Done your research?

Given the current economic climate, it’s no surprise that candidates have started to demand higher standards and security from employers.

A recent survey conducted by the Huntress Group, has found that candidates are taking into consideration not only the reputation but also how secure the organisation is, a lot earlier in their application process than a few years ago.

The main findings from the study are:

• 47% said they would always check to see if a company is financially stable before working for them.
• 45% would be most concerned if a company has changed its name a number of times.
• 59% would think carefully before working for a company with an unfavourable Credit Report.
• Over half would not consider a company with a high turnover of senior management, in particular, directors.

Almost a third surveyed have worked for a company that has closed down since they left, which is reflected in the top three factors when choosing the next career move:

 

• Job satisfaction
• Company stability
• Proximity to home

Do you vet an organisation before applying for a role, or going for interview? What would be your key deciding factors?

Jobseeker tips - a simple thank you

Years ago, it was common practice to send a thank you note to anyone who helped a job seeker with their search, or consider them for a position with their company.

Sending a thank you note will help you stand out as someone who is taking their job search seriously. Jobseekers who send notes are the ones who stand head and shoulder above the mill of jobless individuals.

I would use a specific thank you card with either an appreciative message on the front, or some famous artwork or photography of a nature scene. A neutral stance.

Within the card, the note just needs to be brief and to the point. A simple expression of gratitude to thank the interviewer for taking time our of his/her busy schedule to consider you for the position.

Good luck!

What does The Budget mean for the Housing sector?

Yesterday's budget announcement saw George Osborne reveal that stamp duty will be raised to 15% for properties worth over £2m that are sheltered within companies, and raised to 7% if bought by an individual.

The Chancellor also announced the expansion of the Get Britain Building scheme to increase the development of new homes.

There will, however, be a delay in the release of the National Policy Planning Framework. The framework is now scheduled to be released next Tuesday 27th March.

There have been numerous responses from yesterday's budget announcement...

David Orr, chief executive of the National Housing Federation:

"We welcome the chancellor's move to close the loophole that allowed wealthy individuals to buy properties through companies and avoid stamp duty. It meant people on high incomes could avoid paying tax on the purchase of expensive homes.

"However it is disappointing that the chancellor has failed to put investment in housing at the forefront of driving forward economic growth in the UK.

"Supporting housing associations to maximise the investment they make in building and maintaining homes creates new jobs, saves the government benefit payments, invests in local communities and boosts general economic activity. Few other sectors can offer this potential with such short lead-in times and the prospect of so much growth directly benefiting local communities.

"Boosting the housing sector would be an easy win for the economy, for taxpayers and for families. And with 4.5 million people on waiting lists and one million children in overcrowded accommodation a big boost for fairness too."

Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter:

"Extra funding to boost house building is welcome, but at these levels will barely make a dent in our housing crisis.

"If the government is serious about getting Britain building, it needs to deliver serious investment to match. This would not only help the millions of hard-pressed families who face a daily struggle to meet their housing costs, but would support Britain's economic recovery by creating jobs and growth."

Mark Henderson, chief executive of Home Group:

"Land price is often the most significant chunk of cost when it comes to developing affordable homes and is often a barrier to the volume of social housing you can build on any one development. By ring-fencing public sector land and selling it at an affordable price for building more affordable homes it would allow social enterprises to build a far greater percentage of social housing on a site. Were the government to release this land on a 'buy now, pay later' basis, we can begin immediately to tackle the lack of social housing in the UK.

"We would welcome clarity around the role that REITs would play in social housing. There is potential for them to provide alternative sources of funding as well as improving cashflow for the further development of affordable homes but the sector needs to be clear about the wider implications of introducing these vehicles."

Source: Guardian

Ever thought about an apprenticeship?

Monday 6^th – Friday 10^th February is National Apprentice Week 2012; a time when all eyes are on apprenticeships and the profile is raised amongst employers, individuals, teachers, parents and the media. Over 500 events are taking place over the space of the week to help promote apprenticeships.

Are you considering an apprenticeship?

There are numerous benefits to undertaking an apprenticeship. Getting qualified on the job can also help you…

• Earn whilst you’re learning
• Work to a higher standard and more effectively
• Increase your transferrable skills
• Experience new and different challenges that you may not experience in full time education
• Build on your existing skills and knowledge
• Increase your employability and job security

Apprenticeships have to pay at least minimum wage, which at present is £2.60 / hour. However, the UK average net pay that an apprentice takes home is £170 per week.

Housing Apprenticeships

As a housing apprentice, your duties will very much depend on who your employer is and whether they’re part of the public sector, voluntary or private rented sector. You will undertake a range of tasks on a day-to-day basis, this could be assessing housing need in applicants, letting homes, collecting rents or managing development of new homes. The apprenticeship should develop your customer service skills, whilst educating you on housing management, lettings and allocations, homelessness and advice, supported housing, and repairs and maintenance.
 
Several Housing Jobs clients offer apprenticeships, such as Yorkshire Housing and Vela Group. These are advertised on the website when available. For further information on apprenticeships and to find out what is available, please visit http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk

Entitled to a job you love? Maybe it’s time to reassess…

Recent graduates and young people of today are of a generation raised by parents and teachers who were around to experience the finance boom of the 1980s, when dreams seemed possible with just a little hard work and dedication.

Popular, ‘trendy’ industries such as those in the media – film, tv, music and print – all have the advantage (or disadvantage, depending on which way you look at it) of not having to pay competitively to attract talent. Despite this, young people today continue to spend thousands (and even more so come September 2012) on university education on a degree that they are passionate about – rather than a degree that is practical and has a stronger guarantee of a career come graduation day.

Organisations in the music industry receive thousands of speculative CV’s each month, for non-existent jobs. I doubt the same can be said for the ‘less-attractive’ industries such as manufacturing, accountancy, or housing.

Media has nurtured us to think that way. Songs with lyrics about achieving your dream job, not working 9 - 5, films causing us to believe that such careers are easy to achieve – that all it takes is a little hard work and commitment. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case, there are several external factors affecting your career, the major one being the current economic climate. So, unless you are fortunate enough to be well connected (“it’s not what you know, but who you know”), then perhaps it’s time to settle for a career in something that you perhaps don’t love quite as much, but still enjoy and pays adequately.

Recent years has seen an increase in the amount of housing subjects being studied at University. The industry may not be as competitive as music but generally is one where job roles are incredibly rewarding. This said, reward doesn’t come without hard work, and a housing position is not one to be entered into half-heartedly. Here at Housing Jobs, we’re interested to hear how you got into your role, was it always your intention to end up in the Housing industry, or was it by chance? Let us know on here or at enquiries@housingjobs.org.uk – if your story is really inspiring, it might end up in the official Housing Jobs newsletter!

5 “old school” tips for the under 25’s job hunt

Recent figures have shown that youth unemployment is at an all time high within the UK. Several matters often stand in the way of a young persons’ job hunt. A lot of people nowadays focus their efforts entirely on the internet rather than embracing other methods alongside the world wide web. We’ve put together some old fashioned hints and tips to help encourage your job search…

1. Dedicate more time – Allowing a couple of hours a day looking through job boards whilst checking your Facebook and Twitter at the same time will not suffice. They say the process of finding a job should be the equivalent of having a full time job – so make sure it is!

2. Apply speculatively to companies – Research has found that 80% of vacancies aren’t even advertised. Advertising vacancies can be an expensive process for companies, so if they can avoid it, most will. Send your CV and a tailored covering letter addressed to the person responsible for recruitment. If you can’t find this out from their corporate website, then call the company and ask.

3. Look elsewhere other than the internet – newspapers, industry publications. If you’re a graduate, attend job fairs and network – especially if your job role is quite specialist.

4. Be open minded – Don’t restrict yourself to one industry. Think about transferrable skills. You may not want to work in that specific industry for the rest of your life, but it might well prove to be a stepping stone in your career to the job you’ve always wanted.

5. Offer your skills for free – if you’re not working, then why not volunteer in a local charitable organisation, or within a company that you’ve always wanted to work for? It will provide you with the opportunity to increase your skills offering, and you never know, it could lead to a permanent job offer!

Sometimes, all it takes is a small adjustment to change the whole dimensions – be open to making changes within your job search strategy. Before you know it, you may be the one offering the advice and in the process, you may learn some valuable lessons through doing this.

Managing your social media presence

Recent research has found that 90% of recruiters and hiring managers have looked at a candidate’s social media profile, and almost half have done it after receiving the application, but before initiating a screening conversation. The research also showed that 69% of recruiters have rejected someone based on their social networking profile. The main reasons were because the candidate had lied about their qualifications, posted inappropriate photos or comments, or had negative comment about a previous employer. 68%, however, were reported to have hired someone because of what they’d seen on their profile. This was often due to the candidate’s profile providing a positive impression of personality and organisational fit, it showed the person was creative or it supported qualifications and had good references.

To help avoid being rejected due to your social media presence, we’ve put together some tips…

• Make sure your privacy settings are set to private unless you want everyone and anyone knowing your business – this includes the potential employers!

• When updating your social media platform, think about what you’re posting and how it may be perceived.

• Bear in mind that even if your profile is private, recruiters will still be able to see your profile picture. Offensive photos are often found to be the main reason for a recruiter rejecting a candidate.

• http://www.reppler.com is a free social media monitoring service which helps users manage their online image. In a nutshell, it checks all your social networks and highlights anything that could be considered a potential issue or risk.

How to get a call back...

So, we’ve all been there, you’ve managed to secure an interview for a job and you think it’s gone really well, but you’ve not heard anything when they said they would ‘get back to you within the next few days’. As each day passes you begin doubting how well the interview really went.

Don’t panic! This situation happens to everyone, so just relax and make sure you follow these steps to try avoid these situations as much as possible…

·         Remember that interviewers have very busy schedule – especially when they’re recruiting. If you haven’t heard, chances are there’s not a decision yet.

·         To avoid this, ask at the end of the interview when you’re likely to hear. If they say ‘within the next few days’ then ask when it will be acceptable for you to follow up if you don’t hear by then.

·         Never assume that they’re going to call you back.

·         If you don’t manage to arrange a certain time then follow them up. Be pro-active, and push for a response – but gently.

·         Unfortunately, waiting is part of the job seeking process. It can be frustrating, but being patient is important – just not too patient!

 

What to cover in a letter?

Including a covering letter with your CV can demonstrate motivation, commitment and initiative. A covering letter gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your writing skills, and an extra chance to state why the recruiter should read your CV.

1. Presentation: Make sure the presentation of your covering letter is of the highest standard. Find out who the letter should be addressed to (if there’s no name on the job advert, then make the effort to ring the company and find out their name). Did you know 60% of covering letters and CV’s are addressed to the wrong person? Make sure you’re in the 40% that are right! Also, put the job title and reference number (if there is one) at the top of your letter, and avoid exceeding one page.

2. Content: Focus on the company rather than yourself. Read the advert thoroughly and try to mimic the terminology used within the advert and supporting information (job description and person specification). Make sure you match the aspects they’ve outlined as their ‘needs’ to your skills.

3. Structure: Open your letter by stating why you are writing, identifying the position you’re applying for and how you heard about the position. Next, explain what interests you about the job, and then focus on how their organisation would benefit if they were to employ you. State what strengths (skills and experience) you have and relate them to the job in question. Describe past achievements, relate them to the vacancy. Finally, refer the reader to your enclosed CV for further information and thank them for their time.

4. Detail: Include detail about the company. Show the reader you have done your research on the company, mention some of the organisation’s specific projects in your covering letter. For example, “An aspect of your organisation that really attracted me was the amount of projects you undertake within the community. The ‘EXAMPLE’ project really impressed me; the whole process seemed incredibly well structured with a clear vision. The results within the community are really inspiring. To see an organisation encourage residents to improve their skills and therefore further their prospects to that extent is very rare - and the thought of being involved in such an organisation is something that really appeals to me.”

5. Why you? Throughout the covering letter, you should be answering the question of ‘Why you?’. The whole purpose of the letter is to convince the recruiter that you are the right person for the job, and therefore they should read your CV and invite you for interview. Emphasis your positive assets, past accomplishments and personal qualities – remember to keep it in line with the potential employers needs.

6. Last few pointers: If you are sending the covering letter in physical format, make sure you print on a high quality paper. If, however, you are sending it digitally, include the covering letter in the main body of the e-mail and attach the CV as a document. Finally, get someone to proof read the letter before you send it off. Everyone makes mistakes – better to be safe than sorry!

Good luck!

Making application forms a breeze!

The vast majority of public sector companies ask candidates to complete an application form, rather than submitting a CV. This is primarily for equality and diversity reasons.

The essence of completing any application form is to express that you have the right skills and qualities for the position. They usually feature a range of different questions; from general questions about your personality and hobbies, to ones that focus on your education and past work experience. There will also be competency based questions. To help you tackle these forms in the best way possible, we’ve put together some advice…

1. When answering the more general questions, such as – “What do you do in your spare time?” – think about what the employer is looking for and how what you write may be perceived. For example, “In my spare time, I enjoy playing team sports and regularly play for a five aside football team” would demonstrate to the employer that not only do you work well in teams – but also that you pay attention to your fitness. Healthy staff = higher attendance rates.

Try to avoid phrases such as - “I enjoy socialising with my friends”. Most people do enjoy socialising with their friends, but chances are a recruiter would read through the lines and perceive you as unreliable.

2. Use questions based on education and past experience as an opportunity to highlight skills that you’ve developed as a result of these. For example, communication, time management, and leadership skills. If you lack similar experience, then be sure to indicate these skills as transferable.

3. Competency based questions – a lot of people struggle with competency based questions. People often over analyse the questions and think there is a right or wrong answer. The recruiter wants to see your ability to problem solve and use your initiative. Use this opportunity to show how you have resolved problems and what the experience has taught you. You should structure your answers using the CAR approach – context, action, result. Describe the context of the situation but try not to go into too much unnecessary detail. Focus on the action - what you did and what skills you used. Then explain the outcome, and what you learnt from the experience.

Here are some examples of competency based questions:

• "Please give an example of how you work in a team/how you have dealt with a difficult problem".
• "If your co-worker has missed a deadline, what would you do?".
• “Please describe a situation when you have used your interpersonal skills to help build relationships with others, shared knowledge and information to achieve the business goals.” 

Make sure you use examples, and focus on your own actions rather than that of a team. Use a variety of situations rather than focusing on one area – for example your studies or your previous job positions. Avoid any negativity and use power words such as "succeed", "committed", and "confident". Finally, remember to stay truthful throughout the whole application process.

Good luck!

Housing Jobs provides organisations with the tools to create a discrimination free recruitment process, including the ability to create on-line application forms and restrict viewing. For more information, or if you're a job seeker seeking a role with an organisation that promotes equality and diversity, please visit www.housingjobs.org.uk

It takes two to tango!

It's very well preparing answers for intervew questions, but a job interview is a two-way process. Preparing questions to ask at the interview will not only potray initiative, but also give you a more thorough vision of what the company are like to work for.

We've put together some examples that might come in useful...

• How would you describe the responsibilities of this position?
• How would you describe a typical working week in this role?
• How many people are in the team that I'll be working with?
• How would you describe the company culture?
• What are the prospects for growth and advancement with the company?
• Are there regular performance reviews?
• What do you enjoy the most about working here?
• Are there any other questions I can answer for you?
• When can I expect to hear from you?
 

Don't ask them all, and be careful not to ask anything that has already been covered in the interview - otherwise they'll think you've not been listening!

Good luck!

How to get a job through social media...

Nowadays, people use social media for lots of different aspects of their lives – socialising, shopping, for educational purposes and informational purposes, so it’s not surprising that companies have started using social media to recruit as well. We’ve put together some tips to help you source your next role through social media.

·        Don’t just search for jobs – search for people. Websites such as LinkedIn allow us to search for companies and it's employees. It provides you with direct access to the HR manager. You can also use it for research purposes when you do bag an interview.

·        When someone thinks of twitter, they probably won’t think of it as a place to find your next job. However, several companies have twitter accounts dedicated entirely to their recruitment team – plus recruitment companies are always tweeting their positions. Search specific hash tags to find live vacancies. Some examples are, #jobsearch, #jobseeker, #vacancies. Or try industry specific hash tags such as #housingjobs or #publicsectorjobs

·        Several companies have Facebook fan pages with a dedicated job search tab. The HousingJob Facebook page has a job search application whereby you can search through live vacancies without leaving the website.

·        Subscribe to blogs – a lot of people don’t realise that blogs are the number 1 social media tool. A quick google search will provide you with a vast range of blogs on every topic you could imagine. Look for industry specific blogs, as well as ones based on job seeking and HR matters.

Be careful not to focus all your efforts solely on social media though – you should do the above in conjunction with more traditional methods to make sure you’ve got all bases covered.

Men = women?

A recent article on personneltoday focuses on the results of research conducted by recruitment consultancy, Robert Half. The research has found that more than three-quarters (78%) of HR directors believe that male employees do not have an advantage over females within the workplace.

The survey, completed by 180 HR directors, also found that half of those who did think that there was an imbalance between males and females at work believed that family commitments were responsible for this difference.

Respondents also identified a lack of promotion opportunities (42%) and the desire to maintain a good work-life balance (36%) as key factors behind the difference in men and women’s professional development.

Phil Sheridan, managing director of Robert Half UK, commented: “While it s encouraging that over three-quarters of HR directors don’t view men as having an advantageous position over women in the workplace, more needs to be done.

“Companies should regularly review their succession and remuneration plans to ensure that women are treated fairly and equally, with policies to take into account their family and personal commitments.”

Previous research by Friends Life found that more than half (55%) of women believed that there would still be a significant pay gap between men and women in 2020 and 53% thought that they would still be facing more barriers than men to secure senior roles.

The Equality Act 2010 states that it’s unlawful for an employer to discriminate against you because of your sex. The Act covers the following aspects of employment:

• recruitment
• employment terms and conditions
• pay and benefits
• training
• promotion and transfer opportunities
• redundancy
• dismissal

Equal terms – equal pay refers to where men and women whom work for the same employer, are doing one of the following, they are entitled to the same terms in their employment contract:

• the same or similar work (like work)
• work rated as equivalent in a job evaluation study by the employer
• work of equal value

Pay secrecy clauses in employment contracts are unenforceable if you are trying to find out if any difference in pay is connected with a 'protected characteristic', for example sex.

If you think you are being discriminated against, visit the direct.gov website for further advice on what to do next.

Tackling age discrimination

2010-11 Tribunals Service statistics have revealed that the number of age discrimination claims accepted by employment tribunals has risen by nearly one third (30.8%) to 6,800.

                                                        Personneltoday, 2011

                                                      

The statistics, which cover the period from 1st April 2010 until 21st March 2011, shows that the number of overall claims has decreased by 8% on the previous year.

Adrian Crawford, employment partner at law firm Kingsley Napley, comments: "It is noteworthy that while age discrimination claims are still a long way behind sex discrimination, they are now catching up with disability claims and have overtaken race-related claims to be the third most frequent type of discrimination action.

"Everybody has an age so anyone can potentially formulate an age discrimination claim. This may explain why there are already so many claims even before we have felt the impact of the abolition of the default retirement age, which is likely to lead to a huge increase in age discrimination claims."

Housing Jobs prides itself on providing a discrimination free job seeking process. The ability to upload/view job descriptions, person specifications and create tailored job descriptions helps housing associations reach their equality and diversity aims.

All aspects of employment are protected from age discrimination. This includes:

•Recruitment – advertising/application forms and interviewing
•Training
•Promotions and transfers
•Employment benefits
•Employment terms and conditions
•Flexible working
•Redundancy
•Retirement
•Sickness benefit
•Dismissals

If you think you may have been a victim of age discrimination, visit the direct.gov.uk website for help on what to do next.

How to improve your time management skills

Time management is one of those skills that you're not taught during your time in education, but is vital in the professional world. The ability to prioritise and organise your workload will differentiate yourself within the workplace. Your colleagues will respect and admire how you keep level headed under pressure due to your organised outlook and colour-coded 'post it notes'! If you struggle with time management, here's our top eight tips to help you achieve this level of recognition:

1. Track your daily activities - Keeping track of your daily activities - what you did and the time frames involved - will help evaluate where you're wasting time and where you need more time assigned. If you use Outlook, you can utilise your calender to do so, or if you prefer a pen and paper, keep a diary.
2. Create to-do lists - To-do lists will prevent you forgetting about tasks and make sure you complete the tasks in order of priority. Soon, you won't be able to start a days work without creating a list! Once again, Outlook provides you with the option to create a task list, or if you prefer, just use a notepad/diary.
3. Avoid leaving e-mails sitting in your inbox - Keep your inbox organised with designated folders. Schedule regular times to check your e-mails, and action them as soon as you've read them - otherwise you'll end up forgetting about said e-mail!
4. Be careful when multi-tasking - Multi-tasking isn't something to take lightly. People often take so much on board they end up becoming overwhelmed and forgetting about certain tasks. Don't be afraid to say no!
5. Keep your website bookmarks organised - Bookmark websites that you regularly visit, then organise them by folders. This will reduce time, and prevent you losing any relevant websites!
6. Be honest with yourself - Assess when you're at most productive. Everyone has a time in the day when they work best. If that's the morning, then prioritise your most important work to do during the morning, that way you will achieve more within your working day.
7. Set time limits - Use your outlook or diary to set time frames for each task. Regularly assess these time frames. If you're running out of times for certain tasks, then make sure you assign a longer time frame the next time.
8. Take your time - People want quality work, not rushed. Don't be afraid to take your time, accuracy is more important than rushing and producing work littered with mistakes. Remember the tortoise and the hare?

“Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

Research has found that 11am on a Tuesday is the most depressing time of the week. Monday is gone but you're still 3.5 days away from the weekend. You've caught up on all your e-mails, and now it's time to get down to the nitty gritty. So here at Housing Jobs, we thought we'd try cheer you up with some feel good quotes...

“Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am.” - Parker J. Palmer

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “press on” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” - Calvin Coolidge

"Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same." - Francesca Reigler

And a more light-hearted one...

“Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?” - 

Edgar Bergen  

Talk about diversity!

Whilst reading about the arrival of a 'Zonkey' foal (a cross between a donkey and a zebra!) in South East China this morning, it got us thinking about diversity in the workplace.

Diversity and equality within the workplace is becoming more expected, especially of organisations within the public sector. It's often considered a minefield with some organisations not having a clue where they should start, which is why we've put together some ideas to get you started...

• Create a 'diversity calendar' - with a range of religions and ethnicity within the workplace, a good starting point for your organisation is to create a 'diversity calendar'. It will not only help the organisation keep track of annual cultural celebrations, but also it can help provide information on the celebrations and even allow organisations to organise events to highlight the celebrations. A 'diversity calendar' may also improve staff morale as it will show an organisation's respect for their employee's and their beliefs.

• Make use of creativity - Having employees from a wealth of different backgrounds and upbringing can only be beneficial for the organisation. It will provide the opportunity for creative ideas from all different angles of society. Tapping into the individual qualities of the personnel will encourage an organisation to grow and expand.

• Cost effective - Not only has research shown that an organisation with a diverse workforce suffers from lower absenteeism and employee turnover rates, but they are also less likely to come under threat from discrimination law suits.

• Encourages business - Just as an organisation is likely to come across diversity in the workplace, the organisations' external business dealings will also involve different ethnicities and cultures. If you promote diversity and equality in the workplace, your external business dealings will improve as a result.

At Housing Jobs, we promote diversity and equality by providing our clients with a platform whereby they can control and monitor their recruitment methods within a discrimination free process.

Finally, something to make you smile on a rainy Wednesday morning, view the video of the Zonkey foal here

Who's in?

Ever thought about enhancing your CV through volunteering?

Searching for a new job can be frustrating. Hundreds of applicants, all applying for the same role. How do you make yourself stand out?

Research has found that volunteering can make you much more appealing to potential employers, as it shows that you aren't afraid to use your initiative and helps to develop leadership skills.

Volunteering is much more likely to enhance your skills and be more beneficial than doing work experience.

Becci Newton, senior research fellow at the Institute for Employment Studies, suggests volunteering.

"There's no doubt that young people are struggling in the labour market and there's no doubt that they'd benefit if there was somebody to offer them a bit of a reference about their abilities," she said.

"Volunteering is quite different in that young people have a greater opportunity to perhaps develop leadership skills than they might in work, because they are able to devise to a greater extent or suggest their own projects that they might take forward."

Not only will it improve your job prospects, but there's also the feel good factor of knowing you're helping a worthy cause!

How to get a job through Housing Jobs...

We've not updated the blog for a while, so we thought we'd give you an update as to how Housing Jobs can help you in your job search.

So, here are some hints and tips to help you find your dream role…

• Job alerts – Set up your job alerts on the Housing Jobs website, so any relevant vacancies get sent straight to your inbox as soon as they go live.
• Become a fan on Facebook – Take advantage of our Facebook page which features our new Housing Jobs application which allows you to search through all our vacancies without leaving the page itself.
• Check out our new clients – Sanctuary Housing have recently started advertising on Housing Jobs. Take a look at their current vacancies by clicking here

We hope that our help will assist you in finding the job you’ve always wanted. In the meantime, we’d love to hear from you if there’s anything you think we can improve on or any suggestions about our website. Drop us an e-mail at sophie.taylor@housingjobs.org.uk and we promise to take what you say on board!

Good luck!

The Housing Jobs team. 

Health and safety gone crazy?

A pensioner living in Barnoldswick, Lancashire, has been told by the local council that nothing can be done about the nest of angry wasps outside her bathroom window. The council has claimed that using ladders is considered too dangerous when environmental health staff were required to wear the neccessary protective clothing and carry the poision.

The elderly pensioner was concerned that she may be stung from the wasps whilst in the bath.

Local councillor David Whipp said, "Unfortunately, you do not find wasps nesting on the ground, although it would be better for the people doing the risk assessments if they did."

"But its a barmy situation if people employed to tackle nuisances at a high level are not allowed to go up a ladder to do it."

"People wearing cumbersome suits have managed to land on the moon. Presumably, we would never have got there if the health and safety brigade had their way."

"Perhaps the council needs to advertise for Spider Man to carry out this work."

Here at Housing Jobs, we're beginning to think this health and safety epidemic is here to stay!