Job summary
- Main area
- Employment advisory
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 5
- Contract
- Fixed term: 6 months (Contracted until End of March 2026 initially. Funded by DWP possibility of Extension.)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Monday to Friday)
- Job ref
- 334-NCL-7310460-TA
- Employer
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Lind Clinic
- Town
- Lewisham
- Salary
- £37,259 - £45,356 Per annum inclusive of HCAS
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 18/08/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Employment Adviser
NHS AfC: Band 5
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust has a rich history, well-established community links and an international reputation. We deliver specialist services in the London boroughs of Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Wandsworth and Richmond.
We are committed to provide a high quality and specialist care to our service users and we are recognised for our care and treatment we provide. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as ‘good’.
We launched our five-year strategy, Aiming High; Changing Lives in 2021 together with Our Care Improvement System as our quality management system methodology to make a positive impact on patient care, outcomes and staff experience. By joining SLaM, all staff will get the opportunity to be part of this exciting improvement journey supported with learning and development to harness everyone’s potential as change makers.
The trust recognises the unique and valuable contribution that people with lived experience of mental illness can bring to a role. We therefore welcome applications from people with lived experience and consider them as an asset to the Trust.
Our Values
We take pride in providing specialist care to our service users where our Trust values and our promise to be caring, kind, polite, prompt, honest, listen and do what I say I’m going to do is at the heart of everything we do. When you join us, you’ll be part of something special.
As a Trust we are happy to talk flexible working.
Job overview
- To provide an effective Employment Advice service for people with mental health conditions
- To support people with mental health conditions to obtain and sustain paid employment.
- To develop partnerships with local providers and services to ensure that the employment support needs of clients are met.
Main duties of the job
The Lewisham NHS Talking Therapies Employment team takes clients on to a caseload and supports them in their employment goals, networking with local providers and employers to source suitable opportunities or to maintain and resolve issues within the workplace. Being able to build rapport with clients in a professional and approachable way to build confidence, skills and empower for the future.
Building and working closely with the clinicians in the team that offer a variety of therapies and encouraging referrals to meet expectations set by the DWP who funds the post.
Working for our organisation
The Lewisham NHS Talking Therapies Employment Team is a very busy team working with clients who have mild to moderate Mental Health concerns to find work, remain in work or start moving towards work. We are here to support clients towards their chosen goals as a signposting and advice service whilst building confidence and skills for the world of work.
The role will be based across the Lewisham Borough currently Hybrid but this could be subject to change in the future.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
- Helping clients to identify and consider options for returning to work and set their own personal career goals.
- Using coaching techniques to help clients overcome practical and psychological barriers to employment.
- Supporting clients to undertake training, volunteering, and paid employment opportunities, and supporting employers where necessary.
- Identifying a range of support needs (e.g. housing, benefits, health, etc) and signposting clients to access support from internal and external agencies.
- Teaching employability skills to clients on a one-to-one basis and in group workshops (e.g., CVs, interview skills, etc).
- Communicating with clients and clinicians regularly in-person or by Teams, telephone, email, text.
- Writing clear and concise session notes, entering data onto a range of databases.
- Keeping up to date with local and national labour market trends, education/training opportunities, welfare benefit changes, and employment law in relation to people with mental health conditions.
- Promoting the service to clinical team in order to generate referrals and maintain service integration.
- Working independently to manage own workload and keep track of own progress towards targets, continually reflecting on own performance to improve and develop in the role.
- Working as part of a team, sharing knowledge and expertise, and contributing to team meetings and service development activities.
- Following service policies, procedures, and manuals to ensure that quality standards are met.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Qualifications Relevant degree level qualification in a related field (e.g. psychology, occupational therapy, human resources), or equivalent knowledge acquired through experience.
Experience
Essential criteria
- Experience of providing one-to-one advice, guidance or support.
- Experience of networking and building relationships.
Desirable criteria
- Lived experience of mental health problems or caring for someone with mental health problems.
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Understanding of the employment barriers faced by people with mental health conditions.
Desirable criteria
- Knowledge of the Equality Act in relation to the employment of people with disabilities and mental health problems.
- Knowledge of the UK Welfare Benefits system.
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to manage time effectively and prioritise tasks to meet deadline, project targets and maintain the required standards.
- A high standard of verbal and written English, including excellent grammar, spelling and punctuation.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to express empathy and understanding to others
- Self-motivated and works proactively independently or as part of a team.
- High standard of ICT skills including Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook.
Desirable criteria
- Experience in producing and facilitating workshops and Webinars.
Personal Attributes
Essential criteria
- Strong commitment to challenging stigma and discrimination of people with mental health conditions in employment.
- Pragmatic and positive approach to problem solving and committed to taking initiative.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Maria Clifford
- Job title
- Acting Employment Manager
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07866 856134
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