Deputy Senior Employment Adviser

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Detailed job description and main responsibilities
3. Key Task and Responsibilities

• Promoting the EA in NHS Talking Therapies model and supporting the employment lead to work with senior clinicians to ensure that the employment team are fully embedded in the Greenwich Time to Talk service.

• Manage and supervise a team of EAs ensuring that EAs work effectively with clinicians so that employment support is a central concern of every member of staff in the service.

• Work with the employment lead to ensure that therapists and EAs work together to deliver personalised packages of psychological treatment and employment support to create combined care pathways to support individuals with common mental health problems to gain, return to or retain employment.

• Assist the employment lead with reporting on the performance of the team against EA in NHS Talking Therapy Targets.

• Lead the team to develop good working relations with local employers, trade unions, Job Centre Plus and other organisations forming the local labour market.

• Hold their own reduced caseload enabling them to provide supervision of EAs.

• Provide non-clinical oversight of clients' progression through the service whilst accessing employment support.

• Promote and circulate information on unemployment benefits and JCP services, labour market information, local employers and their recruitment practices, workplace solutions and provision for people with MH conditions both nationally and especially within the local community.

Management responsibilities

• Support the employment lead to operationalise the aims of EA in NHS Talking Therapies.

• Assist with strategic oversight of the GTTT employment provision and work collaboratively with the employment lead and others to continuously improve the service.

• Provide advice to the Service Leads on professional development issues for the Employment staff.

• Short list and interview applicants alongside the employment lead for employment advisor posts. Induct and supervise employment advisors.

• To assist in the maintenance of up-to-date protocols for the care pathway to employment services

Leadership

• Assist the employment lead in consultation to clinical staff in the NHS Talking Therapies service around employment issues.

• Support the employment lead in teaching clinical staff how to assess employment needs and refer appropriately to the employment team.

• Enable the upskilling of other GTTT staff on the employment agenda through coaching and education.

• Support continued professional development of EAs.

Person specification

Education/Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Demonstrates knowledge and experience to degree level or equivalent.
• Experience of line management and supervision
• Training in vocational work, careers advice and job retention

Experience

Essential criteria

• Significant experience of providing vocational/employment support.
• Understanding of the employment needs, barriers and difficulties faced by people with MH conditions.
• Experience of management and administration of data and records relating to the delivery of the agreed outcomes of the employment programmes.
• Experience of working in a service where agreed targets are in place, demonstrating specific outcomes.
• Experience of quality assuring your own work and the work of your team to both contract and organisational standards.

Desirable criteria

• Experience of service promotion

Skills/Abilities/Knowledge

Essential criteria

• The DSEA will evidence significant understanding of return-to-work planning.
• DSEAs will be aware of the secondary effects on the individual that could be caused by their mental health experience.
• The DSEA will also be aware that many individuals with mental health conditions may also have primary or secondary health conditions and disabilities.
• The DSEA will have the knowledge to understand the work implications of these conditions, confidence, fear of failure etc.
• Skills in rapport building to support and empower clients in job retention or seeking employment
• Ability to assess individual strengths in relation to employment.
• IT literate, Word, Excel with excellent written skills.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills (written and oral) enabling good working relationships with service users and partners within and external to the Trust

Desirable criteria

• Ability to adapt activities to be appropriate for the needs of an individual client.
• Knowledge of employment and disability related benefits.
• Knowledge of the wide range of educational and employment/training opportunities available to people
• Knowledge of other voluntary and statutory agencies who work with people.
• Knowledge and understanding of data sharing legislation
• Discretion and an understanding of confidentiality issues.
• Knowledge of safeguarding requirements and processes.

Effort and Environment

Desirable criteria

• Able to sit in constrained positions for a substantial proportion of working time.
• Able to concentrate intensely for a substantial proportion of working time, during service user contact, teaching/supervision sessions, team meetings, preparing written work etc.
• Ability to work under time pressure to meet service targets
• Maintain a high degree of professionalism in the face of emotive and distressing problems.

Other Requirements

Essential criteria

• Able to contain and work with organisational stress and able to hold the stress of others.
• Interpersonally calm and able to defuse difficult situations
• Willing to negotiate and handle confrontation effectively and professionally.

Desirable criteria

• Respectful approach to service users, colleagues and other professionals
• Inclusive of colleagues and service users from diverse backgrounds.
• Good organisational and time management skills, ability to plan and prioritise own workload.
• Ability to work as part of a team and independently
• Works well under pressure
• Motivated and proactive

We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace that welcomes and supports individuals of all abilities. Remember, if you meet the minimum criteria for this role and you have a disability, you can be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme - Please ensure you select this on your application form. We would encourage you to be open about your needs so we can work with you to design a comfortable and accessible interview experience. Any information you provide regarding a disability or a need for adjustments will be treated in confidence and will only be shared with colleagues who are supporting this request.

If you require any adjustments to participate fully in the interview process, please let us know by adding the relevant details when scheduling your preferred interview date and time. Please feel free to contact the appointing manager to discuss your needs.

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

• Job Description & Person Specification (PDF, 280.4KB)
• Important Additional Information For Candidates (please read carefully) (PDF, 160.6KB)
• Privacy Notice for Staff (PDF, 268.6KB)
• Staff Benefits (PDF, 2.5MB)