Independent mental health advocate jobs in east of england

Job Title: Employment Adviser

Line Reports: Client Services Manager

Location: London

Salary:  £29,000 - £32,000

Hours: Full-time 37.5 hours per week, with occasional evening or weekend work (TOIL provided)

Contract: Permanent

Overall purpose

The Employment Adviser (EA) plays a key role in supporting refugees and people from refugee backgrounds to progress towards and secure sustainable employment. The EA provides tailored employment advice and guidance, helping clients build the knowledge, confidence, and skills needed to navigate the UK job market. This role will work with clients at various stages of their employment journey, with a particular focus on those in the earlier stages of understanding career options, developing employability skills, and exploring education, training, and volunteering opportunities.

The EA will deliver one-to-one and group-based employability support, collaborate with employers and volunteers to source opportunities for clients, and maintain strong relationships with referral and support partners to ensure a holistic approach to employment support.

To view the full job description and person specification, as well as details on our accessible recruitment process, please view the attached recruitment pack.

Other considerations

• As part of our safeguarding commitment to our clients, we carry out preemployment checks to ensure that successful applicants are suitable to work with adults at risk. These include basic DBS checks, obtaining references and verifying a candidate’s identity and right to work in the UK.
• Some travel between our different areas of operation (including London, Birmingham and Manchester) will be required. Occasional evening or weekend work may be required. Time off in lieu would be provided in this case.
• 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.

How to apply

If you are looking for a role where you can make a real difference, we want to hear from you. To apply, please submit a CV and statement (up to approximately 500 words/1 A4 page) outlining:

• Why you are interested in the role
• What skills you would bring to be successful in this role
• Any experience you would like to highlight
• Any reasonable adjustments you require for the interview process
• Disclosure of disabilities if you wish to do so (as a member of the Disability Confident Scheme, we guarantee an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the role)

Please note that applications without a covering letter will not be considered.

Closing date for applications is 11:30pm on Tuesday 22 July. Interviews will be held on a rolling basis so please apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

We belong to the Experts by Experience Employment Initiative, which advocates and supports organisations to employ more people from a refugee background. With this in mind, we particularly welcome applicants with experience of seeking asylum and/or a refugee background. 

If you are an expert by experience (a refugee or a migrant with direct, first-hand experience of issues and challenges of the UK asylum or immigration system), you can ask for an independent and confidential support for your job application from the Experts by Experience Employment Network. Please reach out to HR Manager Rebecca Hughes for further details (we are unable to include email addresses in this advert, but you can find contact details on the final page of the attached recruitment pack).

Bromley Experts by Experience is a local Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisation, run by and for Deaf and Disabled people and carers in Bromley and neighbouring Boroughs.

We have a vision of a world where Disabled people are able to live their lives independently, in the way they choose, participating fully in society and enjoying equity and respect for diversity.

Our mission is to enable Deaf and Disabled people and carers in Bromley and neighbouring Boroughs to fully understand our rights, develop collective pride and build skills and experience in self-advocacy and strong civic participation. We believe this will allow Disabled people to lead in challenging discrimination in Bromley and beyond, breaking down barriers to independence, choice and equity. 

Our aims are:

• To support Disabled people to get our voices heard and to influence change locally.
• To campaign for an inclusive and accessible society.
• To support, develop and celebrate Disabled people’s skills and leadership.

You would be joining a small, committed team of staff who are passionate about creating more inclusive and accessible communities in Bromley and beyond to enable Deaf and Disabled people to participate fully in society and realise our rights.

As Youth Transition Worker, you will be working with young Disabled people in schools/colleges and the local community to support them to navigate the transition to adulthood. You will lead on co-producing workshops and events with young Disabled people to ensure they have the skills and knowledge they need to make this transition successfully.

Position: Youth Transition Worker

Responsible to: Deputy CEO

Location: You will be based in our office in Anerley. During term time, you will be visiting four Bromley schools weekly. In addition, you will need to be able to travel to other Bromley venues as required and occasionally further afield. Some hybrid working may be possible in this role in consultation with your line manager.

Hours: 28 hours per week

Salary: £29,300 per year pro rata to 28 hours per week (35 hours FTE)

Annual leave: 5.6 weeks per year including bank holidays, pro rata

Pension: Statutory opt in rules applied to all our jobs

How to apply:

Please visit our website to complete an application form with a supporting statement that gives examples of how you meet each criteria in the person specification.

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to lead a short session with a group of young Disabled people at our Anerley office on Monday 11th August 2025. Details of what is required for the session will be sent with the interview invitation.

Successful candidates will then be invited to an online interview on Wednesday 13th August 2025.

Closing date: 11.59pm on Thursday 31st July 2025.

What you will be working on:

• Plan and deliver accessible and engaging workshops within schools/colleges, taking the access needs and learning preferences of young Disabled people into account.
• Establish a working group to develop a Youth Forum for young Disabled people in the Borough to campaign and have influence around issues that affect them.
• Develop connections with other youth organisations to organise workshops in school holidays that appeal to young Disabled people.
• Promote our free membership and volunteering opportunities to young Disabled people.
• Develop the skills of young Disabled people so they can take up positions on our Trustee Board.  
• Support young Disabled people to regularly evaluate the project and ensure that this data is updated on our database in a timely manner.

This job is for you if:

• You have personal lived experience of being Deaf and/or Disabled.
• You have experience of working with young people with a diverse range of needs to build their confidence and resilience.
• You can show empathy with young people and an understanding of their needs, empowering them to overcome barriers to reach their potential.
• You have understanding of the importance of safeguarding and working with people who might be ‘at risk’.
• You have strong organisational and time management skills, including being able to problem-solve, show initiative, meet targets and plan and prioritise your workload. 
• You have excellent communication skills, including an ability to adapt and tailor communication for people with varying access needs.
• You are able to cope with limited resources, seize opportunities and think creatively.​
• You are willing and able to travel frequently across Bromley to schools/colleges and local community venues.

Rainbow Migration is the longest-running charity in Europe dedicated to supporting LGBTQI+ people through the asylum and immigration system and has been campaigning for their rights since 1993. We are recruiting for a Legal and Support Services Assistant to act as a first point of contact for the charity and assist the legal and support services teams.

The Legal and Support Services Assistant will help ensure smooth delivery of our services. You will be the first point of contact for new queries and play a key role in providing the information needed and passing enquiries to the relevant service.

This role will receive full training and support as required to deliver your responsibilities, which include the following:

• Provide admin support for the legal and support services teams
• Answer calls and emails
• Prioritise enquires from service users or signpost them to other organisations
• Organise legal advice sessions for asylum and partnership service users
• Input data onto our Salesforce database
• Write minutes for legal and support service team meetings
• Assist with organising and running events (e.g. Pride, service user Christmas party)
• Assist with preparations for training and presentations

Rainbow Migration’s vision is that LGBTQI+ people can settle safely in the UK and lead fulfilling lives.

Our values are: 

• Safety: We believe everyone should be safe from persecution and safe to be themselves. We strive to create a safe workplace culture, and we place importance on the wellbeing of everyone involved with Rainbow Migration. 
• Integrity: We are thorough and honest in everything we do, and we take responsibility for our actions. We want to be accountable to our communities and those who support us. 
• Belonging: We welcome and include all LGBTQI+ people, and we celebrate and value their range of experience in terms of gender, religion, race, age, disability status and class. We try to remove obstacles to participation, champion equality and promote a sense of family or home through our services. 
• Respect: We believe that every person is equal and deserves the same level of courtesy, care, and attention. We respect the rights, wishes and feelings of our service users, and campaign for their rights to be respected as they go through the asylum and immigration system. 

Diversity, inclusion and anti-oppression

At Rainbow Migration, we don’t just accept difference – we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it. We’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity. We do not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability status. We consider all qualified applicants, consistent with any legal requirements.

We strive to build a team that reflects the diversity of the community we work in and welcome applications from candidates who have been through the UK asylum system and people of colour, who are currently underrepresented among our staff in relation to our service users.

We are also reviewing what we do and how we do it through an anti-oppression and anti-racism lens, as well as investing in being more informed and led by LGBTQI+ people who have sought asylum.

We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for anyone considered as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if they meet all the necessary criteria in the person specification. If you wish to qualify under this scheme, please make this clear when applying.

We send a selection of questions in advance of job interviews to give applicants more thinking time. You are welcome to take notes in interviews to help process information. If your interview is online, we can also put questions in the meeting chat. Please let us know if we can make other adjustments to support your interview process.

Owing to the nature of the work, the successful applicant will be required at the point of conditional job offer to disclose all unspent criminal records and subsequently to undergo a basic DBS check. See our website for more information.

Role overview

Contract type: Permanent

Hours: Full-time (35 hours per week Monday to Friday). Occasional work in the evenings and at weekends may be required but with plenty of notice. Rainbow Migration encourages staff to maintain a good work life balance and has a TOIL system in place.

Salary: Starting at £25,244 FTE with potential annual step increases up to £28,412, plus statutory employer’s pension contribution. In addition to an annual step increase, the trustees consider giving a separate inflationary increase every April.

Location: Rainbow Migration’s wheelchair accessible offices are based between Vauxhall and the Oval, London. This role will have an office-based contract but the postholder can choose to work from home for part of the week in agreement with their line manager as per our hybrid working policy. You must be available to work from our offices in London when necessary. The successful candidate would also be welcome to work from the office full-time if that is their preference. At the time of posting this advert, staff mostly work from home. There might also be occasional travel outside London with plenty of notice. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Annual leave: 25 days per year rising after 24 months by 1 day after each year of service to a maximum of 28 days per year (pro rata if working part-time).

Benefits:

• Two days of wellbeing leave to be taken at short notice in each calendar year (pro rata for part-time staff)
• Enhanced parental leave and pay
• Full pay for jury service (up to four weeks), compassionate leave (up to two weeks) and dependants’ leave (up to four days, pro rata for part-time staff)
• Separate salary step and inflationary increases considered every year
• TOIL system
• Hybrid working policy, including possibility of working abroad for 10 working days (pro rata for part-time staff) each year
• Policy on staff loans or salary advances for difficult times
• Work laptop and mobile phone
• Training and learning opportunities
• Occupational health assessments for disabled employees to understand how we can support and make reasonable adjustments
• Employee assistance programme which includes counselling service, wellness advice, legal and money advice, and other matters
• Clinical supervision for staff delivering services (a safe space with an independent therapist to offload and discuss feelings and challenges)

How to apply

Closing date: 9am 25 July 2025

Interview dates: Initial interviews will be online on 7 August 2025. A second round of face-to-face interviews in London will follow.

Please read the job description and person specification. If you have any questions about the role or would like to find out more before applying, then you can contact the line manager via the email in the JD.

Please send to the email in the JD:

1. Your CV
2. A written statement (max 1,000 words). Instead of a written statement you may submit your statement by video or audio recording (max 8 minutes)

We would also be grateful if you could complete this optional monitoring form (link in JD).

In your statement, please:

1. Explain why you are interested in this role and give examples of how you meet the person specification. In addition to what is on your CV, we want to hear about any relevant skills and experience that demonstrate how you meet the necessary criteria for the role, and if you meet any of the advantageous criteria. Skills and experience could be from training, volunteering, interests or life experience
2. Confirm if you wish to be considered under the guaranteed interview scheme for anyone considered as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 (physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ effect on your ability to do normal daily activities)
3. State how many hours a week you wish to work and if you have a preferred pattern
4. Explain if you have used AI to help with your application in any way and the reason why. While AI can be a helpful tool, we expect all applications to reflect your own experiences, qualifications and style of writing. Transparency is valued, so applications that are obviously written with AI without explanation will not be considered

By submitting an application, you:

1. Confirm that you have the right to work in the UK and will produce the necessary documentation if you are offered this post.
2. Declare that to the best of your knowledge and belief, the information provided with your application is true and correct and that you understand that any false information or statement given will justify your dismissal from Rainbow Migration if appointed.
3. Accept that owing to the nature of the work, if successful, you will be required to disclose all spent and unspent criminal records at the point of conditional job offer and subsequently to undergo an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check. See our website for more information.

We are proud to be a member of the Experts by Experience Employment Network, which aims to create a charitable sector that is led by people with lived experience of the asylum and immigration system. As part of this network, we challenge the one-size-fits-all approach in our employment practices and respect the personal circumstances and needs of people with lived experience.

If you are an expert by experience (a refugee or a migrant with direct, first-hand experience of issues and challenges of the UK asylum or immigration system), you can ask for independent and confidential support for your job application from the Experts by Experience Employment Network. Please complete the form (link in JD) to request support and they will confirm if they can match you with a mentor to support your application.

Privacy notice

If you apply for this role, the information you provide will be processed according to Rainbow Migration's privacy policy. Rainbow Migration will not share your information with any third parties unless part of the recruitment process or are legally required to do so. By applying, you are permitting Rainbow Migration to access and use the information for recruitment purposes. Information is kept for the minimum period necessary, which for CVs, covering statements and/or audio or video submissions for unsuccessful applicants is 12 months after the conclusion of the recruitment campaign. Monitoring information is kept separately and is pseudonymised to avoid identification of applicants. It is amalgamated for statistical purposes and the original data is then deleted after six months.

Job Summary

Location : Requirement to attend our sites in Basildon, Harlow and Thurrock if required and to team meetings quarterly.

Type: Remote

Salary: £48,000.00 per annum

Hours :  37.5 hours per week

Term: Permanent

Main Responsibilities:

Leadership

1. As a member of the Operational Leadership Team and wider Senior Leadership Team, work collaboratively and take collective responsibility for the strategic management and leadership of the organisation.

2. Work closely with the CEO, Treasurer and Board of Trustees to facilitate good governance and risk management.

3. Manage, maintain and develop all financial systems and control; increasing their impact and quality, and implementing best practices in financial management.

4. To supervise finance assistants and ensure that they are adhering to financial code of practices.

Financial Management

1. Lead and manage all aspects of the financial cycle, including budgeting, forecasting, fixed asset management, reserves & designated fund management and financial reporting.

2. Work with HR & Payroll Officer to manage and retain oversight of the day to day financial operations, including accounts payable, accounts receivable, banking and general ledger maintenance, including the reconciliation of petty cash, credit cards and all bank accounts on a monthly basis reviewing and approving payment runs and payroll.

3. Work with the CEO and Senior Leadership Team to prepare the annual budgets and forecasts.

4. Lead and manage the provision of regular budget monitoring and reports to budget holders.

5. Assist with the budget preparation for funding bids. Manage, monitor and keep track of any grants, funding or commissioned income, working with relevant managers to provide relevant financial information for inclusion in monitoring reports.

6. Lead and manage the provision of quarterly financial reports to the Board and advise them on financial issues as appropriate

7. Provide insightful financial analysis and reporting to inform and support organisational management, development and decision[1]making, and funding applications across the organisation.

8. Work with the CEO to prepare medium term financial forecasts for the organisation to support strategic decision-making and delivery of strategic priorities.

9. Lead on the audit process and the preparation of year end accounts to trial balance including preparation of the audit file and the closing down of the accounts on our accounting management system to ensure that the organisation is compliant with legal requirements and good practice.

10. To work closely with the CEO, Senior Leadership Team and designated Trustees to advise, review and cost the annual pay award.

11. To provide back-up and holiday cover for the processing of monthly payroll.

12. To work with and support the HR & Payroll Officer in providing payroll information and reconciling payroll monthly.

Governance and compliance

1. Ensure compliance with all relevant financial regulations and reporting requirements (e.g. Companies House, HMRC and the Charity Commission).

2. Attend Trustee Board meetings to report on financial matters, including the identification and management of financial risk, and provide any relevant reports.

3. To support the Trustees, SLT and line managers in managing our finances carefully and within our financial means, through provision of advice, guidance, support and training.

4. To be the main point of contact with external auditors.

5. To ensure that robust financial controls are in place, underpinned by appropriate financial policies and procedures and to ensure that they are adhered to and that the organisation is protected from fraud and error.

Closing date for applications : 21st July 2025