Care & Support Broker - Mental Health and Forensic Services

West Sussex County Council; Littlehampton; On-site; GBP 31,000 - 33,000; Full time

Job summary

West Sussex County Council is hiring a Care & Support Broker for Working Age Mental Health and Forensic Services in Littlehampton. You will join the CPST to plan and source appropriate care and support for discharge and social care needs, working across health and social care teams.

You will need strong communication, negotiation, and IT skills, with excellent organisational abilities to manage multiple cases and provide cost-effective services.

Qualifications

• NVQ level 3 in a relevant subject or equivalent qualification/experience
• GCSE English and Maths or equivalent literacy/numeracy
• Good up-to-date knowledge of relevant legislation (Care Act 2014, Hospital Discharge Guidance 2020, Mental Health Act 1983)
• Experience monitoring data and information including financial material and using IT/data systems
• Good understanding of office systems and practices in health or social care
• Experience influencing and negotiating with stakeholders (Desirable)

Responsibilities

• Plan and source care and support for discharge and social care needs
• Relay information to service providers and health/social care colleagues to enable timely sourcing of services
• Organise and prioritise work, work independently and meet tight deadlines
• Interpret information to determine risks and raise safeguarding/service quality issues
• Negotiate with providers for best value and cost-effective options

Skills

Communication skills

Negotiation

Organisational skills

Ability to plan and prioritise

Education

NVQ Level 3

GCSE English & Maths

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Care & Support Broker - Mental Health and Forensic Services

Care & Support Broker - Working Age Mental Health and Forensic Services

About us

West Sussex County Council is a diverse organisation that provides services to more than 850,000 residents every day. As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do.

To find out more visit our Combined Placement and Sourcing Teams career's pages: To find out more visit our Combined Placement and Sourcing Teams career's pages:

Careers in Adults' Services Combined Placement and Sourcing Team - West Sussex County Council

About the job

Salary: £30,515 to £33,119 per annum

Working Pattern: Full time, 37 hours per week

Contract Type: Fixed term contract until March 2027

Location: Littlehampton office base

We have an exciting opportunity for someone to join our dedicated Care and Support Brokerage Team (CPST), helping customers access the right care and support services at the right time.

We are looking for someone with strong communication skills who can work effectively with a range of services, teams, and customers. You will play a key role in navigating changing demands and ensuring the best support is provided.

As part of CPST, you will work across both health and social care. You will be responsible for planning and sourcing support for people being discharged from hospital, as well as for those with assessed social care needs.

This is an office-based role, with occasional travel, and standard working hours between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday. You may come from a health or social care background, or you may bring transferable skills such as negotiation and coordination experience from other sectors. Strong administrative skills-particularly the confident use of Microsoft Excel-are essential.

To be successful in this role, you will need to:

Communicate effectively with a wide range of people.

Work in partnership with services and organisations across the health and social care system.

Have a passion for helping people and delivering high-quality support.

Be well-organised and able to manage multiple caseloads under pressure.

Influence and negotiate with key stakeholders to source timely, cost-effective support services.

Understand the duties and requirements of health and social care services and apply these in line with CPST operating procedures.

Demonstrate strong administrative and IT skills, with regular use of Excel.

Negotiate competitive rates with providers to ensure best value for money.

Experience, qualifications and skills

Key Skills (please cover within your application with examples as these are the short listing criteria):

• 1. Able to support the planning and arranging of customer focused and strengths-based services for people with care and support needs
• 2. Able to accurately relay information to service providers and health and social care colleagues to enable appropriate services to be sourced quickly
• 3. Able to organise /prioritise work, work independently, and work under pressure and to tight deadlines
• 4. Able to interpret intelligence received to determine risks and communicate safeguarding and service quality issues through the relevant channels
• 5. Excellent written, verbal, influencing and negotiation skills
• 6. Sound and accurate IT and keyboard skills

Qualifications and/or experience (please cover within your application with examples as these are the short listing criteria):

• * NVQ level 3 in a relevant subject, or equivalent qualification or experience
• * GCSE English and Maths, or equivalent qualification or experience operating at this level of literacy and numeracy
• * Good up-to-date working knowledge of legislations and organisational policies relevant to the specialist area of the post e.g. Care Act (2014), Hospital Discharge Guidance 2020, Mental Health Act (1983) etc
• * Experience of monitoring data and information including financial material and using a range of IT and data systems
• * Good understanding of office systems and practices related to carrying out a health or social care role
• * Experience of influencing and negotiating with individuals, stakeholders and service providers- Desirable

For a full list of the benefits offered to you as a West Sussex County Council employee you can find them on our

Rewards and Benefits page.

Further information

For an informal conversation or for further information regarding the role, please contact Geena Rowe (Working Age Mental Health and Forensic Services Team Manager) at

We recognise applicants may use AI tools to support their application. This might include assistance with structuring content, improving clarity, or checking spelling and grammar.

The council values authentic applications, in you own words, which reflect your experience and skills and how these align with our values. During assessment and interview stages, candidates may be asked to expand upon, or demonstrate, the experience they have described in their application. To help you structure your responses, use this

guidance on the STARR technique.

Applications found to contain misleading, false or wholly AI-generated content may be rejected.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check, 5 years referencing and a health check.

West Sussex County Council is an equal opportunities employer committed to promoting an environment that is inclusive and free from all forms of unlawful or unfair discrimination and values the diversity of its people. We actively welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and take every possible step to ensure that no individual will be disadvantaged.

For information regarding your eligibility to apply for this role under our Disability or Veteran's Guaranteed Interview Scheme (if you meet all the essential criteria), this can be found on our