- Published
- 14th August, 2025
Service Care Solutions (SCS) have been providing a Master Vendor solution for the now Southern Housing for over 4 ½ years, managing their curated supply chain across all areas of the business, including Housing Professionals, Business Support, Trades & Labour, Independent Living, Direct Works, Technical Construction and Executive positions. SCS’ dedicated Account Management team oversees all recruitment functions, liaising between the hiring managers and supply chain, arranging interviews, and managing compliance maintaining a 98% fill rate on all vacancies to date.
The Challenge
The merger of two G15 housing associations (Optivo and Southern Housing Group) led to a mix of recruitment strategies, including Direct Recruitment, Preferred Supplier List (PSL), and Master Vendor (MV) solutions, involving over 50 agencies. The newly formed Talent Acquisition Team aimed to significantly increase fill rates, reduce recruitment costs, control off-contract spending, gain visibility of recruitment expenditure, and offer employment opportunities to residents. The subsequent merger with Southern Housing Group in 2022 brought their temporary recruitment needs under the existing Master Vend solution.
The Solution
Optivo chose SCS, Procurement for Housing’s (PfH) Number One Ranked Supplier, to manage recruitment through a Master Vendor solution. SCS oversaw recruitment across all areas of the achieving a 98% vacancy fill rate. SCS also worked with Southern Housing’s Social Value and Resident Involvement Team to offer employment opportunities and training to residents.
The Benefits
Southern Housing saved over £500,000 in the first four years and achieved greater control over recruitment spend including over 70 Temp to Perm placements. Legal risks were mitigated through SCS’s compliance process, meeting the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and ISO 9001 standards. Additionally, SCS helped place over 20 Southern Housing residents in jobs through our resident engagement. The recruitment process was streamlined, with positive feedback from hiring managers on ease and efficiency.
