Employment Advisor

Sovereign & Bale; Leicester; On-site; GBP 29,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

Sovereign & Bale is seeking an Employment Advisor to mentor and support young people aged 18–24 towards sustainable employment. You will manage your own caseload, provide tailored one-to-one guidance from assessment through to job placement and in-work support.

You will build relationships with participants, employers and local partners, helping individuals develop skills, confidence and experience to secure and sustain work.

Qualifications

• Experience providing one-to-one mentoring or coaching to young people or individuals facing barriers to work.
• Experience in employability, welfare-to-work, youth employment, skills or training environments.
• Strong ability to build trust, motivate participants and maintain engagement across face-to-face, telephone and digital contact.
• Good understanding of action planning, barrier removal, work-readiness and sustained employment outcomes.
• Ability to manage a caseload effectively, prioritise activity and meet targets.
• Excellent communication, influencing and relationship-building with participants, employers and stakeholders.
• Knowledge of safeguarding, data protection, equality and diversity, health and safety and consent requirements.

Responsibilities

• Build supportive relationships with young people and encourage engagement, motivation and accountability.
• Manage a caseload of participants and provide structured one-to-one mentoring throughout their journey into employment.
• Complete initial assessments, identify barriers and agree SMART action plans, reviewing progress.
• Deliver confidence-building, work-readiness and job-search support, including CV development and interview preparation.
• Collaborate with employer engagement colleagues to identify opportunities and support recruitment and onboarding.
• Provide ongoing in-work support including regular check-ins, workplace coaching and discussions around reasonable adjustments.
• Develop and maintain in-work support plans with participants and employers, subject to consent.
• Rapidly re-engage participants who leave or fall out of work and move them back into employment or training.
• Maintain accurate, timely records including action plans, notes and outcomes.
• Work with Jobcentre Plus, employers, training providers and partners to maximise sustained employment outcomes.

Job description

Employment Advisor
Salary: £32,000
Contract: Permanent
Location: South Midlands (Covering Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, South Midlands, Leicester and Rutland)

The Role

As a Mentor, you will support young people aged 18–24 to overcome barriers, build confidence and move into sustainable employment. Managing your own caseload, you will provide tailored one-to-one support from initial assessment and job preparation through to employment and in-work support.

You will build effective relationships with participants, employers and key stakeholders, helping individuals develop the skills, confidence and experience needed to secure and sustain employment.

Key Responsibilities

• Build positive, supportive relationships with young people, encouraging engagement, motivation and accountability.
• Manage a caseload of participants and provide structured one-to-one mentoring throughout their journey into and within employment.
• Complete initial assessments, identify barriers and agree SMART action plans, reviewing progress regularly.
• Deliver confidence‑building, motivation, work‑readiness and job‑search support, including CV development, interview preparation, sector exploration and soft skills development.
• Work with employer engagement colleagues to identify suitable employment opportunities and support recruitment, onboarding and day‑one preparation.
• Provide ongoing in‑work support to participants and employers, including regular check‑ins, workplace coaching and discussions around reasonable adjustments.
• Develop and maintain in‑work support plans with participants and employers, subject to consent.
• Rapidly re‑engage participants who leave or fall out of work, helping them move back into employment, education or training.
• Maintain accurate, timely and audit‑ready records, including action plans, contact notes, evidence and outcomes.
• Work collaboratively with Jobcentre Plus, employers, training providers and local partners to maximise sustained employment outcomes.
• Work flexibly across locations and, where required, outside standard hours to meet participant and programme needs.
• Carry out responsibilities in line with organisational values, policies, procedures and relevant compliance requirements.
• Undertake other duties appropriate to the level of the role where the post‑holder has the necessary training or experience.

Skills and Experience

• Experience providing one-to-one mentoring, coaching or employment support to young people or individuals facing barriers to work.
• Experience within employability, welfare‑to‑work, youth employment, skills, education, training or a similar target‑driven environment.
• Strong ability to build trust, motivate participants, challenge appropriately and maintain engagement through face‑to‑face, telephone and digital contact.
• Good understanding of action planning, barrier removal, work‑readiness, job matching, in‑work support and sustained employment outcomes.
• Ability to manage a caseload effectively, prioritise activity, meet deadlines and achieve targets, quality standards and compliance requirements.
• Excellent communication, influencing and relationship‑building skills when working with participants, employers and wider stakeholders.
• Knowledge of safeguarding, data protection, equality and diversity, health and safety, and participant consent requirements.
• Good IT skills, including Microsoft Office, digital communication tools, case management systems and performance reporting.
• Ability and willingness to travel regularly across the local area to support participants, employers, events, placements and programme delivery.
• Good knowledge of the local labour market, employer recruitment needs and routes into employment, apprenticeships, education and training is desirable.