Working at Employ-Ability

Employ-Ability is a specialist employment support charity working with people experiencing mental ill health.

Our mission is to help people with mental ill health to get into and keep work, in Essex and beyond. We work in the best interests of our users by mentoring, encouraging and supporting them to achieve their potential in their working life.

At Employ-Ability, we champion good mental health in the workplace by working in partnership with employers to help them to work with our users in the best way.

Services will help people experiencing mental ill health to find and keep work.

Employ-Ability works with Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT), and have been awarded two new contracts by Essex County Council to provide mental health supported employment services across Essex. Working with Essex and Southend Clinical Commissioning Groups, EPUT and Employ-Ability will continue to provide an Employment Service but will now also run an Employment Retention Service to help people experiencing poor mental health find and maintain work.

The services commenced on 1 July 2020 and are contracted to run until April 2023.

Our high quality staff are our most important asset and are the key to our success. Our people share our long term ambition; to double access to employment services in West Essex, South Essex and West Suffolk and there are challenging targets that the organisation needs to deliver to reach that goal. Each and every one of us at Employ-Ability are responsible for developing and delivering a high-quality service that meets recognised standards and positive outcomes for service users, makinga significant overall contribution to West Essex, South Essex and West Suffolk areas.

Most importantly, we practice what we preach and commonly 40% of our workforce will have lived experience of poor mental health.

We offer; 25 days plus bank holidays annual leave, access to BUPA Employer Assistance Programme, support for your professional development, and where possible family friendly working conditions.

 

Our Services

Employ-Ability work with Essex Partnership Univerity Trust (EPUT) to deliver three services

 

Employment Service (IPS)

Employ-Ability and EPUT currently provide the Individual Placement and Support Services (IPS) in Essex to support those in secondary services to secure work.

• The Employment Service is available throughout Essex including Southend.

• It helps people receiving support from a secondary mental health team secure work through the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model.

• Employment specialists help people set career goals, write CVs, prepare for interviews and build the confidence to enter the workplace.

 

Retention Service

The Retention Service is a new service which evolved from the success and demand of the service being offered through IPS.

• The Employment Retention Service is available throughout Essex, excluding Southend.

• It enables people in employment but experiencing mental health difficulties to find support so they are more likely to be able to continue working.

• The service is open to anyone experiencing mental health difficulties.

• Referrals will be considered from employers, clinicians in secondary, primary and social care, occupational health and learning providers. Members of the public can also self-refer.

  

HeadsUp Programme

HeadsUp provides support, advice and practical experience for people with common mental health problems such as anxiety, feeling low and depression, after a period of unemployment.

• Participants do not have to have a diagnosed condition. The employability project funded by by the European Social Fund and the National Lottery Community Fund aims to help people across Essex find and maintain work, training courses or return to education.

• Individuals receive one to one support via a team of Peer Support Workers, can access a series of workshops designed to build resilience and take part in practical employability skills sessions. In addition to this a number of Essex- based businesses and organisations work alongside the programme offering guidance and sharing expertise.

• People who may benefit from the programme can be referred by an organisation but could also refer themselves. The practical and emotional support participants receive will last for as long as needed, even once they’ve found a job. Movement through the programme is at a pace that suits participants and they will be supported all the way through by a Peer Support Worker.

 

What our clients thought?

Each client we saw from July to September was asked to participate in short end of session questionnaire or interview, the work was based on specific lines of enquiry, and revealed that;

Our clients have been working with their Employment Specialists for varied amounts of time e.g. 24% for 12+ months, 12% for 6-8 months and in many cases their recovery journey was, initially, hard to sustain. Despite these challenges this does not change how the Employment Specialists support clients’ goals and helped them to overcome any barriers they might face in the workplace.

This is reflected in the results of our surveys where 64% of clients identified they are confident that they can overcome some of the barriers they may experience at work a significant increase on last year’s result and 74% feel better about their future in work, as a result of the support provided by their Employment Specialist. Alongside are encouraging comments such as ‘fantastic support and suggestions, I am so pleased I was referred to my ES, my confidence and motivation has improved’.

The research also reveals how Employment Specialists work in the best interests of our clients and allowing them to make choices about the work they would like to do, as 94% said that they do feel as though they can make choices and the remaining 6% being ‘most of the time’ – so we can conclude that none of our clients feel as though they never have a choice in what work they do.