Navigator (Ref:13573)
Fixed Term - 1 year

Do you want a hands-on insight into the impact of public policy on the lives of people living in poverty? To be part of one of the most exciting projects in the UK, at the cutting edge of innovation in service delivery? To change substantively the life chances of people trapped in a vicious cycle of exclusion?


With multiple needs, socially excluded individuals in our most deprived communities are brought into contact with multiple services. However, the services are organised, usually funded and traditionally delivered in disconnected silos – which can just exacerbate the exclusion.

In Brent, with the upcoming changes in housing benefit potentially making over 3,000 families homeless, we urgently need to link our residents with the right services. We must find a new way to work across the silos. Our ground-breaking pilot aims to do so this by bringing together a new team.  

Our six Navigators will each be given a caseload of the most excluded Brent families. You will establish contact and engage with them, probably in their own homes, and build an understanding of their needs. You will NOT look to solve all the issues yourself but you will help them navigate the system, finding the right service doors to knock on and ensuring the service response is understood and effective.

Your first focus will be trying to keep them in their homes, despite the impending impact of welfare reform.
You can’t be frightened of a challenge! We are creating something new here. As a team, you are going to decide how to deliver this; how to support each other; and how to maintain exceptional motivation. We are going to want to track closely what you do, to understand what works and what the cost-benefit is of your impact. 

You will not necessarily have experience of work like this but will have:
• At least one degree or the equivalent, with high analytic, creative and emotional intelligence;
• A demonstrable interest in public policy and/or services targeting excluded individuals;
• Exceptional interpersonal skills;
• Outstanding communication and IT skills;
• Great initiative and also team working ability;
• A willingness to deliver stretching targets and to be robustly performance managed.

Brent Council values the diversity of its community and aims to have a workforce that reflects this therefore encourage applications from all sections of the community.  Difference in a team reflects the diversity of our world sections of the community.  Difference in (sic) and enables us to see that world in new ways – delivering better services as a result.


If you would like to apply for this role, please click on the 'Apply now' button. 
Scale 6 £23,979 - £25,467 pa inc London Weighting
CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: 17 October 2012
POST BASED: Wembley