Compliance Officer in Milton Keynes

Core responsibilities are to ensure that the Company is conducting its business in full compliance with all relevant laws and regulations that pertain to the Estate Agency industry, as well as professional standards, accepted business practices, and internal standards. This role also includes working with current and new members of staff to ensure they are trained to the highest standards in compliance, in order to further progress the business and maintain the Company ethos. Strong organisational skills are a must along with good time management skills, excellent communication and presentation skills and a high attention to detail. Reporting to Operations Director.

Responsibilities:

• Main point of contact for the Property Ombudsman, Trading Standards, HMRC for Anti Money Laundering and other bodies.
• Main point of contact for all escalated complaints.
• Conduct investigations in a fair and systematic manner and follow through to conclusion (TPO case or county court).
• Understand the relevant legislation and monitor the legislative landscape for changes that may affect the business and plan accordingly.
• Oversee the communication of compliance across the Company and to all members of staff, ensuring they fully understand their legal obligations and our procedures.
• Offer training and workshops at Head Office and in branches where required.
• First point of contact for all compliance enquiries.
• Implement new policies as required and update existing periodically/annually.
• Support the production of new policies and procedural updates, as and when changes occur.
• Prepare and submit reports as requested by the Operations Director.
• Conduct risk assessments for all new staff and existing staff periodically to comply with Health & Safety.
• Conduct annual office risk assessments to comply with Health & Safety.
• Health and safety compliance and supporting the upkeep of maintenance.
• Work with the Operations Director to produce new and creative ways to develop areas of the business, specifically relating to compliance and training.

Role Requirements:

• Ability to learn about our services and review our business practices.
• Diligent and willingness to see an issue through to resolution.
• Proactive and vigilant to potential breaches and strategies.
• Analytical with an ability to work in a fast-paced environment whilst meeting deadlines.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Specific areas of responsibility cover but are not limited to:

• The Estate Agency Act.
• The Property Ombudsman code.
• Anti Money Laundering regime, monitoring, SARS reports to HMRC and account management to facilitate our AML checks.
• GDPR – updates to policies, reporting and dealing with breaches.
• Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (material information) monitoring and dealing with breaches.
• Consumer Rights Act – prescribed information, monitoring and resolution of any compliance issues.
• Agency agreements / Terms of business, monitoring changes in legislation and arranging amendments as appropriate.
• Health & Safety across all offices to comply with legal obligations, including: Routine office checks to identify any emerging issues, including fire safety, equipment safety, personal safety concerns, DSE work station assessments (for new staff and regular checks for all). Arrange reasonable adjustments as appropriate (e.g. laptop stands, keyboards etc).
• Report to the responsible person any wider issues that need to be addressed, e.g. leaky roofs, missing fire extinguisher tests.
• Complete risk assessments for every office (during office visits).
• Specific risk assessments for higher risk individuals and guidance for their managers e.g. Young persons, expectant mothers, allergy suffers.

Potential for some work from home.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: From £37,000.00 per year

Education: Certificate of Higher Education (required)

Experience: Complaint handling: 2 years (required)

Willingness to travel: 25% (preferred)