IPS Employment Specialist

*** Candidates must have Mental Health Care Secrtor experience ***
Committed to supporting individuals who face multiple barriers to employment, we transform the lives of disabled people and those with health conditions through sustainable employment. We do this by equipping them with the skills and confidence they need to enter or return to work, and empower organisations to support their disabled colleagues and improve workplace wellbeing. In 2015, Remploy's employees entered a joint partnership with MAXIMUS UK.
Job Summary
Embedding delivery with Primary Care and Community Health Teams, you will be delivering employment support to clients in parallel to the health treatment being delivered by NHS clinicians. Working towards a caseload of 20 clients who have a health condition which impacts on their ability to gain work, assisting them to obtain and sustain employment that is consistent with their vocational goals, following the principles of IPS. Meeting and exceeding performance targets for referrals, employer engagement, job starts and sustainment, in compliance with contractual guidelines and quality procedures.
Essential Job Duties
- Build relationships with clinical teams to generate referrals and create a collaborative working partnerships with NHS clinicians
- Where appropriate, attend weekly meetings with clinical teams and communicate with team members to integrate vocational services into health treatment processes
- Support candidates to understand their skills, aspirations and goals through the completion of a Vocational Profile and produce an Action Plan to obtain and sustain competitive employment in line with their preferences
- Assisting clients to understand their benefits through the delivery of In Work Benefit calculations and sourcing additional financial support
- Focus on rapid job search with the client, whilst utilising local support networks to help them overcome their barriers to employment
- Source job opportunities for clients through tailored job search and regular contact with employers
- To develop effective working relationships with a range of external agencies who might be better able to help individuals to achieve their employment goals for example, local colleges, training providers and external supported employment services
- Promote the benefits of supporting service users to access employment within Remploy and external employers, aiming to raise the profile of IPS services and raise expectations around the ability of service users to access paid employment
- Develop collaborative working relationships with employers to enable support to be provided to clients in work, and to help employers understand how to better support their staff. In particular, ensuring the service is focused on accessing the hidden labour market to unlock potential jobs that match with service user preference
- To assess individual support needs related to work which might typically include help with benefits, travel to work, managing health at work etc.
- To deliver employment workshops with other members of staff as required
- Provide individualised in work support using the place, train, fade model and ensuring effective support networks are in place to achieve sustainment
- To maintain a professional relationship with the clients of the programme and with other staff, with particular attention to confidentiality and maintenance of professional boundaries
- Ensure contractual compliance by accurate data entry and completion of documentation
- Allocate appropriate time to working in community settings away from Primary Care and Community Care Teams
- To work flexibly as required by the individual and employer which may require some working out of normal office hours
- To actively participate in own continuous professional development
Policy and/or Service Development
- To work with the IPS Area Manager and Team Leader to ensure that vocational support services continue to develop effectively
- Ensure that effective referral and information structures related to this service are in place
- Ensure that effective monitoring and evaluation systems are adhered to, in relation to the research programme and keep abreast of changing practice within vocational rehabilitation
Management of Resources
- Work with external agencies to maximise use of both internal and external resources in the delivery of vocational support services
Education and Experience Requirements
ESSENTIAL
? Excellent communication skills with the ability to adapt to a wide range of communication and learning styles
? High level of optimism, initiative and effective interpersonal skills in order to engage effectively with service users, clinical teams and employers
? Influencing skills that promote commitment and action
? Customer focused with a strong commitment to client care
? Disability Capability with demonstrable experience of supporting clients with mental ill health and other health conditions and disabilities
? Strong team player with a positive and flexible approach to both work and colleagues
? Creative problem solving skills and a positive approach to challenging and overcoming limiting beliefs
? Ability to plan and organise workload to meet required targets and deadlines
? Experience of people development on a one to one basis
? Experience of meeting and exceeding programme outcomes and targets
? Accurate identification of candidate support needs both pre and post-employment, with appropriate interventions delivered by self, or sourced through additional support networks
? Creating and delivering candidate Action Plans
? Experience working with employers to develop job opportunities for clients, and to support them whilst in work
? Attention to detail and ability to work to a defined delivery structure
? Able to work flexible hours and travel through prior arrangement as the needs of the job dictate