Skip to main content
Please wait, loading

Job summary

Main area
Employment Services
Grade
Band 4
Contract
Fixed term: 4 months (Until 31st December 2026)
Hours
  • Part time
  • Compressed hours
30 hours per week (Working a mixture of home and community based working)
Job ref
364-B-296
Employer
Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Holmer Court
Town
Colchester
Salary
£28,392 - £31,157 per annum pro rata
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
18/08/2026 23:59

Employer heading

Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust logo

IPS Employment Specialist - Connect to Work (North Essex)

Band 4

Please be aware that, due to current allocation constraints, Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) are being prioritised for registered roles at this time.

Our Trust cares for more than 100,000 patients at any one time across our community health, mental health and learning disability services across Essex and parts of Bedfordshire and Suffolk. 

We want you to be part of our journey of transformation, where our patients and their families are at the heart of everything we do and to achieve our vision to be the leading health and wellbeing service in the provision of mental health and community care.

You’ll be part of a Trust where you will be supported to be your authentic self and be the best you can be, where we will help you to grow, develop and thrive. 

The Trust is recognised by the University of Essex and is a top provider of apprenticeships for people looking to be an assistant practitioner, senior health care support worker (CAP). Our trailblazing CAP apprenticeship won a national HSJ Award.

We are also recognised as a Veteran Aware Trust and holder of gold accreditation from the Ministry of Defence Employment Recognition Scheme. Our services are highlighted as an exemplar of good practice, producing the best care for more than 3.500 armed forces veterans in the past seven years. 

We have been shortlisted and won national awards. We are an inclusive organisation and Level 3 Disability Confident Leader Trust.

We are constantly innovating and looking for new ways to deliver care, such as using technology to enhance patient care and working with partners to launch new services such as the Basildon Mental Health Urgent Care Department, virtual hospitals and falls response cars.  

Join us and you’ll do the best work of your life – and make a difference to other people’s lives. What we do together, matters.

Job overview

EPUT is very excited and proud to offer the opportunity to join our new Connect to Work employment service on a fixed-term contract until 31st December 2026. 

If you are a people person and feel you would enjoy supporting a wide range of Essex residents with achieving their employment goals, then why not apply today!

This service supports those across Essex with mental and physical health needs achieve and retain good quality paid work.  This builds on a long track record and reputation at EPUT for helping to make a difference to people’s lives through promoting sustainable employment that improves mental and physical health and brings wider community benefits.

The service is called Connect to Work and the main focus is to work alongside primary and community healthcare providers who will be the main referrers into the service and deliver high quality support to help those referred to gain and sustain in paid employment.

It is expected that the successful applicant will need to be able to work mainly in the Tendring/Harwich area of North Essex.

Main duties of the job

We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated individual to help people with mental and/or physical health needs to access employment.

You will be involved in helping people  decide on their employment goals, setting and achieving goals,  including support with job searching, applications, interview skills and providing ongoing in work support after they have found work. 

We are seeking individuals who are person-centred and positive in their outlook, have a ‘can do’ attitude and enjoy the challenges of helping people to overcome any barriers to finding work. You must have strong communication skills and confidence in order to build up relationships with all relevant stakeholders including local employers and businesses. You will be required to directly engage with a range of stakeholders (e.g. DWP, Job Centre +, voluntary organisations, training providers etc.) but especially local employers in order to create opportunities for service users and to challenge stigma and discrimination that can at times be associated with mental and/or physical health needs and employment. You will also be meeting and working with individuals and organisations in their local community

Working for our organisation

Valuing you. Recognising your dedication. At EPUT, we look after you. 

  • Receive supervision and support to help you fulfil your potential.
  • Join an inclusive EPUT community and connect with others through engagement events and equality or champion networks.
  • If you need help, we provide mental health and wellbeing services, occupational health advice and counselling.
  • We run recognition awards to recognise staff's hard work and dedication.

Benefits

  • 27 days holiday, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 10 years’ service.
  • Excellent pension of up to14.5% of your pensionable pay.
  • Staff discounts include Blue Light Card, NHS discount offers, and staff benefits.
  • £8K relocation package if you move to Essex to join us
  • Season ticket loans are interest-free to cover the cost of travelling to and from work via tram, rail, or bus.

Work that wraps around your needs

  • Flexible working: available from day one for most roles.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

You will work in partnership with  multi-disciplinary Mental and Physical Health Teams within Primary Care health providers and will be expected to ‘champion the employment agenda’, instilling the belief that people with mental and/or physical health needs want to work and with the right support can work; and therefore generating referrals to the service.

You will work in partnership with individual service users, developing relationships that are enabling and empowering. You will be providing an evidence based supported employment service, which will require you to prepare individuals for employment by assessing needs; identifying strengths, help with benefits, support networks, travel to work plans etc.

You will work to individual targets, i.e. the number of people supported into employment, and the number of Employers engaged with. You will be skilled in managing your own time and working with a high level of autonomy; responsible to the Team Leader via regular supervision and support and accountable to the Vocational Manager. You will promote best practice within mental and physical health and employment in the Trust and other organisations in the local area.

Would you like an opportunity to help people who have mental health needs to find meaningful and sustainable work?  Do you currently work or have experience in health or social care, recruitment, employment or education services? If you have transferable skills to enable people to find and sustain employment, this is an excellent opportunity to join our new Connect to Work service.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • Good standard of education; NVQ 3 or equivalent
Desirable criteria
  • Educated to degree level; Health and Social care related qualification
  • Qualification in; Information, Advice & Guidance or Employability Service Sector
  • Trained IPS approach

Knowledge

Essential criteria
  • Understanding of the needs and challenges faced by people experiencing mental and physical health difficulties when looking for employment
  • Good understanding of the need for goal setting when delivering employment support
  • Good knowledge of local and/or Government employment initiatives.
  • Good knowledge of the link between mental health and employment
  • Good knowledge of maintain best practice in employment and ways to promote this
Desirable criteria
  • Knowledge of relevant Welfare Benefits, i.e. disability, employment and in-work benefits
  • An understanding of the principles and practice of supported employment (IPS Model)
  • Knowledge of the Equality Act 2010

Skills/Experience

Essential criteria
  • Experience of helping people obtain or sustain employment/training
  • Experience of working within health, social care or the voluntary sector with people who have experienced mental health problems
  • Experience of developing local stakeholder relationships or similar
  • Experience of working to a high standard of administration procedures
  • Literate in IT/Computer Skills, including Outlook, Excel
  • Good oral communication skills based on fluency with the English language
Desirable criteria
  • Previous Experience of delivering IPS Employment Support
  • Delivering Mental Health First Aid Training
  • Use of patient record systems to record client activity

Personal Qualities

Essential criteria
  • Ability to assess and service users’ employability skills and identify support needs
  • Able to construct and review person-centered action plans
  • Ability to be flexible, open and creative when problem solving, facilitating solutions to challenging situations
  • Excellent negotiation skills and persuasive which will benefit development of relationships with local employers/ stakeholders
  • Commitment to working collectively with colleagues to reach team targets, sharing best practice ideas, stakeholder links and employer leads
  • Excellent interpersonal communication skills leading to effective representation and promotion of the service
  • Ability to work independently, reliably and consistently whiles delivering support in line with Trust values, open, compassionate and empowering

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Apprenticeships logoNo smoking policyMenopause Friendly EmployerPositive about disabled peopleAge positiveDisability confident leaderImproving working livesArmed Forces Covenant Gold AwardMindful employer.  Being positive about mental health.Essex Family Friendly Employers

Applicant requirements

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Sharif Sharif
Job title
Vocational Services Manager
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
07583020287
Additional information

Alternative contact to discuss the role:

Neville Drysdale - Team Lead, North Essex IPS in Primary Care/Connect to Work

Mob: 07535 629599 | Email: [email protected]

Apply online nowAlert me to similar vacancies