IPS Employment Specialist

IPS Employment Specialist Epping, CM16 4HW Contract Type: Full Time Salary: £28500 - £31500 Working Hours: 35 Job Category: Customer Support/Client Care 02/11/2026 - 11 days remaining Apply for this job

Job Introduction

IPS Employment Specialist - Mental Health Employment Services

Help make employment part of someone’s recovery

Employment can provide more than an income. For someone experiencing serious mental illness, the right job can strengthen confidence, independence and recovery.

As an IPS Employment Specialist, you will work alongside NHS clinical teams across Essex, supporting people to find and sustain competitive paid employment that reflects their preferences and strengths. You will manage a caseload, meet people in community and clinical settings, build relationships with employers and work towards job-start and sustainment outcomes.

This is a mobile role with daily travel across the Epping & Loughton area, not a home-based or single-office position. Full training in Individual Placement and Support (IPS) will be provided.

Before you apply: the essentials

• To be considered, your CV and application must clearly demonstrate:
  Experience providing one-to-one advice, guidance or practical support to adults or young adults, with evidence of helping people work towards clear outcomes.
• Evidence of building trust, motivating people and maintaining appropriate professional boundaries.
• Experience managing a caseload, appointments or competing priorities while maintaining accurate records and reliable follow-through.
• Confidence communicating with different people and professionals, including a willingness to approach employers and develop new relationships.
• Evidence of working towards outcomes, targets, tasks or agreed objectives and continuing when progress is difficult.
• Evidence of commitment, reliability and consistently delivering high standards of work.
• Confidence using Microsoft Office and digital record or case-management systems, with the ability to learn new systems.
• Ability to present your recent employment history clearly, including explaining gaps or short-term roles during the previous five years.
• A valid driving licence, reliable access to a vehicle for work and appropriate business-use insurance, enabling regular travel throughout Essex.

Useful, but not essential

• Employability, careers advice, welfare-to-work or supported employment experience.
• Experience supporting people with mental health conditions, disabilities or other barriers.
• IPS, NHS, clinical-team, recruitment or employer-engagement experience.

Previous IPS experience is not required. We are particularly interested in people who can bring strong advice, employability or relationship-building skills and want to develop specialist expertise in mental health employment support.

The real job

IPS - Individual Placement and Support - is an evidence-based approach that helps people experiencing serious mental illness move into competitive paid employment. If somebody wants to work, you help them start a rapid, personalised job search rather than putting them through lengthy pre-employment activity.

You will complete vocational profiles, understand each person's goals and job preferences, support applications and interviews and help them consider disclosure, workplace adjustments and managing health at work.

You will work as part of an NHS clinical team, attending multidisciplinary meetings and communicating appropriately with clinicians about wellbeing and risk.

Employer engagement is equally important. You will approach businesses directly, including employers who do not already know you, understand their workforce needs and uncover advertised and hidden opportunities. You need to be comfortable initiating conversations, hearing "no" and trying again.

Your support continues after somebody starts work, helping participants and employers resolve difficulties and sustain employment.

What success looks like

You build trusted relationships with participants and clinical colleagues, maintain purposeful contact across your caseload and turn individual employment preferences into active job searches.

Your employer relationships create genuine opportunities. Records are accurate and timely, and your work contributes to job starts, sustained employment and a high-quality IPS service.

The working reality

This role combines empathy with action and accountability. You will hear difficult personal information, support people whose health or engagement may fluctuate and maintain clear professional boundaries.

You will also work towards employment outcomes, manage your own diary and travel daily between clinical, community and employer locations across Essex.

We will consider reasonable adjustments that enable you to meet the role's travel requirements. Regular travel across the delivery area remains essential.

What you get

• 25 days' annual leave, increasing with service.
• Vitality health and wellbeing support, including GP services, mental health support and physiotherapy.
• 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme, including up to six counselling sessions a year and legal, financial and debt guidance.
• Workplace pension, with salary sacrifice available subject to eligibility and scheme rules.
• Share buy scheme.Up to £360 a year through IncentFit for eligible activities.
• Wellbeing, retail, fitness, travel and mobile discounts, including 20% off eligible EE mobile plans.
• Annual salary reviews

You will also receive full IPS training and fidelity guidance to help you develop specialist skills in this evidence-based employment model.

About Get Set UK

Get Set UK delivers employment, skills, apprenticeships, health and justice services, helping people overcome barriers and progress towards meaningful, sustainable employment. We are part of Palladium, a global impact organisation with more than 60 years' experience delivering programmes and solutions internationally.

Our values are Be Ambitious, Be Proud, Be Considerate, Be Inspiring and Own It, and they shape how we work with colleagues, participants and partners.

Recruitment process

Apply through our recruitment platform and complete the short initial questionnaire. If you start your application through Indeed or LinkedIn, you will