Rewards and benefits
It’s official: Housing 21 is one of the UK’s Best Places to Work! Read more.
We’re committed to being an employer of choice and making Housing 21 a fantastic place to work.
We offer a range of benefits to help achieve a good work/life balance. Whether it’s starting your day with a dog walk, thanks to flexible working, or saving money on popular restaurants, thanks to the Blue Light Card, there is something for everyone.
Benefit entitlements are confirmed with employees’ offer of employment.
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Flexible working
We know that work-life balance is just as important as professional development, so we offer flexible working from day one. We have introduced the offer of a nine-day fortnight for salaried roles, where employees can choose to spread their working hours over nine days instead of ten. This allows employees the option to enjoy a three-day weekend, helping to improve work-life balance.
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Holiday trade scheme, extra days’ leave and volunteer leave
Our salary sacrifice scheme lets you sell up to five days' holiday or buy up to 10 days of extra leave every year.
We also offer extra days' holiday for length of service to say thank you for staying with us. You receive an extra day of annual leave after three years’ service, and a second extra day after five years’ service.
Whether you have a charitable cause close to your heart, or want to make a difference to residents at our schemes, we offer up to two days' paid volunteer leave each year.
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Cycle to work scheme
Want to keep fit and help save the planet by cycling to work? This government approved salary sacrifice initiative allows you to hire a bike and accessories from Housing 21 for cycling to work. The hire is free of tax and national insurance which means you can make savings and spend less time in your car!
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Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
Our EAP is open to all employees and offers free and confidential support 24/7, 365 days a year. Whether you want to talk to someone about work-related or personal matters, trained professionals are ready to listen in a non-judgemental manner.
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Occupational sick pay for all employees
We know having time off due to illness can be a worry. We are pleased to offer occupational sick pay to all employees to help support you as best we can.
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Occupational maternity/paternity pay for all employees
We offer all employees Occupational Maternity Pay (OMP) if they have one year’s employment 11 weeks before their due date.
Paternity pay: Employees with over one year’s continuous employment are entitled to receive two weeks’ full pay whilst on paternity leave.
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Health cash plan
Funded Health Cash Plan - Our health cash plan provides access to services so you can seek help when you need it – this includes speaking to a GP.
You can also claim towards the costs of your everyday health such as dental check-up. The plan is funded for employees working over 10 hours a week. -
Eye care vouchers
If you use a computer to do your role you may be entitled to a voucher towards an eyesight test, and if you need glasses for using a visual display unit (VDU) you will be offered a voucher worth £55 towards the cost of them.
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Pensions
When you join Housing 21 we will write to you about which pension scheme you may be eligible to join.
The National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) scheme offers a 5% contribution from Housing 21 and a 3% contribution from you as an employee.
Employees on the Kickstart programme pay a 5% contribution with Housing 21 paying a 3% contribution.
The Defined Pension Contribution Scheme (SHPS) offers a generous employer contribution of up to 9% depending on the contribution you make and is a money purchase scheme, administered by The Pensions Trust.
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Housing Perks
Housing 21 employees can enjoy discounts and cashback with the Housing Perks app. The mobile app is free to download and use, providing access to over 100 national retailers offering discounts and cashback.
Employees can download the app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play store, entering a unique code to gain access to discounts, cashback and free items.
Visit the Housing Perks website to find out more: Housing Perks - financial wellbeing for housing associations (yourhousingperks.com)
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Blue Light Card - discounted retail, leisure and hospitality
All employees can register for a Blue Light Card, giving you two years' access to more than 15,000 discounts, from large national retailers to local businesses, saving you money on holidays, cars, days out, fashion, gifts, insurance, phones, and more!
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Phone discounts
Through our corporate mobile phone contract with O2 we are able to pass on savings directly to you.
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Car leasing schemes
We offer two car leasing schemes; you can either lease a car through a salary sacrifice scheme, or lease through Personal Contract Hire (PCH).
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Discounted guest suites
We have guest suites at many of our schemes across the country, and Housing 21 employees can book these at a reduced rate, saving you money when you’re away.
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Professional membership fees
Where a professional membership is an essential requirement for your role, Housing 21 will fund the cost of this.
Professional memberships can help you to stay at the forefront of your business area and network with other professionals. We encourage discussions about memberships where they can add value to your career with us at Housing 21.
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Training and development opportunities
Our dedicated Learning and Development Team have a wealth of expertise delivering in-house programmes, accredited by such bodies as the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM), as well as working with external partners to help you be your best.
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Apprenticeships, traineeships and the Kickstart programme…
…are just some of the ways we help individuals who share our values to get started in a career. Take a look at our vacancies today!
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Qualification enhancement
Care Workers who hold a Level 2 qualification in Health and Social Care (or equivalent), and Assistant Care Managers (ACMs) who hold a Level 3 in Health and Social Care (or equivalent), are entitled to an additional £0.50 per hour; that’s almost an extra £1,000 a year for a full time Care Worker!
All benefits may be reviewed and subject to change if required and therefore do not constitute a contractual entitlement.
Note that offers through salary sacrifice are available only as long as the deductions from your pay do not take you below the National Living Wage rate.