Ips employment specialist jobs
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Job description
Hillside Clubhouse is recruiting an IPS Employment Specialist to join our dynamic Islington team, supporting people with mental health conditions to gain and retain employment. The IPS Employment Specialists within the Islington IPS Service work within the nationally recognised IPS (Individual Placement and Support) model within NHS secondary and primary care mental health teams, based in the heart of Islington.
We believe diverse teams create better outcomes for the people we support. While we welcome applications from everyone who meets the criteria, we are particularly keen to hear from Black men, who are currently underrepresented in our team and in the wider mental health and employment support sector. Your perspective and experience can help us shape services that truly reflect the communities we serve.
Who We Are:
Hillside Clubhouse is a co-produced mental health employment support charity working across Islington. We support people with mental health conditions into training, volunteering, and employment opportunities. People can access our services via our Clubhouse, where they can share their skills and expertise with others and support the running of the charity. Alternatively, they can receive support out in the community from one of our Employment Specialists based within NHS mental health teams.
The Role:
We are recruiting for one IPS Employment Specialist role within our Islington IPS Service. This position will be based within the North London NHS Foundation Trust mental health services in the borough of Islington.
As an IPS Employment Specialist, you’ll play an important role in supporting people with lived mental health experience on their recovery journey by supporting them back into paid employment. This is an opportunity to offer ongoing support, to motivate and provide people with hope, while developing the tools and skills required to recover - ultimately transforming their lives.
A variety of skills are needed in this post including but not limited to: a strong ability to develop empathy and rapport with clients; a determined approach to seeking out job opportunities; a person centric-approach to working with people; strong communications skills to motivate clients; strong administrative capabilities and an attention to detail engage with prospective employers via business development and face-to-face meetings, as well as to be able to challenge some perceptions around mental health.
The postholder will be directly employed by Hillside Clubhouse but work under an Honorary Contract from the North London NHS Foundation Trust. They will be managed directly by the IPS Operations Manager but work as team member within the clinical team. The role is dynamic and involves being integrated in a clinical team, working within the community, and we operate a flexible working policy where working from home is also permitted up to two days per week.
Overall Aim:
To enable people with mental health issues to gain and sustain competitive employment by working within the evidence-based Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model.
Duties:
Please see the Job Description and Person Specification attached for a full description.
Application Instructions:
We are a Disability Confident employer and actively encourage applications from people with lived experience of mental health conditions.
Hillside Clubhouse is committed to building a diverse and inclusive team and strongly encourage applications from those who experience discrimination and / or prejudice based on their race, ethnicity or immigration status, women, new parents, people with disabilities and LGBTQI+ people.
All job offers are dependent on satisfactory references and a DBS check. The successful candidate will also be required to attend mandatory Safeguarding Adults, Children & Young People training.
The recruitment process will be an assessment centre approach, including a task, role play and individual interview. We envision the whole process lasting no more than 90 minutes.
We reserve the right to close this advertisement early if a suitable candidate is identified. Interviews may be scheduled on a rolling basis as applications are received.
Registered Charity 
21 - 50
Thank you!
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
About Working Well Trust
Working Well Trust is a mental health and employment charity in London. All of our projects share the aim of improving the lives of people with mental health support needs, learning disabilities and/or complex issues through training and employment.
We are recruiting Employment Advisors to join our IPS service, you will be based in Tower Hamlets, working 35 hours per week. Working Well Trust's services have previously been awarded the IPS Grow quality mark and adheres closely to the principles of the IPS model in supporting people in to employment. This role will be working with clients who have mental health support needs, wanting to gain paid employment.
Experience of employment support is not essential, it is more important that you share our passion and commitment to employment as an integral aspect of wellbeing and supporting people to find the right job for them. You will receive training on the IPS model and in supporting people with mental health issues. We welcome applications from people with lived experience of mental health, either personally or through a close contact.
You need to have a desire to support people to achieve their employment goals, and the ability to multitask and manage your workload effectively. Good organisation skills are essential for this role, in addition to an interest in mental health, and the role it plays in the workplace. The successful candidate will need to become comfortable in approaching employers, and showcase the advantages of our service in order to work with them to recruit our clients to fill vacancies and sustain employment.
What you’ll be doing
You will work with clients (managing a caseload) who have mental health support needs, to assist them in securing sustainable paid employment in line with their preferences. You will deliver the IPS approach (for which training will be given); providing person centred support and guidance to clients, whilst building positive relationships with local employers to enable clients to move into suitable employment.
You will work as part of a mental health team (NHS Trust) maintaining positive and integrated relationships, fostering a holistic approach to recovery through employment. You will work closely with clinical teams, providing a coordinated approach that always remains client led. You will also be working to targets whilst maintaining a high-quality service.
What you’ll need
Experience in employment support is not essential. We are looking for someone who brings:
- A genuine desire to support people into meaningful employment.
- Commitment to person-centred work and either experience of or enthusiasm to learn the IPS approach.
- Confidence engaging with employers and promoting the benefits of our service.
- Good organisation skills and the ability to manage a caseload effectively.
- Beneficial (but not essential): experience working with people with mental health difficulties.
What we offer
- £31,277 per year
- 30 days annual leave plus public holidays, pro rata (FTE)
- Employer pension contribution of 6%
- Supportive environment within a small, dedicated team
- Meaningful, rewarding work supporting people into employment
Working Well Trust is an equal opportunities employer and Confident about Disabilities.
What’s next
Before you apply, please note the following:
- We actively recruit and carefully review all applications. Due to rapid service expansion, we have onboarded 20 external hires in the last six months.
- To ensure we can best support the people and communities we serve, we progress applications only where candidates provide meaningful answers to the screening questions.
- Career development is real here: in the past year, 10 colleagues have progressed internally into Senior roles, Project Lead, Team Lead, and Operations Manager positions. We value ambition and celebrate progression.
If you are ready to help us build a service that supports people into meaningful work, click Apply to submit your CV and answer the screening questions. Telephone and final interviews will be confirmed.
Start your application today and take the next step in a rewarding career.
Closing date: Sunday 11th of January 2026 (23:00). Please note, we will be actively interviewing during this time and may close the vacancy early.
Telephone interviews: 13th, 14th and 15th of January
Final Stage interviews: 21st and 22nd of January, in person, in a Tower Hamlets or Newham location TBC. This could be subject to change.
Please upload your CV and answer the screening questions, the cover letter is an optional addition. Please make sure you have highlighted in your application how you meet the person specification for this position.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.