IPS Employment Specialist - Connect to Work Location: Community‑based with travel across the region Salary: £28,000 Contract: Full‑time, Permanent A fantastic opportunity has opened for an IPS Employment Specialist to join the Connect to Work programme, supporting people with complex barriers to move into meaningful, sustainable employment. This is a dynamic, relationship‑focused role where you'll work across health, employment, and community settings to help clients achieve life‑changing outcomes. What You'll Be Doing Managing a caseload of around 25 clients who want to start or return to work Carrying out vocational profiling to understand skills, aspirations, and employment goals Creating personalised action plans covering job search, CVs, applications, interviews, and career planning Supporting clients with travel planning, benefits guidance, budgeting, and disclosure around health conditions Providing in‑work support to help clients sustain employment, including early‑stage check‑ins and long‑term follow‑up Working with employers to source opportunities, negotiate adjustments, and support job retention Collaborating with Primary Care, mental health teams, DWP, training providers, and community partners Maintaining accurate case notes, progress reports, and CRM documentation Working to IPS fidelity standards and contributing to continuous service improvement What You'll Bring NVQ Level 2 (Customer Service, Business Admin, IT, Accounting) and GCSE English & Maths Level 2 IT qualification (e.g., ECDL) Full UK driving licence Experience supporting individuals to achieve goals in employment, skills, health, or social care settings Experience engaging with employers or helping clients into work Strong communication, organisation, and caseload‑management skills Ability to build effective relationships with clients, employers, and multi‑agency partners Understanding of barriers to work and strategies to promote independence