Homelessness Immigration Project Support Officer and Coordinator

£32,000 per annum - Full Time (35 Hours / Week)

Job Title: Homelessness Immigration Project Support Officer and Coordinator

Contract: Fixed term contract until March 2027, with possibility of continuation subject to funding.

Contract type: Full-time, 35 hours per week

Salary: £32,000

Line Manager: Reporting to Supervising Solicitor and Director

Location: Baseline Studios, Whitchurch Road, London W11 4AT, with limited remote working

NKLC Background

North Kensington Law Centre opened its doors in 1970 as the first Law Centre in the country, pioneering a community-based legal service which promotes rights and equality of opportunity. We are approaching 55 years of providing legal services to the communities of RBKC and beyond, with a strong history of fighting for justice on behalf of people from disadvantaged and vulnerable communities.

Our current areas of work are employment, housing, immigration, and welfare benefits. In immigration, we hold a Legal Aid Agency (LAA) contract and undertake some privately funded work for matters which are out of scope for Legal Aid.

The Role

North Kensington Law Centre is the lead organisation for a London Homelessness Immigration Project funded through London Councils. We are working in partnership with Ealing Law Centre and with supporting organisations across the Northwest London sub-region, including local authorities, homelessness services, outreach teams, and voluntary sector organisations.

The Homelessness Immigration Project Support Officer and Coordinator will provide both clientfacing immigration support and day-to-day coordination of the project. The post holder will help ensure that non-UK nationals who are rough sleeping, homeless, or destitute are identified, triaged, referred, and supported to access immigration advice and representation in a timely and safe manner.

The role requires a combination of immigration casework support, outreach engagement, referral pathway management, partner liaison, monitoring, and administrative coordination. The post holder will work closely with the Supervising Solicitor, Director, project partners, and frontline referral organisations to maintain high-quality delivery, compliance, and outcomes for vulnerable clients.

Overall Purpose of the Post

• Provide high-quality project support and coordination across immigration, asylum, nationality, and related support issues affecting non-UK nationals who are rough sleeping, homeless, or destitute.

• Coordinate the project referral pathway, including initial screening, triage, appointment booking, partner communication, and follow-up actions.

• Support immigration advice and representation under appropriate supervision and within the post holder's accreditation, competence, and regulatory permissions.

• Travel between NKLC offices, outreach posts, drop-in locations, partner sites, and other community settings as required.

• Work with vulnerable clients in a respectful, trauma-informed, culturally competent, and safeguarding-aware manner.

• Support the Law Centre to meet project targets, funding requirements, reporting obligations, and compliance standards, including LAA, LexCel, IAA, and internal casework procedures.

• Contribute to income generation and sustainability through appropriate Legal Aid Agency matter starts, billing support, and identification of eligible casework under the LAA contract and other funding streams.

Role and Responsibilities

1. Project coordination and partner liaison

• Coordinate day-to-day delivery of the Homelessness Immigration Project, including referrals, outreach arrangements, clinics, partner communications, and internal workflow.

• Maintain effective referral routes with local authorities, homelessness organisations, outreach teams, migrant support organisations, and other voluntary and statutory partners.

• Act as a key point of contact for project referrals, ensuring that enquiries are acknowledged, screened, prioritised, allocated, and progressed appropriately.

• Work closely with the project lead, Supervising Solicitor, Director, Ealing Law Centre, and other team members to ensure consistent service delivery across the sub-region.

• Monitor referral volumes, appointment take-up, case progression, outcomes, and project risks, escalating concerns where necessary.

• Coordinate activities, procedures, and systems to promote common policies, working practices, quality assurance, and clear communication across partner organisations.

2. Client support, triage, and casework

• Provide high-quality advice, assistance, and representation in immigration, asylum, and nationality matters at the appropriate IAA/IAAS level and under supervision where required.

• Undertake initial triage and casework support for clients who are rough sleeping, homeless, destitute, or at risk of exploitation, ensuring urgent matters are escalated promptly.

• Support applications and casework relating to asylum support, including sections 95 and 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, Schedule 10 accommodation under paragraph 9 of the Immigration Act 2016, and related accommodation or support processes.

• Contribute to New Matter Start take-up and ensure eligible matters are opened, progressed, recorded, and billed in line with LAA requirements.

• Ensure client files, attendance notes, advice records, referral records, correspondence, evidence, and outcomes are maintained accurately and are compliant with LAA, LexCel, IAA, GDPR, and internal standards.

• Assist with complex cases, urgent interventions, evidence gathering, client instructions, form completion, correspondence, and liaison with third parties, subject to supervision and competence.

3. Outreach and access to services

• Attend and help run advice sessions, drop-ins, outreach appointments, and partner meetings across the Northwest London sub-region.

• Support clients to engage with appointments, gather documents, understand next steps, and access linked services where appropriate.

• Help identify barriers to access for people who are homeless, rough sleeping, destitute, or otherwise excluded, and work with partners to improve engagement and referral pathways.

• Provide information to partner organisations about eligibility, referral criteria, documentation requirements, and immigration support routes.

4. Monitoring, reporting, and administration

• Maintain accurate project records, referral logs, monitoring data, appointment data, casework data, outputs, outcomes, and evidence required by funders and internal reporting systems.

• Prepare or contribute to regular project updates, monitoring returns, funder reports, internal reports, and evaluation information.

• Use case management, document management, email, spreadsheet, and reporting systems effectively and securely.

• Support meetings by preparing agendas, notes, action logs, updates, and follow-up communications where required.

• Help identify trends, unmet needs, service gaps, and social policy issues arising from project delivery.

5. Compliance, quality, and professional standards

• Work within NKLC policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, data protection, equality and diversity, health and safety, supervision, file review, and complaints procedures.

• Maintain professional development as required by the LAA, IAA, IAAS, LexCel, and the Law Centre.

• Attend relevant training on new legislation, specialist skills, homelessness issues, immigration law and policy, safeguarding, and use of IT systems.

• Participate fully in supervision, unit meetings, staff meetings, case discussions, project reviews, and quality assurance processes.

• Undertake other duties that are reasonably required and compatible with the nature and seniority of the post.

Social Policy

The post holder will be alert to social policy issues arising from client work and project delivery, including patterns of homelessness, destitution, exclusion from support, Home Office delay, accommodation barriers, and systemic problems affecting migrant communities. The post holder will record and escalate relevant issues so that NKLC can take appropriate action to influence policy, practice, and service provision.

Accountability

The post holder will be accountable to the Immigration Supervisor and Director and will work in close collaboration with the project lead, project partners, and relevant NKLC teams.

Person Specification

Essential qualifications, accreditation, and requirements

• Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) Level 2 accreditation, or ability to work lawfully within the post holder's current accreditation while progressing to Level 2 within an agreed timeframe.

• IAAS Level 1 or Level 2 caseworker accreditation is desirable, particularly where Legal Aid Agency immigration casework will be undertaken.

• Enhanced DBS certificate issued within the last 12 months, or willingness to obtain enhanced DBS clearance within 4 weeks of commencing employment.

• Right to work in the UK without visa sponsorship.

Essential experience

• Experience of immigration, asylum, or nationality advice work, including work with vulnerable clients.

• Experience of coordinating referrals, clinics, projects, outreach activity, or multi-agency work in a legal advice, homelessness, migrant support, or community setting.

• Experience of working with people who are homeless, rough sleeping, destitute, at risk of exploitation, or otherwise facing multiple disadvantage.

• Experience of liaising and negotiating with statutory and voluntary organisations, including local authorities or homelessness services.

• Experience of maintaining accurate casework, monitoring, or project records and using data to support reporting and service delivery.

• Experience of working within, or alongside, LAA-funded casework is desirable, including understanding of matter starts, controlled work, billing, and file compliance.

Knowledge

• A good working knowledge of UK immigration, asylum, nationality, and migrant support issues relevant to non-UK nationals experiencing homelessness or destitution.

• Understanding of asylum support, Schedule 10 accommodation, No Recourse to Public Funds issues, rough sleeping, safeguarding, and the intersection between homelessness and immigration status.

• Understanding of LAA, IAA, IAAS, LexCel, GDPR, confidentiality, and professional compliance requirements relevant to immigration advice work.

• Understanding of the role of Law Centres and commitment to access to justice for disadvantaged and marginalised communities.

• Awareness of equality, diversity, inclusion, anti-racism, and the specific barriers faced by minority and migrant communities.

Skills and competencies

• Excellent organisational and coordination skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities, deadlines, referrals, appointments, and follow-up actions.

• Ability to communicate clearly and sensitively with clients, colleagues, partners, interpreters, statutory agencies, and voluntary organisations.

• Ability to take clear instructions, identify urgent issues, record accurate notes, and follow through on agreed actions.

• Ability to explain complex immigration and support processes in clear, accessible language.

• Accuracy and attention to detail, particularly in case recording, evidence handling, compliance, and reporting.

• Ability to work under pressure, remain calm in demanding situations, and escalate risk appropriately.

• Strong IT skills, including email, Microsoft Office or equivalent, spreadsheets, case management systems, and secure handling of client data.

• Ability to work independently and as part of a team, including taking direction, delegating appropriate tasks, and contributing to shared project delivery.

Key attributes

• Empathy, patience, and respect when working with clients experiencing trauma, homelessness, destitution, mental health issues, language barriers, or complex needs.

• Practical problem-solving approach and willingness to work flexibly across office, outreach, partner, and community settings.

• Commitment to high-quality client care, professional standards, and continuous improvement.

• Willingness to travel within the Northwest London sub-region and to work occasional hours outside the usual pattern where project delivery requires it.

• Commitment to NKLC's values, equal opportunities, and the role of legal advice in challenging poverty, discrimination, and social exclusion.

Equal Opportunities

The Law Centre is an equal opportunities organisation. We recognise that widespread discrimination exists in society towards individuals and groups, both directly and indirectly. All employees are expected to adhere to and promote the Law Centre's Equal Opportunities Policy.

Specific Details

The vacancy is full-time and on a fixed term basis until the end of March 2027 for the duration of the project, although there may be scope for the post to be extended subject to funding. Candidates must have the right to work in the UK without visa sponsorship and the appointment is subject to DBS clearance.

The role requires enhanced DBS clearance within 4 weeks of commencing employment and the post will remain dependent on the outcome. Candidates are required to make a full disclosure of previous or pending civil and criminal matters against them and of any other suitability matters relating to the role. These must be highlighted at the end of their personal statement. The selected candidate will be requested to provide two professional references, one of which must be their most recent employer.

The primary working location is our office at W11 4AT, with limited scope for remote working. The post holder will be required to work 5 days per week, 35 hours, during core hours of 10am to 5pm, with flexibility required for outreach, partner meetings, and project delivery.

Vacancy Details

To apply for the post, please email your CV with a detailed statement of no more than 1000 words to cassim@nklc.org.uk and recruitment@nklc.org.uk demonstrating how you meet the Person Specification Criteria and Specific Details section. You must cover all sections of the specification in the same order.

Closing Date for Applications

Applications will be reviewed and interviews offered on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted by email. If you have not received a response within 7 days of submission, please assume your application was unsuccessful.

If you have any disabilities and require special arrangements for the interview process, please highlight this at the end of your statement.