Director of Homes & Compliance

About this role

*Job Title:*Director of Homes Compliance and Safety

*Contract Type:*Permanent

*Salary:*£Competitive

*Working Hours:*35 Hours per week

*Working Pattern:*Monday-Friday/Hybrid

*Location:*Liverpool / London - UK wide presence required

If you share our values and are excited about making a significant impact at Riverside, please ensure you attach a current CV and covering letter. At Riverside we recruit to potential not just on skills and experience, so we encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the essential criteria on the job description.

Please note that whilst we will accept applications on the basis of any form of valid legal permission to work in the UK, we will be surrendering the Riverside Sponsorship licence, so for the avoidance of doubt, we are unable to apply for any further sponsorships whether on behalf of existing colleagues or candidates.

The difference you’ll make as a Director of homes compliance and safety

We are seeking a strategic and experienced leader with a strong track record of delivering building safety outcomes within an organisation of comparable size, scale and complexity. Experience of working in a regulated environment would be advantageous. The successful candidate will have significant senior leadership experience within a large and geographically dispersed organisation, with a proven ability to drive high performance, lead successful transformational change, and deliver excellent outcomes in their area of responsibility. They will also hold relevant professional memberships and qualifications, ideally including MRICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors), membership of the Institute of Fire Safety Managers (IFSM), Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), or Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) at GIFireE level or above..

Why Riverside?

At Riverside, we’re a housing association with a difference – enhancing the everyday for all our customers. For 90 years, we’ve been revitalising neighbourhoods and supporting communities by providing the homes they need to live full, fulfilling and rewarding lives.

We have a portfolio of over 75,000 affordable residential and retirement homes across the UK. Our work ranges from homelessness services to social care, employment support to retirement living, and we need the best people on board to help us.

Working with us, you’ll enjoy

• Competitive pay & generous pension
• 28 days holidays plus bank holidays
• Flexible working options available
• Investment in your learning, personal development and technology
• A wide range of benefits

Diversity and Inclusion at Riverside

We are inclusive. At Riverside, we value diversity in all its forms. We foster a workplace where all individuals are respected, empowered, and heard. Our commitment to inclusivity drives our success and enriches the lives of our customers and colleagues.

Riverside is a Disability Confident Employer and operates a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for any applicant who declares they have a disability. If the applicant meets the minimum requirements for the role (as set out in the role profile and/or person specification) they will be guaranteed an interview.

Applications may close before the deadline, so please apply early to avoid disappointment.

Role Profile

Leading our strategy and our people

• Through visibility as a brilliant leader, foster a culture of collaboration, transparency, empowerment and engagement. Inspiring and motivating the team to deliver high performance and ‘joined up’ services that lead to the highest possible standards and excellent customer outcomes.
• Lead and be accountable for strategy development and implementation across specific areas of responsibility identifying, promoting, and implementing projects and initiatives that achieve the effective and efficient running of respective areas within the respective directorate and across the Group.
• As a director, contribute and shape the corporate objectives and priorities of the directorate under the guidance of the Chief Property Officer.
• Live Our Riverside Way (values), leading in such a way as to have a positive impact on our people and support the achievement of our aspired culture.
• Deliver on our people promise, ensuring a great colleague experience, achieving high levels of engagement, with positive outcomes for customers, business, and colleagues.
• Ensure effective working relationships within the area of responsibility, the wider directorate and the Group.
• Demonstrate sector leadership in influencing central and local Government (where appropriate), other partners, and internal or external stakeholders as appropriate to the role.
• Actively coach and manage the performance of individuals, teams, and departments, providing clarity of direction, supporting the achievement of goals that positively impact colleague and the customer experience.

Service delivery, customer experience and performance

Responsible for the following areas

• The role sets our strategic approach to risk assessments and defining our safety framework in the context of our customers’ homes and group buildings. This will include setting out policy requirements and associated accountability frameworks. There will be a key focus on fire safety and land-lord H&S compliance to meet the safety & quality consumer standards.
• Lead responsibility for understanding fire risks in our homes and Group buildings and taking ap-propriate steps and actions to mitigate and manage those risks on an ongoing basis so that buildings can be safely occupied, with specific responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of the structure and outside of the building, plant rooms and common parts.
• Lead a team responsible for fire safety inspections, day to day management of fire safety risk including servicing, maintenance and remediation, and building safety registration and management of our high-risk portfolio, building safety landlord compliance.
• Ensure there is in place an accountable person for all higher risk buildings where Riverside has the repair obligations in respect of its common parts under a lease or by virtue of an enactment and liaise with other organisations where they are the Principle Accountable Person.
• Lead on engagement with key strategic external stakeholders including local government, building safety regulator, housing ombudsman, fire and rescue service.
• Lead our strategic approach to incident management within area of accountability, ensuring business continuity plans are in place with recovery plans and scenario planning.
• Support the Groups duty-holders to understand their legal responsibilities at each stage of the building’s lifecycle including occupation to ensure the building is safe for its residents at different stages of the building life and provide specialist professional and technical advice to effectively coach and mentor to improve knowledge and understanding of fire safety, resident engagement and compliance aspects relating to property management.
• Oversee the design, planning, scheduling, and implementation of an effective and timely risk-based program of safety inspections on behalf of the Group, ensuring adherence to relevant regulatory, statutory and compliance frameworks.
• Register and maintain appropriate “Building Registration Certificate” for all in scope high risk buildings with the Building Safety Regulator on behalf of the Groups Licensed Duty Holder and ensure no buildings are occupied without the appropriate certification issued by the regulator. Ensure any mandatory, special, or voluntary conditions attached to the Building Registration Certificate are complied with to the satisfaction of the Building Safety Regulator. Develop and implement appropriate mandatory inspections and occurrence reporting regime both internally and externally with the Building Safety Regulator.

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