Employability manager jobs in Birmingham, west midlands

Job description

Job Title:  Caseworker

Reports to: TBC

Line Reports: N/A

Location:  London/ Birmingham/ Manchester

Working Pattern: Flexible – hybrid; minimum 2 days a week from one of our offices

Starting Salary: London- £29000 (Salary band:£29,000 - £32,000); Outside London- £26500 (Salary band: £26,500 - £29,500 ) 

Hours:  37.5 hours per week, with occasional evening/weekend work (TOIL provided)

Contract:  Fixed Term

Language requirements: Fluency in English essential. 

Travel: Expectations of travel between BB locations for in person meetings and events

Overall purpose:

Breaking Barriers exists to support refugees and people from forced migration backgrounds into meaningful employment.

The Client Caseworker is integral to delivering that mission. Acting as a client’s primary point of support, you will lead and coordinate their progression toward employment — whether through language development, requalification, training or direct employability support.

This role requires someone who can take ownership of client journeys, drive forward action plans, and deliver both one-to-one and group-based support that moves clients closer to work. Caseworkers  may initially focus more heavily on one pathway area, but the role is designed to provide integrated, cross-programme support over time.

Collaboration across programme teams is essential to ensure clients experience seamless, joined-up services and consistent progression.  Your contributions are valued, and you can make a meaningful impact on people’s lives.

Key responsibilities:

1. Client casework and support

• Manage a caseload of clients, providing structured one-to-one support in person and online.
• Conduct holistic assessments to understand clients’ qualifications, skills, language levels, aspirations and barriers.
• Co-create clear, outcome-focused action plans aligned to sustainable employment.
• Drive forward client progression across relevant pathways, including:
  • Employment readiness and job search
  • CV development, applications and interview preparation
  • Professional requalification and accreditation routes
  • English language progression
  • Sector-specific training or volunteering
• Deliver group sessions to help clients build knowledge and skills in a supportive peer-learning environment.
• Maintain regular contact to monitor progress, adjust support and maintain accountability.
• Identify and address barriers to progression, advocating where appropriate.
• Safeguard clients appropriately and escalate concerns in line with policy.
• Refer and signpost to additional support services where required.

2. Stakeholder and volunteer engagement

• Engage with stakeholders and partners to develop networks and identify job, training, education and work experience opportunities for clients.
• Support outreach initiatives by developing and maintaining relationships with partners (e.g. referral partners, training providers, employers and professional bodies)
• Advocate on behalf of clients to address specific barriers to employment or accreditation.
• Collaborate with colleagues responsible for employer and partner engagement to match clients to appropriate opportunities.
• Liaise with volunteers to source additional expertise and mentoring opportunities for clients.
• Represent Breaking Barriers at occasional events or meetings as required.

3. Monitoring, Reporting & Administration

• Maintain accurate, timely and detailed client records on the CRM system.
• Track and report on client progression against agreed milestones and KPIs.
• Ensure documentation and evidence are completed in line with reporting requirements.
• Complete enrolment and administrative processes efficiently.
• Support monitoring and evaluation processes to inform service improvement.

4. Cross-Organisational Collaboration & Integrated Working

• Work closely with colleagues across all functions to ensure seamless client journeys, aligning support, avoiding duplication and maintaining clarity of progression plans.
• Share knowledge of sector pathways, labour market developments and client trends to inform service development and team learning.
• Contribute to service development as the service redesign evolves. 
• Participate actively in team meetings, case reviews, reflective practice sessions, appraisals and inductions, contributing to strong team relationships and continuous service improvement.
• Take advantage of training and development opportunities to build new skills and share knowledge across teams.
• Foster a collaborative, solution-focused team culture.

Person specification:

Essential Criteria

Experience

· Experience providing one-to-one advice, guidance or support, ideally within employability, education, refugee support or a related field

· Experience delivering or co-facilitating group sessions, workshops or training.

· Experience working toward defined targets, outcomes or deadlines in a structured environment.

· Understanding of barriers faced by refugees and people from forced migration backgrounds in accessing employment.

· Experience maintaining accurate records, whether using a database, CRM or equivalent system.

· Understanding of safeguarding principles and how to respond appropriately to concerns.

Essential Skills & Abilities

· Ability to support people in planning and taking steps toward a goal, with clarity and follow-through.

· Comfortable facilitating groups and engaging diverse audiences.

· Strong interpersonal skills and ability to build trust with people from varied backgrounds.

· Good organisational skills and ability to manage multiple priorities.

· Proactive and solution-focused approach to problem-solving.

· Clear written and verbal communication skills.

· Able to work collaboratively across teams and with external partners or stakeholders.

· Attention to detail and administrative accuracy.

· Adaptable and open to working in an evolving service environment.

Desirable Experience

· Lived experience of seeking sanctuary or forced migration to the UK.

· Experience in refugee support, employment services, education or a related field.

· Familiarity with UK labour market pathways, sector training routes or professional requalification processes.

· Experience working alongside volunteers, mentors or external partners.

· Ability to speak an additional language relevant to the client group.

Other Requirements

• Commitment to Breaking Barriers’ mission and values.
• Eligibility to work in the UK.
• Willingness to travel between offices and partner locations as required.
• Occasional evening or weekend work (TOIL provided)

If you meet most, but not all of the criteria, we’d still like to hear from you!

How to Apply

To apply for this role, please provide:

· A CV

· A written response of no more than 2 pages, illustrating 3 examples from your previous experience that demonstrate how you meet essential requirements for the role.

 Other considerations:

· As part of our safeguarding commitment to our clients, we carry out pre-employment checks to ensure that successful applicants are suitable to work with adults at risk. These include criminal record disclosure, obtaining references and verifying a candidate’s identity and right to work in the UK

· Breaking Barriers is committed to protecting an adult’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect and for their views, wishes and beliefs to be fully taken into account when deciding action

· We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity status, race, religion or belief

· Breaking Barriers particularly welcomes applicants with experience of seeking asylum and/or a refugee background

· Some travel between our different areas of operation will be required.