Housing Development and Policy Enabler

About Us:

Based in the heart of Warwickshire, the beautiful district of Stratford-on-Avon is, without doubt, one of the most scenic and historical regions in the UK. Stratford-on-Avon District Council’s headquarters are located in the heart of William Shakespeare’s hometown. In the District, you will find thriving market towns, home to over 135,000 residents and a tourist destination for millions of visitors each year, from across the globe. We are proud to provide public services to residents, businesses and visitors across this magnificent region, making it a great place to live, work and visit.

At the Council, our people are our superpower and by choosing to bring your talents to our organisation, you will be joining a great team where everyone feels that they truly belong, full of dedicated people all working with passion and purpose, across a dynamic portfolio of work providing high-quality services.

Benefits:

As part of our team, you will enjoy a comprehensive benefits package, including:

Flexibility:

A minimum of 25 days of annual leave, plus Bank Holidays. (pro rata)

Hybrid working arrangements with the flexibility to work from home for up to 60% of your hours (dependent upon the role)

Flexi-time scheme for a better work-life balance.

Lifestyle:

Health Cash Plan Scheme for medical and dental expenses.

Eye test voucher scheme

Everyone Active Gym Membership discount

Professional Development:

Training and Development opportunities.

Payment of one professional subscription fee

Financial Planning:

Access to the Local Government Pension Scheme to secure your future.

Access to free Will writing services.

Employee Assistance Programme

Salary Sacrifice schemes e.g. Cycle to Work etc.

Free town centre parking

What to Expect in the Role:

Your role will be a combination of two distinct and influential areas. You will enable affordable housing in the district and lead in the formation of housing policy to ensure compliance and improved access to housing for all residents. You will be knowledgeable in housing legislation and national policy and have experience in implementing these initiatives to ensure compliance. You will have a variety of skills to trouble shoot developments and solve problems to ensure an increased supply of affordable housing. You will work with colleagues inside and outside the council, with communities, colleagues in other councils, stakeholders, local developers and Registered providers to promote the development of new affordable housing within Stratford district. You will work within a dedicated policy team to co-ordinate, formulate and implement housing policy and programmes. You will work with planning colleagues to comment on planning applications and give guidance to colleagues on affordable housing policies and delivery. You will be instrumental in tackling housing affordability and quality across all tenures for all residents. You will actively shape and influence the housing landscape by ensuring residents have a good supply of quality, affordable homes in all areas, that meet a variety of needs.

Key Accountabilities and Responsibilities (Please see Job Description and Person Specification for more details):

To actively promote the development of new affordable housing within the District, Work with Registered providers and developers to bring affordable housing to prominence and increase delivery Provide advice and information to planning staff on housing needs You will distil new legislation and guidance into local policy To give advice and guidance on up-to-date national policy, wider housing matters and legislation to managers and Planning officers To lead in creating processes and policy to apply new legislation at a council level. To lead in forming council housing strategies and their continued oversight Proactively seek out and give guidance on the most up to date policy developments, nationally and locally To liaise corporately and externally to secure legal agreements relating to the provision of affordable housing. Communicate with, present to and formulate reports for Senior managers and members

What You’ll Need (Please see Job Description and Person Specification for more details):

A degree level education.

Experience of working with communities, developers, Registered providers and council planners.

Able to deal with contentious and confidential matters with diplomacy and tact. 

Enthusiastic, positive and can-do approach and ability to use initiative and build strong relationships with colleagues and key stakeholders. 

Right To Work

Applicants must have existing Right to Work in the UK, as visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) e.g. ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini etc.

Artificial Intelligence could be a useful tool to support your application. However, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by AI, as your own) applications may be withdrawn.

Interview Format

All interviews for this position will be held face to face, as we believe this offers the best experience for candidates and panel members.

There will also be a presentation to be given to the panel on a subject to be supplied on reaching an interview stage

For an informal chat about the role, please contact Jon Mutchell , Housing Strategy and Development Manager on 01789 260842 or Jon.Mutchell@stratford-dc.gov.uk

Applications will close at midnight on Monday 5 th October 2026

Interviews and presentation will be held w/c 19 th October 2026