Employment Specialist - Lancashire - East in Preston

Be part of something great. Maximus is a global organisation that specialises in providing health and employment services to millions of people every year. Here in the UK we employ around 5,000 people across the country to deliver services that have a profound impact on people’s lives. From assessments and health services to employability programmes and specialist support, we do work that matters with people who care.

The Supported Employment Quality Framework (SEQF) Employment Specialist will demonstrate the core values of Supported Employment, empowering participants to gain employment whilst delivering the 5 stages of Supported Employment: Customer Engagement; Vocational Profiling; Employer Engagement; Job Matching and providing In-Work Support/Career Development.

This role is community based, covering the East of Lancashire. Salary - £29,000 - £32,000.

Supporting vulnerable adults with a variety of health conditions, disabilities and other barriers to meaningful employment, you will engage with a variety of stakeholders and advocate on behalf of your caseload by promoting equality and gaining employment opportunities.

We are looking for a dedicated and enthusiastic individual who is deeply passionate about supported employment and truly believes in its power to transform lives. The ideal candidate will have a strong desire to drive meaningful change, empowering individuals to unlock their potential and achieve sustainable employment opportunities. If you are motivated by the opportunity to make a real difference and contribute to positive life-changing outcomes, we want to hear from you.

• Supporting a caseload through the 5 stages of Supported Employment. You will be expected to build rapport and trust with your caseload, ensuring that they have choice and control over their journey and being an advocate on their behalf.
• Adhere to the SEQF quality framework.
• Develop a comprehensive vocational profile and conduct a detailed job analysis to identify support needs, ensuring tailored interventions are provided to help individuals achieve their employment goals.
• Provide job-matching services by identifying suitable employment opportunities that align with the client’s skills and preferences while meeting the needs of the employer.
• Deliver one-to-one pre-employment support.
• Offer on-the-job support to clients, including job coaching, workplace adjustments, and mentoring, to ensure a smooth transition into employment and long-term retention.
• Provide benefits calculations and disclosure support.
• Meet and exceed KPI’s.
• Ensure compliance by accurate data entry, completion of contractual and internal documentation and/or provider guidance.

• Facilitate the integration with local communities and their partners, ensuring that employment support is seamlessly woven into the broader network of local services and resources to optimise outcomes/support and opportunities.
• Engage with community organisations to promote the program to generate referrals.
• Use a range of recruitment activities to match and market participants to relevant vacancies and/or potential employers (e.g. Labour Market Analysis).
• Engage and work with employers to ‘job carve’ positions/negotiate work trials and provide support (e.g. in job training such as Training in Systematic Instruction or support development of natural sources of support).
• Identify and work with partner services to signpost participants to effectively support barriers and develop support networks/coping strategies.
• Provide mentoring support, advice and guidance to both participants and employers to ensure sustained employment, incorporating reasonable adjustments where possible.
• Support development of ‘circles of support’ for participants to support individual’s aspirations.
• Promote zero rejection philosophy of Supported Employment to stakeholders.

• Strive for the best quality the service can provide through:
• Striving for the best quality standard (accurate record keeping/following SEQF).
• Gaining feedback from stakeholders: working with team to make improvements to the service.
• Seek feedback from participants, employers, and other stakeholders to inform continuous improvement efforts.
• Identify and implement innovative approaches to improve service delivery and participant outcomes.
• Reflect on personal performance and engage in professional development activities to enhance skills and knowledge.
• Collect and analyse data to monitor the effectiveness of the program, identifying areas for improvement.

• Internal: Line Manager, Central Teams, Labour Market Analyst, Borough Integration Managers, Employer Engagement Specialist, Fidelity Officer.
• External: Participants, Commissioners, Partners (e.g. referral sources; partners who can support participants etc), Employers, Circles of Support.

• Familiarity with systems including MS Outlook, Teams and OneDrive.
• Numeracy and literacy skills.
• Experience of working to Quality Standards and associated Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s).
• Creative problem-solving skills.
• Experience of organising a workload and managing priorities.
• Experience of people development in an individual and/or group environment.
• The ability to work independently and demonstrate self-management.
• Experience of working as part of a team.
• A genuine passion for empowering individuals with disabilities or barriers to employment, supporting them to achieve their full potential through meaningful work opportunities.
• A strong commitment to delivering person-centred support and achieving positive, life-changing outcomes for individuals.
• The ability to inspire confidence, self-belief, and motivation in individuals, helping them to build resilience and achieve their goals.
• A deep sense of purpose and motivation to make a real difference in the lives of others by fostering independence and empowering individuals to overcome barriers.
• Committed to transforming lives and making a meaningful impact through dedicated and compassionate support.

• Experience of supporting participants through Supported Employment contracts (And/Or) Experience of working in an employability related area supporting vulnerable adults.
• Ability to coach individuals within their role – to support developing healthy work behaviours and achieve their maximum potential and career development (if you do not have experience, there is an expectation to learn this skill).
• Welfare to Work Sector specific qualification e.g. Supported Employment Techniques; Level 3 Certificate for Supported Employment Practitioners; NVQ 3 L3 in Employment related services. (If you do not have any of these qualifications, have a willingness to develop/train in this field).

• Motivated whilst demonstrating an adaptable nature.
• Demonstrate experience of working in a role where sales, promotional or influencing skills are required.
• Excellent Communication Skills.
• Strong Interpersonal Skills, specifically active listening, questioning, building relationships.
• Participant Focused whilst setting realistic goal setting.
• Stakeholder & Communication Skills (e.g. relationship building, negotiation and persuasiveness).
• Quality Focus – where creative and innovation input to build quality standards.
• Integrity.
• Willingness to learn.
• Teamwork – being an active and proactive member of your team.
• Empathy.
• Behaviours including ability to manage conflict; demonstrate resilience & good time management skills.

MAXIMUS is committed to developing, maintaining and supporting a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the recruitment process. We know that feeling included has a dramatic impact on personal wellbeing and are working to ensure that no job applicant receives less favourable treatment due to any personal characteristic.

We are a Disability Confident Leader, thanks to our commitment to the recruitment, retention and career development of people with disabilities and long-term conditions. The Disability Confident scheme includes a guaranteed interview for any applicant with a disability who meets the minimum requirements for a job.

Where reasonable, MAXIMUS will review and consider adjustments for those applicants who express a requirement for them during the recruitment process.