Head of Affordable Housing (London)

Thriving Investments is a socially conscious fund manager focused on the living sector. We invest across a range of housing tenures that deliver market returns to investors alongside meaningful social impact. We currently manage over 5,300 homes representing £1.1bn of assets under management, with ambitious plans to grow to £5bn+ through the launch of new funds and the expansion of existing portfolios.

Thriving Investments is supported by a Board of experienced non‑executive directors and by corporate functions including IT, Finance, HR and Facilities through our parent organisation, Places for People.

Location & working pattern

This role can be based from our London or Bath office, working three days per week on site, with the remaining time working from home. Regular site visits (approximately twice per month) will be required across Gloucestershire and Worcestershire.

More about the role

This is not a traditional housing management role.
We are looking for an experienced, commercially minded Head of Affordable Rented Housing to play a pivotal role in the growth For‑Profit Registered Provider, ReSI Homes, supporting the expansion of our portfolio into social and affordable rent as it scales from delivery into long‑term operation.

You will lead the end-to-end operational housing management of Thriving Investments' growing general needs portfolio within ReSI Homes — from mobilisation of new homes and onboarding of third‑party managing agents, through to regulatory compliance, customer experience and performance oversight at scale. With first homes onboarding from September 2026 and significant growth planned thereafter, you will ensure services are compliant, customer‑focused and effectively mobilised from day one.

Operating at the intersection of regulation, operations and commercial delivery , you will work closely with senior colleagues, local authorities and managing agents to ensure services meet the Regulator of Social Housing's expectations while remaining sustainable and scalable within an investment‑backed environment. This includes ownership of tenancy management arrangements, nominations, data quality, customer standards and performance reporting as the portfolio grows. You will provide operational input into investment decision making to help shape the growing portfolio.

This is a hands ‑ on, visible role with real accountability , suited to someone confident operating across the full housing management lifecycle and comfortable managing outcomes through partners rather than in‑house teams. It is an opportunity to help shape how general needs housing is delivered within a modern, commercially disciplined Registered Provider.

More about you

Please note: If we receive a high volume of applications, we reserve the right to use the desirable criteria as part of our shortlisting process.

Essential criteria

• Senior‑level experience leading general needs housing management within a regulated social or affordable rent environment, with accountability for portfolio‑level service delivery.

• Strong working knowledge of regulatory frameworks and consumer standards, with experience supporting governance, regulatory assurance and audit activity rather than frontline case management.

• Proven experience mobilising and scaling housing portfolios or new developments, including readiness, handover, data quality and customer onboarding.

• Demonstrable experience managing and holding third‑party managing agents to account across performance, compliance, reporting and risk.

Desirable criteria

• Experience working within a For‑Profit Registered Provider or investment‑backed housing model.

• Experience overseeing complaints performance and service standards, including working to the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code.

The benefits

We are an ambitious and growing business, offering challenge, development and long‑term career opportunity. This role could provide the foundation for a wider career as we grow the affordable housing investment platform.

Our benefits package includes:

• Competitive salary

• 28 days' annual leave plus bank holidays

• Car allowance

• Private pension

• Bonus scheme

• Training and development

• Additional perks including retail and leisure discounts

Inclusivity at Thriving Investments

We believe diversity drives innovation and stronger outcomes. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer.

What's next?

If you meet the criteria and are ready to make the next step in your career then click apply. You will be redirected to our careers site where you can discover more about the role, read a full job description and apply directly to us.

As part of our commitment to diversity and inclusion, we offer a guaranteed interview to candidates who are disabled, neurodiverse, or have served in the Armed Forces, provided they meet the essential criteria for the role. If you would like to be considered under this scheme, please indicate this in your application. We are dedicated to creating a supportive and accessible recruitment process for all.

We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application or interview experience, please let us know. We're happy to work with you to ensure you have the opportunity to perform at your best.

If you are a Places for People customer and you're looking for support with your application, please contact our skills and employment team on [email protected] .

W e understand the importance of a supportive and inclusive work culture so please talk to us at interview about flexibility you may need. We can't promise to give you exactly what you want, but we promise not to judge you for asking. For this role we are open to discussing the possibility of reduced hours, flexible start and finish times or compressed hours.

If you are a recruitment agency please note we operate a PSL and do not take cold calls

Safeguarding

At Places for People, safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. We are committed to creating safe communities for our customers and colleagues by protecting children, young people, and adults at risk from harm, abuse, and neglect.

We follow robust safeguarding policies and procedures, ensuring all employees, volunteers, and contractors uphold the highest standards of safeguarding and accountability. Our recruitment process includes pre-employment checks, including Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks where applicable, to promote a safe and secure working environment.

By joining Places for People, you are expected to contribute to our safeguarding culture, following our policies and reporting concerns to protect those in our communities