Senior Technical Officer

Job Title: Senior Technical Officer
Starting Salary: £46,731 progressing to £51,802 per annum – pay award pending
Hours: 37
Location: Stevenage with Countywide travel
Contract Type: Permanent
Directorate: Adult Care Services

About the team

This is an exciting opportunity to join Hertfordshire Home Improvement Agency (HHIA) in our fast-paced DFG adaptations and income generating service. We are looking for Senior Technical Officer who is highly motivated, enthusiastic, and organised person, who can ensure consistent high levels of managerial support. You will join a friendly, dedicated and inclusive support team.

The Hertfordshire Home Improvement Agency (HHIA) is part of an innovative amalgamation of resources from six districts coming together to provide a service that supports the independence of local residents. The aim of the HHIA is to create a better living experience through adaptation for residents of Hertfordshire. The HHIA can deliver this through a government grant known as the Disabled Facilities Grant.

The Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG), which is means tested, helps to pay for essential home adaptations such as Level Access showers, stairlifts, ramps or to make other changes to the home to enable disabled children and adults to lead more independent lives.

About the role

• The Senior Technical officer would draw up plans, assess costs and draw up schemes of works for adaptations, produce tender documentation and support planning applications.
• To monitor and supervise complex works while on site, liaising directly with building contractor when necessary and acts as the departmental emergency contact in relation to all works.
• To undertake complex or sensitive technical work in line with Technical Officer role, but for which a higher level of authority/experience is required. For example; where the client has a complex disability.
• Evaluate and sign off practical completion of works, agree defects list and remedial work, check quality and ensure that the site is left clean and tidy.
• Liaise with the customer to ensure their satisfaction with the work before formally certifying completion.
• To ensure all paperwork and records are kept up to date and are accurate in accordance with CDM and any other regulatory or statutory requirements
• Ability to work collaboratively with OT, health and casework officers from across the council and other services.
• Ensure projects deliver to agreed quality standards, timescales and budgets and programmes deliver benefits against targets.
• Work with district HHIA Partnership, Housing associations, OTs to achieve required outcomes.
• Ensure all systems operate smoothly and align with our quality standards.

Every week is different and an opportunity to learn. Our team is involved in a hugely diverse set of services and initiatives, with opportunities to build new relationships and understand the important services we deliver to residents of Hertfordshire. The challenges are many, the reward of client being independent in their own homes through adaptations for the people that we support and seeing the changes that come from that make the efforts worthwhile.

About you

Essential Criteria

• Building, surveying or construction related qualification
• Full UK Driving Licence
• Experience of using CAD or other similar software
• Experience of overseeing contractors on site
• Experience of tender documents and costings
• Experience of producing technical specifications and preparing contract documentation

Desirable:

• Understanding of Disabled Facilities Grant
• Member of a construction related professional body

We welcome applications from candidates who currently reside in the UK with established proof of right to work documentation. We are not able to offer sponsorship at this time for this role.

This job role is within the Technical Services, level TEC12 job profile. Please locate this via:

Job profiles: Technical services

To hear more about this opportunity please contact sabrina.kelly@hertfordshire.gov.uk for an informal discussion about the role.

Interview Date: TBC

Benefits of working for us

How to apply

As part of your application, please upload your most recent CV. Ensure your CV is up to date with your employment history (including any employment gaps), and including any training/qualifications. We encourage you to include examples of where you have demonstrated the requirements/criteria in the advert / job profile to allow the panel to fully recognise your skills and abilities. You will have the opportunity to include a short covering paragraph within your application to give us a little more information about your skills, knowledge, and experiences.

Additional information

Disability Confident
We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

Safeguarding
This role has been identified as requiring a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

Driving required
You’ll need to have the ability to drive and/or travel around Hertfordshire, either using your own mode of transport or a company car to travel to other locations.

English Fluency
The ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post (for those whose language is a signed language the provision of a sign language interpreter who speaks English to the necessary standard of fluency will be required). Further information about the legal requirement can be found here.