Position Details

Campus Services

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £27,036 to £29,043.

From 1 November 2023 the salary range will increase to £28,397 to £30,210, with potential progression once in post to £33,938

Band 500

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to February 2025

Closing date: 29 January 2024

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum, and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Background

The Accommodation Officer will be responsible for delivering a comprehensive accommodation service to all students and staff members of the University of Birmingham. You will be joining the Accommodation team with this post being based in a shop and office called Living, which is located in the retail area of campus.

The Accommodation team is responsible for the delivery of an efficient accommodation service at the University of Birmingham, and work closely with colleagues across other services. The team play a major role in ensuring that university owned and managed bed spaces are fully occupied and that excellent customer care is provided at all times, with Student Accommodation often being the first point of contact a prospective student has with the University. The Accommodation team provides advice, information and support to students living in the private sector and is a liaison point for matters relating to the local community.

Role Summary

We are looking for a dynamic and enthusiastic team player who can adapt quickly to support Accommodation with the allocation of university-owned and managed bed spaces. The post holder will deliver a number of functions within the service, including accommodation allocations and the management of bed spaces, liaising with our partner providers of accommodation, dealing with transfer applications, and responding to customer inquiries. The person appointed will also provide support for special group bookings, and will represent Accommodation at Open Days and Offer Holder Days. This is an exciting time to join Accommodation as we look to continually improve the student experience and deliver excellent customer service to all our customers.

Main duties

Management of accommodation allocations and bed spaces of a large and varied portfolio of student and staff residences

• Managing all accommodation applications and allocations using StarRez, the University’s accommodation software
• Managing the applications and allocations of students/groups with specific requirements
• Managing the accommodation transfer process and students requesting early release from their accommodation
• Managing relationships with our partner providers of accommodation to ensure that we fulfil our Guarantee Schemes
• Responding to customer inquiries relating to the full range of accommodation issues either in person, via email, telephone and social media
• Supervision of part-time student team members, including training and day to day management
• Supporting the allocations of our small portfolio of staff properties
• To work within and keep up to date on all relevant housing legislation
• To give advice on housing law (contracts) and landlord and tenancy rights
• The preparation, issue and management of contracts and ensuring that the terms and conditions of the accommodation contract are adhered to
• To take relevant enforcement action where necessary and assist the wider Accommodation team in issuing Notice To Quit documentation and any written warnings on breach of contract, for example relating to debt or behaviour
• Ensure all literature and accommodation contracts are up to date and accurate
• To advise students on appropriate housing options, both in University, Partner and private sector housing

To report on accommodation applications, allocations, special groups, transfers, early leavers, voids and debts

• To create reports and feedback on accommodation applications and allocation numbers to relevant senior management
• To provide accurate statistical information by retrieving data from our accommodation software, StarRez, and present it to senior management in an appropriate format
• To work with student finance on the management of accommodation fees and to actively report on any debt owed to accommodation
• To report on the allocation of special groups and make suggestions for the improvement of processes for allocating specific groups
• To manage the accommodation void list and make recommendations on how to maximise income and minimise voids
• To report on allocation and application trends to senior management to identify service improvements and offer suggestions for delivering an excellent customer service based on data
• To manage complaints confidently and efficiently; striking the balance between customer experience and business need, knowing when to escalate the issue to the relevant manager

Participate in aspects of marketing, communications and administration.

• To represent student accommodation at Open Days, Offer Holder Days and Housing events, including delivering presentations to a varied and diverse audience
• To contribute to the planning and management of events put on by the Accommodation team
• Support the marketing department by providing input into the delivery of accommodation marketing and promotion
• Review and suggest content to marketing, for use on the university website to ensure that students are provided with full and accurate accommodation information in a clear and engaging format
• Have an active understanding of digital communication platforms in order to engage with our target audience and provide accurate and relevant information
• Maintain accurate and up to date records, utilising the StarRez system
• Keep track of agreed actions and follow-up where necessary
• Ensure good communication and effective information sharing with other departments in Accommodation and across the University

Other duties

• To abide by General Data Protection Regulations, IT, Health and Safety and financial policies, and other legislation at all times, dealing with sensitive and confidential information in a professional manner.
• To keep abreast with development in office procedures and to contribute to their implementation.
• To support with recruitment, induction and training of new staff where applicable
• To support with departmental banking and financial reporting and to ensure that all daily financial procedures are being followed.
• To attend 1:1s, team meetings and annual personal development reviews to ensure that your performance is discussed and development maintained
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade of the post that may be required from time to time

Further Details

• All post holders are expected to take their main annual leave period when the business needs permit and in agreement with the relevant line manager
• During business critical periods the post holder may be required to work anti-social hours including weekends, bank holidays and University closed days

Person Specification

• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, and ability to adapt to a diverse range of customer groups (students, parents, departments and schools, academics and employees, including senior managers)
• Excellent customer service skills, with experience of providing customer service to a wide range of people from diverse backgrounds
• Strong Excel skills and competence in the use of other IT tools, including Word, PowerPoint and Outlook sufficient to perform the functions of the role as described in the job description
• Experience of, or strong ability to learn how to use accommodation management software such as StarRez
• Proven ability to work as part of a team and independently
• Minimum GCSE (or equivalent) Grade C in English and Mathematics
• Strong team player who is highly professional, customer focused and welcomes a challenging environment
• An understanding of the sensitive nature of some of the work undertaken and the ability to respond to this in an appropriate manner
• Well-developed organisational abilities, accuracy and ability to plan and prioritise own work
• A proactive and innovative approach to problem solving, with an ability to adapt to changing requirements and escalate issues where needed
• Excellent time management skills and the ability to meet deadlines and mange conflicting priorities
• Experience of working within a housing or other similar environment
• Understanding of the UK system of Higher Education and the application process
• Confident in telephone and in-person engagements, including in the delivery of presentations
• Proven ability to work professionally while under pressure to meet strict deadlines, and to be adaptable and flexible when faced with change
• Approachable and friendly with the ability to deal with challenging circumstances calmly and professionally when they arise
• Ability to work with and understand the needs of a wide range of people from culturally diverse backgrounds, including having an understanding of equality and diversity
• Able and willing to work flexibly, office hours will be from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, however some evening and weekend work will be required

Dimensions

The Accommodation Officer will form part of a team of 10 core staff, responsible for allocating student accommodation to c7,500 students and managing the bed spaces throughout the year. This post will work with two other Accommodation Officers to manage the allocation of student accommodation. This post will work closely with all members of the Accommodation team to enhance the customer experience.

Planning and organising

The Accommodation Officer will be responsible for the planning of their workload, in consultation with the Deputy Manager, Student Accommodation, and the Student Accommodation Manager. They will be responsible for ensuring that they organise their time to meet deadlines. The Accommodation Officer may receive direction from other managers within Accommodation Services on completion of work and deadlines that they are required to meet.

Work will be allocated to the post holder in the following ways:

• Through an annual performance development review
• Through monthly 1:1s
• Through monthly operational meetings & weekly team meetings
• Through emails and in person requests from managers

Problem solving and decision making

The Accommodation Officer will be required to make decisions in line with University regulations and in accordance with the scope of the role. Any problems that are particularly complex or difficult can be made in consultation with or be referred to senior managers. The post holder is expected to resolve the majority of issues that arise themselves, with an escalation process in place for more complex complaints and issues.

Internal and external relationships

The post holder will be required to develop and maintain a professional working relationship with the team, customers, clients and stakeholders.

Informal enquires to Esme Rybinski, e.rybinski@bham.ac.uk

View our staff values and behaviours here

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website .