Head of Customer Experience and Housing

£62,000 per year plus car allowance (subject to eligibility)

37 hours per week; Permanent

Monday – Friday

Ipswich/ Hybrid

Ref: IP359

 

Are you a strategic leader with a passion for delivering high-quality customer experience that uses and interprets customer insight to make a positive difference?

 

Look no further, we are looking for a forward-thinking, customer-focused individual to join our established Customers and Communities Team here at Orwell. In this role, the Head of Customer Experience and Housing will collaborate closely with customers and colleagues to provide guidance and leadership across Orwell’s Housing Management, Customer Resolutions and Customer Insight & Engagement teams.

 

 

Key Responsibilities:

 

As part of this role, the Head of Customer Experience and Housing’s key responsibilities include…

 

• Helping to transform our customers and community insight and engagement offer, ensuring that the voices of our customers are heard across the organisation.


• Proactively lead the Housing Management team, the Customer Resolutions team and the Customer Insight and Engagement team.


• Working with the Director of Customer and Communities to ensure we can meet the requirements of the Consumer Standards and Complaints Handling Code.


• Champion customer care and lead on customer experience, with particular emphasis on delivering a compliant and effective resolution service for our customers.


• Lead on our tenancy sustainment offer to customers ensuring you deliver to our strategies.

 

 

About you:

 

We are looking for a leader with…

 

• Excellent knowledge of the RSH Consumer Standards, Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code and Health and Safety compliance in the housing sector along with, legislation relating to the allocation and management of social housing, notably The Housing Act 1985 and The Housing Act 1996.


• Experience and knowledge of embedding effective customer engagement and insight mechanisms to shape and develop service delivery.


• Experience in leading customer-facing operations, delivering housing management services, including allocations and lettings, income collection, void management and tenancy management across a wide range of schemes and tenure types.


• Motivation to continue to help make a difference to our customers’ lives, sharing the vision and values Orwell continues to embody.

 

 

More about Orwell Housing…

 

At Orwell Housing, we are committed to providing safe homes in our communities and dedicated to providing high quality frontline services to our customers. We manage around 4,500 homes and are proud to support thousands of residents across Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.

 

At the heart of our organisation are the values that guide everything we do — known collectively as P.A.C.E: People-Focused, Ambitious, Collaborative, and Effective.

• People-Focused means recognising and respecting the diverse needs, strengths, and experiences of everyone we work with, treating all individuals with fairness and dignity.


• Ambitious reflects our drive to grow, enabling us to support more people and unlock the full potential of both our teams and the communities we serve.


• Collaborative highlights our commitment to working in partnership — with tenants, customers, colleagues, and like-minded organisations — to share ideas, find solutions, and implement best practices.


• Effective represents our dedication to delivering high-quality, efficient services. We lead with knowledge and expertise, ensuring our teams are skilled, committed, and always striving for excellence.

 

These values shape our culture, influence our decisions, and define the way we work.

 

 

Person Specification…

 

• Extensive experience or knowledge of the housing sector.


• A recognised Housing qualification as set out by the RSH or willingness to work towards one is essential.


• A leadership qualification or willingness to gain a qualification in the Orwell Academy via the Building Leaders Programme is essential.

 

Please note a full driving licence is essential for this role.

 

Why Join Orwell?

 

As well as our inclusive culture and passion for our PACE values, we offer a broad range of benefits including:

 

• 25 days annual leave (pro rata) plus bank holidays

• Company car allowance (subject to eligibility)

• Reward and recognition awards


• Ongoing training and development & opportunities to progress in your role through the Orwell Academy


• Wellbeing programme


• Cashback Health plan


• Access to Blue Light Card – membership fees apply.

Interview Dates:

• 1st Interviews – 6^th August 2025


• 2nd Interviews – 20^th August 2025

Before applying…

Please note Orwell Housing Association does not provide visa sponsorship. You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply. You will be required to provide the relevant right to work documentation if successfully appointed to the role.

Orwell is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We believe in creating an accessible and supportive environment, where every team member can thrive and contribute. Join us in our commitment to building a workplace that celebrates diversity and empowers all individuals to reach their full potential. We actively welcome applications from candidates with disabilities and are dedicated to making reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process to ensure equal access and opportunity for all.

If there’s a barrier to you applying for any of our roles, we’d like to remove it so please get in touch with our Talent team either by giving them a call (01473 228782) or emailing work@orwell-housing.co.uk.

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