Employment Specialist - Criminal Justice & Complex Needs

Do you take pride in what you do, and can you think creatively about how different organisations can work together to deliver a better service?

Are you happy to talk with employers and help match people into meaningful work?

Experience in this field would be an advantage but not essential if you can demonstrate the right skills and knowledge.

Open Road's Employment Specialist team aims to increase the number of people moving into employment from a variety of community services with a focus on offending and other complex needs.

A day in the life

I start a typical day by checking in with the various treatment teams that I am integrated with. This can include talking to them about existing clients that I am supporting and giving them brief updates, or talking about potential new referrals and individuals who have expressed an interest in being referred.

I have two service users coming to see me this morning, one is a new referral and I aim to start her vocational profile today. when I spoke to her last week, she told me her last job was in care, but she was finding this stressful and would like to consider hospitality roles. So, I already have a few employers and locations in mind that I will talk to, from when I last did employer engagement in her area. My second client had an interview with a Halfords Auto Centre last week, unfortunately he has heard he was unsuccessful, but the manager of the Auto Centre suggested he might be suitable for a retail role and has spoken to the store manager about the client. I will help him follow up on this today and support as required. We will also conduct a general interview debrief and coaching to keep his spirits and confidence up.

This afternoon I will be doing some employer engagement; I have a second meeting with an event planning company at the local business park and on my way back from that I plan to pop into the gym to have a chat about my client who wants to restart their career as a personal trainer.

I will also log into the weekly local employment specialist telekit at lunchtime and present our areas monthly update.

You will have some knowledge of IPS or other employment services / methods
We would like you to have experience talking to employers and helping people into work
We want great communication skills and the ability to build relationships with everyone from the frontline up to CEO level
Negotiation skis and commercial acumen
Drive, passion and commitment
Proven ability to build rapport with people and especially understanding issues from people affected by offending or similar conditions
Boundless enthusiasm, excellent teamwork and the ability to work in a target driven environment
Strong written / verbal / organisational skills

£25,000 - £28,000 per annum
25 days Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays plus your birthday off!
Royal London Pension and Death in Service benefit
Access to our in-house Organisational Training Plan, and full training tailored to your development needs