Senior Employment Specialist / Team Leader

THE FORWARD TRUST; Thanet District; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

The Forward Trust seeks an experienced Senior Employment Specialist / Team Leader to head a team delivering IPS-based employment support across Thanet, Dover, Folkestone and Hythe. You will balance leadership with hands-on coaching, modelling best practice and ensuring high-quality, person-centred support.

Travel across the specified areas is required; we value strong relationships with employers, robust case management and a commitment to recovery-oriented employment support within Connect to

Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years of management experience in employment, skills, health, community or related service.
• Proven ability to coach and develop staff to deliver high-quality CV, job-search and interview support.
• Experience building relationships with employers to create opportunities.
• Ability to support individuals with barriers to employment and recovery pathways.

Responsibilities

• Lead, supervise, and develop IPS Employment Specialists across multiple sites.
• Provide coaching and feedback to ensure high-quality service delivery.
• Manage a small caseload while modelling best practice in employment support.
• Collaborate with partners to identify and secure job opportunities for participants.
• Maintain accurate records and ensure IPS fidelity in practice.

Skills

Leadership

Coaching

Employer engagement

Case management

Client advocacy

Job description

About the Role

Are you an experienced employment professional with a passion for helping people overcome barriers and achieve their goals in work?

We are looking for an enthusiastic and experienced Senior Employment Specialist / Team Leader to join our Connect to Work service and lead a team of IPS Employment Specialists delivering high-quality, person-centred employment support across Thanet, Dover, Folkestone and Hythe.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone who combines strong leadership skills with practical experience of supporting people into sustainable employment. You will lead, supervise and develop a team of Employment Specialists, while also managing a small caseload of participants yourself.

You will be responsible for modelling excellent employment support practice, providing coaching and guidance to your team, and helping to ensure participants receive consistent, personalised and effective support throughout their employment journey.

Working within the Connect to Work framework and in line with relevant Individual Placement and Support (IPS) principles and fidelity standards, you will champion best practice and help create a service that puts participants at the heart of everything it does.

What You'll Be Doing

As Senior Employment Specialist / Team Leader, you will:

• Lead, supervise, support and develop a team of IPS Employment Specialists.
• Provide regular coaching, guidance and constructive feedback to support high-quality service delivery.
• Manage a small caseload, providing direct employment support and modelling excellent practice.
• Support participants to identify their skills, strengths, interests and career aspirations.
• Provide high-quality support with CVs, job searching, applications, interviews and preparation for employment.
• Build participants' confidence, self-esteem and motivation to help them achieve their employment and career goals.
• Support people who may experience a range of barriers to employment, including people with health conditions, disabilities and those in recovery.
• Develop strong relationships with employers and proactively identify suitable employment opportunities.
• Liaise with employers to arrange interviews, secure opportunities and obtain constructive feedback on candidates.
• Match participants' skills, qualities and aspirations to appropriate vacancies.
• Support participants to move into employment and, where required, provide ongoing support to help them sustain their employment.
• Develop effective partnerships with employers, community organisations, health and support services and other stakeholders.
• Maintain effective operational oversight and ensure the service meets Connect to Work requirements.
• Promote and embed IPS principles, fidelity and best practice across the team.
• Contribute to continuous improvement and help identify solutions to challenges faced by participants and the wider service.
• Maintain accurate records and ensure activity and outcomes are recorded appropriately.

About You

We are looking for an experienced and motivated employment professional who can combine strong people-management skills with excellent frontline employment support practice.

You will have:

• At least 3 years' management experience, ideally within an employment, skills, health, community or related service.
• Experience of providing high-quality CV, job-search and interview support, particularly to people who may be in recovery or facing barriers to employment.
• Experience of providing effective coaching and support that enables clients to progress towards and access employment.
• A proven ability to build people's confidence, self-esteem and motivation, helping them achieve their goals in the workplace and develop sustainable careers.
• Experience of working with employers to arrange interviews, secure opportunities and obtain feedback on candidates.
• The ability to identify individuals' skills, strengths and qualities and match these appropriately to vacancies.
• Experience of supporting learners and jobseekers into employment and helping them sustain employment.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build positive relationships with participants, colleagues, employers and external partners.
• The ability to lead, motivate and develop others while maintaining high standards of service delivery.
• Experience of working within the social enterprise sector would be desirable.
• Knowledge and understanding of substance misuse and recovery services, or previous experience of delivering employment support using the IPS model, would also be highly desirable.

Essential Requirement

Due to the nature of this role and the regular travel required across Thanet, Dover, Folkestone and Hythe, you must have:

• A full, valid driving licence; and Access to your own vehicle for work-related travel.