IPS Employment Specialist in Manchester

Overview

The Growth Company (GC) Employment team has a vacancy for an Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Employment Specialist to help participants gain employment. IPS is recognised as the most effective way to support people with mental health problems in finding and keeping paid work. If you’re motivated to make a difference, this job offers full support, supervision, and training to develop your IPS practice. This position is part of a community outreach programme delivered in partnership with Manchester City Council.

At GC, safeguarding the welfare of all individuals, including vulnerable adults and young people, is a top priority. All appointments follow Safer Recruitment Procedures and include a DBS check carried out by Due Diligence Limited (DDC Ltd) at no cost to the successful candidate.

Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload of around 24 clients motivated to start or return to work, using the IPS approach to help them overcome barriers related to work, skills, health, and personal circumstances, leading to sustainable employment.
• Build relationships with local employers to negotiate job opportunities that align with clients’ strengths, needs, and preferences.
• Develop partnerships with external agencies, including colleges and training providers, to support clients’ employment goals.
• Engage in ongoing learning about disability and mental health, including mandatory training.
• Support clients in identifying skills and aspirations through Vocational Profiles and Action Plans, offering help with job searches, CVs, applications, interviews, and career development.
• Assess and address work‑related support needs, such as benefits advice or mental health disclosures.
• Proactively source job opportunities through tailored searches and employer outreach, including hidden vacancies.
• Provide education and support to employers, including negotiating adjustments, return‑to‑work strategies, and ongoing contact to ensure job retention.

Qualifications & Skills

• Experience talking to employers and helping people into work.
• Great communication skills and the ability to build relationships with everyone from the frontline up to CEO level.
• Negotiation skills and commercial acumen.
• Drive, passion, and commitment.
• Proven ability to build rapport with people and especially understanding issues for people with barriers to employment.
• Strong written and verbal communication and organisational skills.
• Ability to work in a target‑driven environment, with a focus on the successful achievement of job outcomes and sustained outcomes.
• High‑level guidance skills, with the ability to deliver one‑to‑one and group sessions to at least Grade 2 standard.
• Previous experience working on outreach and lone working.
• Experience in guidance, advice & counselling environments.
• An understanding of working with disabled people, or a similar client group within health, social services, or the voluntary sector is desirable.

Recruitment & Inclusion

We are committed to increasing workforce diversity and offer a guaranteed interview to applicants who meet the essential criteria and either have a disability or are from a diverse ethnic community. If this applies to you, you can request consideration under this scheme during the application process. Your request will be shared only with the Hiring Manager and Internal Recruitment Team.

We also aim to make our recruitment process inclusive and accessible. If you need reasonable adjustments or have any general enquiries at any stage or the recruitment process, please contact or call us on 0161 237 4447. Examples of adjustments include meeting the hiring manager or touring the venue in advance, extra time for tasks, interview questions shared beforehand, and accessibility software or equipment for assessments. We are proud to support the Ban the Box campaign, which helps people with convictions access job opportunities. As part of this, we have removed questions about convictions from the initial application stage.

Workplace Information

GC is committed to fostering a culture of flexibility and agile working. Many roles will increasingly support full agile arrangements. If you require more permanent flexibility, we encourage you to discuss this during your interview so your request can be considered early in the process. All GC colleagues will work inline with the Health & Safety at Work Act and the GC Health & Safety Policy.