IPS Employment Specialist

IPS Grow; Sheffield; Hybrid; GBP 28,000 - 38,000; Full time

Job summary

Shaw Trust is seeking an IPS Employment Specialist to empower individuals with mental health support needs to secure sustainable paid work in Sheffield through the IPS approach.

You will support clients with a person-centred plan, manage a caseload, and collaborate with health and social care partners to promote wellbeing and recovery through meaningful employment.

Qualifications

• Manage a caseload with person-centred employment support, including assessments and goal setting.
• Deliver IPS with six phases: Intake, Engagement, Assessment, Job Placement, Job Coaching, Follow-along Support.
• Build relationships with local employers to identify opportunities and support job placements.

Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload aligned with contractual requirements, providing person-centred employment support.
• Deliver the IPS model per Fidelity Scale across all six phases.
• Engage employers with personalised job development to create meaningful opportunities.
• Support participants through each phase of employment, including planning, interviews and in-work progression.

Skills

Case management

Employer engagement

IPS fidelity

Client support

Job description

Could you help people overcome barriers, improve their wellbeing and achieve meaningful employment? Join Shaw Trust as an IPS Employment Specialist and support people across Sheffield to secure sustainable paid work through the evidence-based Individual Placement and Support (IPS) approach.

Deadline: 22nd October 2026

• Yorkshire & The Humber
• Full-time

Job overview

Shaw Trust promotes team spirit, inclusiveness and it is an organisation where everybody is somebody. I am proud to be part of this great organisation.”

At Shaw Trust we believe everyone has the right to live a decent and dignified life and an opportunity for rewarding work. We are a social purpose organisation challenging inequality and breaking down barriers to enable social mobility.

For us being part of the solution is about creating the conditions for this to happen, advocating and delivering services that make a real difference. Working in partnership not competition, we are part of an eco-system of purpose-led organisations, striving for a fairer, more equal society centred on opportunity for all.

Role

As an IPS Employment Specialist, your mission is to empower individuals with mental health support needs by helping them secure sustainable employment in alignment with their preferences (meaningful to them) in order to rebuild their lives.

You will deliver the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) approach, providing person-centred guidance to clients while fostering positive relationships with local employers. Your role within Primary Care, Community Care, and local organisations will support a holistic approach to reaching good health through employment.

Download the Job Description for full details.

The person

• Manage a caseload in alignment with contractual requirements, providing person-centred employment support through vocational profiling, action planning, employer engagement, job placement and follow-along support, regular reviews and ongoing guidance. Work collaboratively with participants to identify strengths, aspirations and employment goals, supporting them to overcome barriers and move into sustainable paid employment aligned to their preferences and ambitions.
• Deliver the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model in line with the IPS Fidelity Scale and evidence-based practice, ensuring participants receive high-quality support throughout the six phases of IPS support: Intake, Engagement, Assessment, Job Placement, Job Coaching, Follow-along Support. Participate fully in internal and external fidelity assessments, reviews and continuous improvement activities as part of normal business activity, implementing improvement actions promptly in response to review findings. Work towards achieving contractual targets relating to referrals, programme starts, job outcomes, job retention, employer engagement and service quality.
• Build and maintain effective relationships with local employers to identify and secure competitive employment opportunities. Undertake a minimum of six meaningful face-to-face employer engagement interventions per week, using personalised job development approaches, including job carving where appropriate, to create opportunities that align with participants’ strengths, interests and career goals.
• Support participants throughout each phase of their employment journey, including vocational profiling, job search planning, interview preparation, workplace adjustments, employer engagement, job matching, return-to-work planning, job coaching and in-work support. Maintain regular contact with participants and employers to maximise job retention and support progression within employment.
• Work collaboratively with primary care services, secondary mental health services, health professionals, organisations providing specialist support and community partners, as appropriate to the contract, to ensure employment support is fully integrated within wider treatment, recovery and wellbeing plans. Attend relevant multidisciplinary meetings and promote the positive role employment can play in improving health, independence and social inclusion.