Mental Health Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Employment Specialist
(Maternity Leave Cover)
Deadline: 16/09/2025
Hey there Are you ready to bring your passion, creativity, and happy vibes to a place that truly makes a difference? Look no further At PossAbilities, we're a social enterprise on a mission to help vulnerable people 'Live the life they choose.' Mostly we support people with learning disabilities, young people leaving care and people with we do lots of other great things too. If that sounds like something you'd love to be a part of, keep reading
Why Choose PossAbilities?
PossAbilities isn't just a fantastic place to work; it's a place where your heart can sing. Here's why you'll love working with us:
* Awesome Pay: We proudly offer a real living wage. Earn £29,410.87 a year for a 37-hour workweek (pro-rata for part-timers).
* Pension Perks: We contribute up to 4% of your salary into a pension plan.
* Holiday Fun: Enjoy 22 days of annual leave (pro rata for part time), 8 bank holidays, and access to our reduced rate holiday home at Ribby Hall Village, 3 extra days holiday on completion of 5 years' service
* Duvet Days: Perfect attendance? Have a paid day off to chill
* Health & Wellbeing: Access for you and your dependents for free 24/7 confidential employee assistance programme support, including counselling, and internally trained Mental Health First Aiders to support you.
* Social Events: Join fun events with the people we support, staff, and their families.
* Discounts & Benefits: We're a Flexible Pay Employer that offers Wagestream. The money management app lets you choose when to get paid, put money aside each month, get discounts on your shopping, check your benefits entitlement and much more. Not just that but as an employee of PossAbilities you are eligible for a Blue Light Card, ESSO discounted fuel card & similarly a Love2Shop - Every Day Benefits Card all easy-to-use discount schemes which saves you money on your day-to-day spending. We will even refund you the joining fee
Your Purpose
To support individuals with mental health support needs, to secure sustainable paid employment in line. You will work in collaboration and foster a close working relationship with the staff within the NHS Mental Health Teams to ensure the best outcomes for the people that you are supporting.
Your Role
* Support up to 20 clients to secure and sustain employment using the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model.
* Follow IPS Fidelity Principles with regular self-assessments and audits.
* Achieve targets by securing paid employment outcomes for clients.
* Provide advice and guidance to help clients achieve employment.
* Assess clients' support needs and aspirations to match them to job opportunities.
* Develop and review Action Plans for clients' progress.
* Create risk assessments for clients with complex needs.
* Assess clients' work-related support needs, including benefits and mental health.
* Adhere to administrative and data capture systems.
* Record progress and maintain accurate records and case notes.
* Assist with CV writing, job search, and interview preparation.
* Use IT to keep accurate records.
Work with Mental Health Teams:
* Attend clinical and team meetings to develop a holistic support approach.
* Embed IPS service within the trust and deliver presentations on IPS Fidelity.
* Attend IPS-specific meetings and collaborate with other IPS Specialists.
* Work in multidisciplinary teams with various health professionals.
* Assess clients' health needs and plan employment support.
* Build trust with clients and understand their needs.
* Visit clients in the community for job search.
* Collaborate with clients, relatives, and professionals.
* Review and monitor clients' Work Development Plans and support.
Work with Employers:
* Source and secure job opportunities for clients, focusing on rapid job search.
* Negotiate with employers on clients' behalf.
* Negotiate workplace adjustments and support job carving.
* Build strong relationships with employers.
* Review competencies with employers and clients.
* Challenge inequalities and address discrimination.
* Provide one-on-one support until clients settle into the workplace.
* Offer ongoing support to sustain employment.
* Develop relationships with external agencies and training providers.
* Monitor and review clients in the workplace.
Inclusion
We strongly believe that a good workplace is one that values everyone and embraces both similarities and differences and therefore we want to ensure all our employees bring their whole-self to work. We expect you to:
* Be committed to equality, diversity & inclusion; celebrate the differences of our people and contribute to a culture where everyone is valued and respected.
* Be committed to delivering person-centred services and recognising our customers as diverse individuals.
Our Values
Our values lie at the heart of our organisation and underpin everything we do.
Integrity
We communicate openly and honestly and build relationships based on trust, respect and caring.
Creativity
We thrive on innovation and encourage positive risk taking.
Happy
We believe fun is the key to success
Person centred
We believe that everyone has the right to exercise choice and control in directing their lives and support. We inspire people to achieve greater things.
Passionate
We are dedicated to, and enthusiastic about, providing exceptional services.
Don't just take our word for it:
We were named as one of The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2025
On our latest staff survey 98% of respondents said they were proud to work for PossAbilities and 95% said they were happy working here
We were awarded Highly Commended for Employer of the Year at the 2024 National Learning Disability & Autism Awards.
What's it like to work at PossAbilities? Watch and find out... or check our brochure here
We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace where all employees feel valued, respected, and supported. We believe that diversity drives innovation and we actively seek to foster an environment where everyone can thrive. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and are dedicated to providing equal opportunities for all employees, ensuring that our team reflects the diverse communities we serve.
If you require any accommodations during the application or interview process, please let us know, and we will work with you to meet your needs.
Still not sure? Complete our expression of interest form and someone will give you a call back to chat things through with you.