Unemployed? Experiencing serious mental health illness? Our Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Employment Services can help
Our IPS specialists provides practical advice to help people who have had a serious mental health illness find paid work.
Evidence shows people with serious mental health issues benefit from paid employment through reduced symptoms, improved quality of life and financial independence.
The IPS service supports people to find work or maintain their existing employment but is especially keen to support those with a history of unemployment.
Vicky Vacara, IPS Service Manager, said: “When someone has a serious mental health illness it can be extremely difficult to have additional conversations with them about their lack of work or difficulty in the job market.
“That’s where we can help. These are exactly the clients that my team wants to be supporting, and the ones who can benefit the most from our service.
“We currently get more referrals for clients who have a relatively healthy work history, but we know there must be people out there who have really struggled for work and been regularly unemployed.
“We don’t want anyone falling through the net when our service is here for them, so we’d encourage mental health practitioners to have a conversation about work with your patients and refer to us if we can help.”
Employment Specialists can provide a range of practical support, including:
- Job searches
- Support to write CVs, covering letters and explaining career gaps
- Support to access benefits advice to ensure people are better off when working
- Support to apply for jobs and prepare for job interviews
- Support to sustain and retain employment
- Support to build confidence around returning to work
Call 0300 421 3149 or email IPS@ghc.nhs.uk
