Housing and Destitution Caseworker

We are looking for a Housing and Destitution Caseworker to join our small, impactful team and provide or co-ordinate advice on welfare and housing issues to migrants.

ABOUT US

Hackney Migrant Centre (HMC) is a community-based charity providing free legal advice, casework support and holistic support services to refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants.

Approximately 50% of the people we support are homeless, and many are experiencing destitution due to precarious immigration status, the No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) restriction or whilst living undocumented in the UK. HMC's work is informed by our vision of a UK where no one is forced into destitution, exploitation, or vulnerability because of their immigration status.

HMC is currently a small team of 7 employees, including a CEO, Community Manager, Immigration Team Manager, Immigration Caseworker and Access to Justice Coordinator, and an Administrative Support Officer alongside a larger team of up to 60 volunteers.

ABOUT OUR SERVICES

We are based in our office in Stoke Newington, where we provide immigration advice & representation and our housing advice and casework support services. We also offer regular community sessions in a local venue on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of every month. We call these sessions our 'Wednesday Service'. The Wednesday Service has historically been the heart and soul of HMC, and it continues to play a key role in our service delivery, accessibility and community presence.

Our Wednesday Service is a multi-functioning hub, offering a warm, welcoming and accessible space for:

• Legal advice appointments with HMC advisors and external specialist partners

• Casework appointments with staff and specialist volunteers

• Holistic advocacy appointments delivered by our volunteers

Our team supports an average of 350 people across all our service areas.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Housing and Destitution Caseworker will provide or co-ordinate advice on welfare and housing issues to migrants. This will include people visiting the Wednesday Service or referred by the Immigration Team. The post holder will assist with follow-up casework, and recruit and develop a small volunteer Housing and Destitution Support Team to support with these tasks. The post-holder will work to build partnerships with external specialist advisers, to expand our diagnostic advice provision and support with successful referrals for onward legal challenges.

Main duties

• Provide casework and advocacy support to homeless and destitute migrants regarding housing, and welfare entitlements including asylum support, Children Act and Care Act duties, mainstream benefits and homeless duties.

• Develop and coordinate partnerships with external specialist housing advisors to deliver housing advice and take on cases where able.

• Recruit and induct volunteers to a small Housing and Destitution Support Team and supervise their work.

• Keep up to date with legislation and practical guidance required to support destitute migrants, including attending relevant training sessions.

• Provide training to HMC's volunteers on housing and destitution issues.

• Make referrals to public law/community care and housing legal representatives for complex casework and legal challenges such as judicial review.

• Identify where visitors need to access mental health or specialist support and escalate safeguarding concerns in line with HMC's safeguarding procedures.

• Maintain records on all casework, regularly review progress during the casework journey, and ensure that cases are closed when support has ended.

Partnerships

• Develop links and partnerships with other organisations to enable effective joint working.

• Collect information, statistics and case studies on destitute migrants and the issues they face for the purposes of improving service quality and to meet the requirements of funders.

• Contribute case studies and statistical data to relevant policy/strategic legal work carried out by HMC and other partner organisations.

• Attend forums of organisations working in the sector to share best practice and evidence from HMC's frontline work.

Additional responsibilities

• Administrative tasks relevant to the post

• Help to cover the work of the team during absences

• Contribute to HMC's housing and destitution guides and signposting materials

• Support with the wider work of the organisation as needed, including assisting with the set-up and pack-down of the Wednesday Service and associated events.

• Implement sensitively HMC's policies and procedures, especially with regards to confidentiality

• and diversity, equity and inclusion

• Work collaboratively with other HMC staff, volunteers and professional advisors

• Participate actively in staff meetings, and other meetings as may reasonably be required

• Attend HMC Trustees' meetings as required

HOW TO APPLY

If you would like to apply for this position, please submit a Covering Letter (no more than 1 page) and CV, demonstrating how you meet the requirements in the person specification (below) via the Charity Job website.

Two professional references will be requested if successful at interview. The successful candidate will be required to undergo an appropriate level of DBS check.

We know that women and people from marginalised or under-represented groups- including people of colour- tend to apply only for roles where they meet 100% of the criteria. We encourage you to apply if you have an interest in the role even if you do not meet all the criteria below, particularly if you have lived experience of migration.

Please note that we can only accept applications from candidates who have the right to work in the UK. If you do not have the right to work in the UK but you are interested in supporting HMC, please see our website for opportunities to volunteer with us.

The application deadline is 23.30 on Saturday 19th September, and we expect to hold interviews in the week beginning 5th October 2026.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

E = Essential, D = Desirable

Experience

E - Experience providing advice and casework support to destitute migrants and/or experience of providing housing advice and casework support to people facing homelessness.

E - Experience of providing support, supervision and training to volunteers

E- Experience communicating clearly and professionally with a range of audiences, including the public and statutory services.

E - Track record of working in a team in a highly pressurised, front-facing environment.

D - Experience of maintaining effective working relationships with a wide range of agencies

D - Experience of recording and reporting outcomes to funders

Knowledge / Skills

E - Knowledge of the rights of migrants seeking housing, and community care support in the UK and the UK's housing and homelessness services and support provision.

E - Understanding of the UK asylum support provisions.

E - Knowledge of refugee, migrant and homelessness organisations and other relevant organisations to support referrals and signposting.

E - Excellent IT skills, including Outlook, Microsoft Office, Sharepoint, CRM databases (HMC uses Lamplight).

D - Working knowledge of UK immigration legislation affecting refugees and migrants and the impact of the hostile environment on migrants.

D - Experience of recognising and responding to safety and safeguarding concerns, and supporting members of the public in a trauma-informed way.

Personal

E - Highly effective communication and interpersonal skills.

E - Ability to work with vulnerable migrants with sensitivity and cultural awareness.

E - Demonstrable commitment to the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion and of advancing the rights of migrants in the UK.

E - Commitment to ongoing learning and development and keeping up to date with legislative developments which will have an impact on migrants.

E - Ability on occasion to work outside of normal office hours (e.g. evening meetings).