Employment Specialist - Employment Coach

Main area Individual Placement and Support Service (IPS) Grade Band 5 Contract 24 months (Fixed Term) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job  

Employer Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Countywide (Cheltenham, North Cotswolds, Cirencester, Stroud, Gloucester) Town Gloucester Salary £31,049 - £37,796 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 25/02/2026 23:59

We love what we do and we think you will, too!

At Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust (GHC), we provide joined-up mental health, physical health and learning disability services to people of all ages across Gloucestershire. We run community hospitals and provide care and support in people’s own homes and in a range of other locations across the county.

We are on a mission to enable people to live the best life they can and we have a vision to work together to provide outstanding care. We put people at the heart of our services, focusing on personalised care by asking ‘what matters to you’.

We’re passionate about making sure that everyone can contribute to achieving our mission and we are continually working to support healthy and happy high-quality teams in all areas of the Trust.

Our application process aims to understand each candidate’s knowledge, skills and experience. We have found that candidates that use AI to generate their answers can lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description.

It is really important to personalise your application to convey your individual skills, knowledge, and experiences effectively and for us to understand why you are applying for this role with GHC. We discourage over reliance on AI‑generated applications as it will lessen your chances of success in securing an interview with us.

2 year fixed term contract working as an Employment Specialist for IPS Employment Services, for people with a serious and enduring mental health difficulties.

* Internal applicants who wish to be considered for a secondment opportunity should discuss with their line manager the suitability of a possible secondment.*

Are you looking for a career where you can make a positive difference to the lives of people with Mental Health Difficulties?

Do you believe you have the skills to support people back into employment?

Are you passionate that occupation can support a person's wellbeing?

If so these roles may be just what you're looking for!

For people who need Mental Health support, getting back into work is a vital step on their recovery journey. The evidence backs this up and although 90% of people with Severe Mental Illness want to work, only 8% of them are in paid employment. This is why we are looking for people to join our friendly Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Service as an Employment Specialist.

This is an incredibly rewarding role – you will have the opportunity to transform the lives of your clients, to give them hope, direction and support their recovery journey. This is also a challenging role, so you’ll need to be resilient, empathetic and dedicated to finding clients employment that is right for them. As a people person, you will build a good rapport with your clients, gaining a real understanding of their key skills, their aspirations and their career goals.

You will also spend time building productive relationships with employers, in order to identify and negotiate job opportunities in the hidden labour market.

We welcome people from a range of backgrounds and with a variety of experience for this role. We will train you on the Individual Placement & Support (IPS) approach, giving you the tools you need to provide expert support and advice to clients, while also building positive relationships with employers and changing perceptions around mental health.

The qualification, training & experience requirements for the role are underlined in the Job Description/Person Specification.

We have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services across 55 sites and within people’s homes.…