommodation. To support all our service users to the point that they no longer need us.

This mission statement is the driver for everything we do; we not only support homeless people to find a home, or assist substance misusers to end their use, we also support people to take control of their own lives and give them the skills and confidence to live independently well beyond their time with SPEAR.

To this end, SPEAR currently operates these services;

 A Hostel, Penny Wade House, providing an intensive period of support for people who have previously had no access to accommodation.  The Outreach Team responsible for finding and resettling rough sleepers.  The Tenancy Support Team helps clients maintain their tenancies by ensuring that they have the necessary skills and support networks.  The Drug and Alcohol Team tackling drug and alcohol addiction for homeless and vulnerably- housed people.  Two Young Person’s Residential Projects, one in Richmond, one in Merton, enabling young people to achieve independence through supported accommodation.  The Tenancy Finder Service uses a unique insurance product to enable individuals and families to access tenancies in the privately rented sector.  The Veterans Support Service offers a range of support to people who have served in our Armed Forces.  A Skills Development service offering meaningful activities, training and a job club to our service users

All the services work closely together to provide a joined-up approach as individuals progress towards living independently. Support is provided to all service users to access meaningful activity, small grants, preparation for work, training and a wide variety of other services to tackle the issues they face which prevent them living independently.

More information regarding our services can be found on www.spearlondon.org Why you should work for SPEAR

1.) The ability to change the lives of some of the most marginalised people in our society. SPEAR strives to change for the better the lives of those who experience homelessness, or those at risk of homelessness. We provide services with the simple aim that every single person we work with finds and keeps a home. Working for SPEAR gives you (whatever your role is) the tools to truly change the lives of the people we work with – and to see the results of your input. 2.) SPEAR’s reputation. SPEAR has an excellent reputation for providing services that truly make a difference to some of the most marginalised people in our society. You will be working alongside experienced professionals who understand the inputs needed to bring about such positive change. We attempt to unlock the potential in everyone we work with and will encourage you to do so too. We have been appointed to the National Advisory Committee of our sector’s umbrella body and in 2011 we were finalists in the Institute of Directors (London and South East) Chairman's Award.

3.) SPEAR’s commitment to training and developing staff SPEAR is committed to developing the skills and abilities of the people we work with. Training and personal development ideas will be discussed in supervision meetings and one of the aims of your annual appraisal will be to produce a mutually-agreed personal development plan for you and your line manager to work through and refer back to during the year. We encourage staff to undertake formal or accredited training. Following a satisfactory probationary period we will happily explore supporting you in this area. We also like our staff to share their interests or hidden talents with our clients and encourage staff to hold a session at the hostel, sharing their skills in cookery for example. 4.) Remuneration SPEAR offers competitive salaries that are comparable – and often better - than other agencies in our sector. 5.) Terms and conditions All staff start with 26 days holiday per year and this rises up to 31 with length of service. We offer maternity and paternity leave (as well as other leave) beyond the statutory minimum, to ensure that you maintain a good work-life balance. Staff are offered a 6% non-contributory pension, access to a Childcare Voucher scheme, and an allowance for work-related travel. All staff have access to free, confidential counselling (up to six sessions per year) as well as the opportunity for flexible working hours to fit around caring responsibilities and your circumstances. 6.) Career progression Several members of staff have come through our trainee scheme, a programme whereby all successful trainees gain valuable work experience and training in key skills. Others have received an internal promotion since joining this organisation as a permanent staff member. 7.) The People In our annual staff satisfaction survey, we ask staff what the best thing about working for SPEAR is. Nearly all of them say each other! We pride ourselves on developing a culture in which staff meet regularly and communication is free across the organisation. We have a monthly team meeting which all staff attend (and contribute to) as well as an optional monthly social event. We offer an induction which ensures that new staff tour all the other services and meet the majority of people within the organisation. We also regularly bring both staff and service users together to make decisions which affect the services we offer. Working for SPEAR you truly are part of the team. Application Form Guidelines

Thank you for your interest in SPEAR... SPEAR is a small and dynamic team and we highly value the characters, talents and potential of all our staff. We are committed to promoting equal opportunities and we welcome applications from all parts of the community especially from those who have experienced periods of homelessness.

Before you start... Before you start filling out your application form, please take the time to carefully read through these guidelines, the person specification and the job description. If anything is unclear – now is a good time to give us a call – we’re always happy to clarify! We will not accept CVs so please do not send one in place of an application form. Only the information provided on the application form will be considered. SPEAR are unable to obtain a work permit for you so please make sure that you are eligible to work in the UK.

Filling in the application form... Please read all the questions carefully and try to answer as thoroughly as you can, ensuring that the writing, type or black ink, is neat, clear and concise. A well presented application form can set you apart from other applicants. You may find it useful to do a rough draft beforehand to avoid making mistakes. Don’t make any false claims; always be completely honest in your answers. If you run out of space on the form, you may use a continuation sheet. Continuation sheets should be clearly numbered with your surname and the position you’ve applied for. Please make sure that the continuation sheet is securely attached to your form. If there are questions in this form that do not apply to you then just write N/A (not applicable) in the box.

Explaining gaps in your work history... We would appreciate your explanations if there are any gaps in your work history so that we can avoid making any unfounded assumptions. These periods may be due to things such as education, maternity leave, travelling or perhaps a period of homelessness. Please provide dates and information to help clarify the situation. We believe that personal experience of homelessness can give you valuable insight into working in the sector. We would encourage you to take your time answering this section, and to be honest with us.

Demonstrating your skills, knowledge and experience... This is the most important section of your application – you will be assessed by the information you provide in here. You need to clearly demonstrate how you feel your capabilities are relevant to each of the job specific competencies in the person specification, taking into account the position you are applying for.

Write a separate paragraph for each competency. It is vital that you illustrate your answers for each competency with examples from your personal or professional experience, demonstrating that you possess the skills, attitude or understanding required.

For example, it is easy to say that you have had to liaise with clients to identify and respond to their needs but it is more effective to give examples of the skills you used and the achievements you made. Always write in a positive manner, for example; ‘I was responsible for...I organised...’

When we recruit we look for people who show excellent potential and good understanding. We look for those with transferable skills, not necessarily someone who has worked in a similar position. Always demonstrate how your skills, knowledge and experience can be applied to the post. Providing referees... You need to provide us with the names and contact details for 2 referees from the last 3 years. If applicable, one should be from your present or most recent employment / line manager and the others from previous employment.

If there are any gaps in your work history, for example due to education or a period of homelessness, we would request a reference from any services you have named to help us to confirm these gaps. We will not accept personal references from friends or family, except in exceptional circumstances. If you are not sure who could act as a referee for you, please contact us and we would be happy to help. Referees will not usually be contacted until an offer of employment has been made.

Declaring convictions... Your criminal record will only be taken into account if the conviction is relevant to the position you are applying for. We will not disregard your application because you have a conviction but we will need to consider the circumstances and the background of the offence in relation to the particular requirements of the job.

If you are informing us of any conviction(s) please give full details of the offence and the outcome and put into a separate envelope marked with your surname and addressed for the attention of the Resources Director and securely attach to the application form. This envelope will only be opened in the event that you are shortlisted for interview. The Resources Director will share the contents of the envelope with the panel and they will make a decision on whether to invite you for interview.

If you do have any concerns, please take the time to discuss them with the Resources Director on 020 7036 9762.

Your health... If you have or have suffered from any long term medical conditions, physical disabilities or consider yourself to have a mental health problem which could affect your working arrangements, it is important to let us know. You will not be penalised for being truthful and, if you are the right candidate for the role, we will make every effort to make sure your working environment is comfortable and suitable to your needs.

You may inform us in writing of the details of any health conditions and any assistance or adjustments you will need for attending the interview and for possible working arrangements. Write on a separate sheet and put this into an envelope marked with your surname and addressed for the attention of the Resources Director and securely attach to the application form. This envelope will only be opened in the event that you are shortlisted for interview. The Resources Director will share the contents with the panel and you will be contacted should you need assistance in attending the interview.

If you do have any concerns, please take the time to discuss them with the Resources Director on 020 7036 9762.

Sending your application... Please ensure that you return your application in good time before the closing date. Send your completed application form and equal opportunities monitoring form to: [email protected] or to Job Application, 89 Heath Road, Twickenham TW1 4AW. Please make sure that if you are sending by post that you have left enough time for it to arrive before the deadline.

Ensuring equal opportunities... SPEAR is committed to promoting equal opportunities and to having a diverse team to better reflect the communities we work with. Therefore we welcome and encourage applicants from all backgrounds, especially those with a personal history of homelessness, those with disabilities and those from black and ethnic minority groups.

We are committed to employing people with the right skills, talent and potential and as an equal opportunities employer we want to ensure that those in the community who experience social barriers have an equal opportunity of getting into and staying in employment.

If you consider yourself to have a medical condition, a mental health condition or to be disabled, it is important for you to identify any individualised needs and we may be able to make reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process and to your working arrangements, wherever possible. These include the provision of equipment or support, changes to your working arrangement, duties or hours etc.

To ensure that our recruitment process is non-discriminatory we only ask for your initial and surname on the application form and we ask you to fill out an equal opportunities form.

We would be grateful if you could complete the equal opportunities form and send it together with your application form. On opening, this form is separated from the application form and is not given to the shortlisting team. The information on this form is treated as confidential and is used for monitoring purposes only.

And finally... We do not generally acknowledge receipt of applications, unless you specifically ask us to. Once we have shortlisted – usually within three days of the closing date, we will be in touch to let you know whether or not you have been selected for interview.

If you have not been selected for interview, or if you are unsuccessful at interview stage, we are more than happy to provide feedback on your application. We want to ensure that the sector benefits from staff who are motivated and if we can help you make your next application absolutely brilliant, we’re happy to share!

Thank you and good luck!