Greenwich Housing Rights

Fellow: Quazim Khan

Greenwich Housing Rights is an independent housing advice charity based in Woolwich, South East London. We believe that everyone has the right to a safe, suitable and secure home. By resolving housing problems we give our clients the stability needed to succeed in other areas of their lives.

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We were initially set up to support tenants in Greenwich but in recent years have grown to meet the needs of residents across SE London. We now serve a wide geographic area of over one million people and concentrate our resources on some of the most deprived wards in the country. We have a team of 3 solicitors, 8 caseworkers, 30+ dedicated and wonderful volunteers and a small team of support staff. Despite our best efforts however we have been affected by policy changes and funding constraints so we have embarked on an ambitious plan to develop new services, find new ways of generating income and reaching new clients. We see the Fellowship as an integral part of that plan.

Apart from direct legal advice services we provide a second-tier support service for other local groups, policy work, campaigning, public legal education and training. We co-ordinate a network of local not-for-profit advice and advocacy organisations all committed to access to justice. We also strive to help those looking to enter the profession by offering accredited training and volunteering roles. In 2014 we were recognised in the honours list for our work with volunteers when we received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the MBE for volunteer groups.

We work closely with local and regional partners to ensure clients have access to a wide range of advice and support services. One of our key partners, Plumstead Community Law Centre, will be helping to deliver the training contract. This opens up the opportunity for our trainee to develop expertise in welfare benefits, immigration and employment law, all crucial to meeting our clients’ complex needs.

The trainee will work under the close supervision of our Senior Solicitor and will be expected to play an active part in all of our legal advice and associated services. The trainee will receive additional support from senior staff and category supervisors to develop legal practice skills, subject specialisms and policy work and to ensure the successful delivery of their project. There will be an emphasis on contentious work but the trainee will be expected to develop the skills necessary to support clients using alternative dispute resolution and will undertake non-contentious work.

For further information, visit our website.