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A week in the life of… a senior tenancy management officer

Jubeen Ashraf works at Oxford City Council, where she is responsible for the day-to-day line management of a team of officers who oversee the council’s social housing tenancies and Oxford City Housing’s assured shorthold tenancies. She talks us through a week

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Jubeen has had to adjust to virtual one-to-ones since working from home
Jubeen has had to adjust to virtual one-to-ones since working from home
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A week in the life of… Jubeen Ashraf, a senior tenancy management officer at Oxford City Council #UKhousing

Monday

After I have made a warm cup of green tea, I start my day by accessing my calendar for the week and responding to emails. Due to the coronavirus pandemic we are mostly homeworking, but still carrying out limited home visits to support our vulnerable tenants.

The first meeting of the day is our ‘Monday management meeting’ via Zoom. Today’s session is focused around the ongoing measures that we are putting in place to ensure that the service still operates smoothly and, most importantly, that our staff are safe.

Prior to the pandemic I would have been sat in a Costa in Oxford, carrying out one-to-ones with my direct reports while drinking hot chocolate. The pandemic has forced us to implement and adjust to new ways of working, and today I carried out virtual one-to-ones. Having a catch-up with my direct reports helps me and them to identify and talk through any issues that they may be experiencing – staff well-being is key to me.

As part of our coronavirus response we developed an equality, diversity and inclusion working group that I contribute to. The group is responsible for organising a number of focus groups with the aim of understanding community needs at grassroots level. My next task is to call a number of residents to invite them to the focus groups. The phone calls were insightful – hearing people’s lived experiences and the current issues they are facing, from isolation to food poverty.

Tuesday

Working in an office has its benefits: interacting with others and reduced emails! As a team we ensure that we regularly have a catch-up by attending our weekly virtual team meeting. Today’s meeting is informative, providing the team with an update on the new IT system that’s on its way and confirming the week’s rota for virtual office cover. I enjoy our team meeting and being together because I feel it brings a sense of collaboration and familiarity that is required due to the current circumstances.

My next virtual meeting is with our HR advisor. Prior to the meeting I ensure I gather the relevant information. I am generally an organised person anyway – I think I’m forced to be due to having three young children.

Wednesday

Managing performance virtually is something that I am learning to adjust to, bearing in mind that we are in a pandemic and that individuals are also getting used to the new way of working. I believe that the COVID-19 situation has reinforced the need to be more empathetic. Today I discuss realistic SMART objectives with my direct report.

As part of the coronavirus response I’ve been fortunate enough to be part of the locality hub response team and built positive working relationships with the wider community. My next task of the day is to prepare for the interfaith meeting and a mosque leads/community representative meeting with the wider community. These meetings have assisted us greatly with getting the right message out there in the community as well as identifying unmet needs.

Thursday

Part of my job is to investigate and respond to complaint letters. I’ve received a complaint from an older tenant and discussed the contents of the complaint with my officer, who then organised a multiagency meeting to ensure that the tenant is receiving the required help and support.

My afternoon involves discussing the emergency personal evacuation process with my fellow senior tenancy management officers. As a social landlord we are responsible for ensuring that we hold up-to-date information regarding our residents’ physical health and that it is then available to the fire service in an emergency.

Friday

Case work meetings are an important part of our role, ensuring that my officers have the support and guidance that they require in order to manage their workload. Today’s meeting covers cases including properties being targeted, urgent move requests and ensuring our vulnerable residents are still receiving the contact they are in need of during the pandemic.

I block the afternoon out to concentrate on catching up with all my emails. However, I then receive a call from our contact centre to say that a tenant has a leak in their property coming from the above flat and that the emergency services have turned off the electrics. As this is a priority situation, I liaise with an officer who is already out on visits for immediate action. A surveyor and tenancy management officer visit and confirm that the property is safe to reside in.

I make myself a cup of green tea and respond to any outstanding emails that I was unable to action during the week to ensure that my work is up to date before I return on Monday.

A week in the life series

A week in the life series

Our ‘A week in the life’ series features housing professionals talking through what they do in their job on a day-to-day basis.

Find out about the different challenges housing workers in a variety of roles face in a given week. 

We aim to feature staff from housing associations, ALMOs, local authorities and more.

Click here to nominate yourself or a colleague for inclusion

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