Planner - Repairs - DLO

With a workforce of two hundred colleagues we're small enough to be friendly and large enough to give you scope to develop and progress your career. We are based in Sutton Town Centre with great transport links in and out of London. Our colleagues work and engage with residents in the borough and wider for our private sector colleagues. At SHP our strength and depth lies primarily in the knowledge, experience and commitment of our colleagues; to deliver excellent services to residents. As a landlord organisation this means enabling families and households to be safe in their homes, sustain their tenancy and lead healthy and rewarding lives.

About the Role and our Ideal Candidate

Are you an organized, calm-under-pressure individual who excels at keeping moving parts aligned? As a Planner within our Direct Labour Organisation (DLO) team at Sutton Housing Partnership (SHP), you will play a central role in delivering high-quality, responsive repair services to our residents. You will be the crucial link between our residents, internal trade operatives, and external subcontractors ensuring every works order is scheduled smoothly, appointments are kept, and turnaround times are minimized. If you thrive in a dynamic environment, love solving everyday logistical puzzles, and care deeply about excellent customer service, we want to hear from you.

Key Responsibilities

• Plan and allocate responsive repair works to internal trade operatives and subcontractors using our in-house appointment systems and digital tools (PDAs).
• Proactively manage operatives' daily schedules.
• Respond dynamically to changing priorities, including emergency repairs, sickness, or unexpected schedule shifts.
• Keep IT records accurate and updated continuously.
• Manage jobs from booking through to completion, ensuring overdue tasks, cancellations, and follow-ups are actioned by the end of each day.
• Serve as a clear, polite, and helpful point of contact between residents, maintenance teams, Supervisors, and Subcontractors to ensure smooth service delivery.
• Partner with Business Support Assistants (BSAs), Repairs Supervisors, and Technical Inspectors to make sure job referrals and Schedule of Rate (SoR) codes are accurate.
• Provide seamless cover for fellow planners during absences and contribute to team performance and training.

Our Ideal Candidate

• Essential GCSEs (or equivalent) at grade C/4 or above in English and Mathematics.
• Strong time management, organizational, and multitasking skills in a fast-paced environment.
• Comfortable navigating complex computer systems and managing live data.
• Excellent verbal and written communication with an empathetic, professional approach to customer service.
• A "can-do" mindset with the independence to take ownership of tasks and handle challenging situations calmly.

Desirable

• Prior experience working within a Direct Labour Organisation (DLO) or housing maintenance setting.
• Familiarity with basic repair and maintenance methodologies.
• NVQ Level 2 in Customer Service or Business Administration.

About Us

We are a groundbreaking, innovative housing partnership working as a not for profit organisation in the Borough of Sutton with ambitious objectives for making Sutton a great place to live. Formed in April 2006 as an Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO) we work in partnership with Sutton Council and its residents, managing over 6,000 council properties and over 1,500 leasehold properties in Sutton. The housing stock is owned by the London Borough of Sutton, the day to day management, maintenance and asset investment is the responsibility of SHP. We embarked on a large transformation programme for both residents and colleagues, have achieved Customer Service Excellence and the Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance (DAHA) accreditation, and will be delivering our new asset investment programme based on the best stock condition survey data in the sector, delivering investment to residents homes, fire and building safety works along with much more. We have a strong commitment to colleague engagement, health, wellbeing and flexible working.

Guided by Our HOME Values

At SHP, our values shape how we work every single day: Continuously learning, setting ambitious goals, and paying close attention to detail. Working collaboratively, supporting colleagues, and keeping partnerships strong. Taking ownership, finding proactive solutions, and bringing a positive approach to change. Putting residents at the heart of what we do, delivering on promises, and seeing tasks through to the end.

Our Offer To You

Colleagues at SHP take pride in delivering our priorities and working in rewarding careers. In turn, we strive to reward them fairly through SHP’s pay and reward systems. Roles are reviewed to ensure pay reflects the responsibilities of the individual in line with our systems. A good work-life balance is important and our key benefits are:

• Membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme – a career average scheme where employees contribute between 5.5% and 12%. Sutton Housing Partnership contribution rate to your pension is 18.4% from 1 April 2025.
• Annual leave of either 28 or 33 days per year (depending on the role) plus paid time off on bank holidays.
• Simply Health Cash Plan which allows colleagues to claim cashback on dental, optical, consultations and scans.
• Employee Benefits to include cycle to work scheme and a range of discounts schemes.
• Employee Assistance Programme is a confidential, independent, expert provider of employee support services paid for by SHP to help you balance and discuss issues in your work, family and personal life. It is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
• Investment in your learning and development; My Learning account is set up for every member of staff with access to e-learning modules and Instructor led training. Opportunities for external training that meet both individual and strategic requirements are considered through an application process.

Additional Information

We are proud to be a diverse and welcoming organisation and we strive to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve, and instil a sense of belonging in our staff. We celebrate and respect differences and appreciate the value of having a diverse workforce, therefore we welcome applications from under represented groups. The UK has a points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking the GOV.UK website for right to work guidance. Sponsorship availability varies and is subject to eligibility requirements and budget limitations. As a result, we cannot guarantee sponsorship for all roles and will evaluate sponsorship requests on a case‑by‑case basis.