Employment Specialist – Medway and Gravesham
Location: Medway
Salary: From £26,000
Vacancy Type: Permanent
Advertising End Date: 07 Apr 2026
About The Role
Are you passionate about helping people unlock their potential through meaningful employment?
We’re looking for a motivated Employment Specialist to support people living with mental health conditions, long-term physical health conditions, or disabilities to move into work that suits their skills, strengths, and ambitions.
Working across Medway and Gravesham, you’ll deliver the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model as part of the Connect to Work programme. This evidence-based approach focuses on helping people move into competitive employment quickly, with personalised support that continues once they start work. Full IPS training will be provided, so if you bring the right passion and people skills, we’ll equip you with the rest.
Due to the nature of the role, all applicants must hold a valid UK driving licence and have access to a vehicle.
What you’ll be doing
You’ll manage a caseload of around 25 participants who are motivated to start or return to work, providing personalised support from first meeting through to sustaining employment.
Your role will include:
* Identifying participants’ skills, strengths, and career aspirations
* Creating Vocational Profiles and tailored Action Plans
* Supporting with CV writing, job searching, applications, and interview preparation
* Delivering one-to-one and group coaching to build confidence and employability skills
* Helping participants overcome barriers including benefits concerns, health disclosures, or workplace adjustments
You’ll also play an important role in connecting participants with opportunities in the local labour market.
* Build strong relationships with local employers across North and East Kent
* Identify opportunities in both the advertised and hidden job market
* Match participants to suitable vacancies and coordinate interviews
* Work with employers to promote inclusive recruitment and reasonable adjustments
This role is highly collaborative and community-focused. You’ll work closely with clinical teams, community organisations, training providers, and employers to ensure participants receive holistic support.
Once someone starts work, your support doesn’t stop. You’ll continue to provide in-work coaching and guidance, helping participants settle into their role, build confidence, and sustain long-term employment.
About you
We’re looking for someone who is passionate about people and motivated by helping others achieve their goals. You may come from a background in:
* Health or wellbeing services
* Employability or welfare-to-work programmes
* Adult skills, training, or education
* Recruitment or employer engagement
You’ll also bring strong relationship-building skills, the ability to motivate and coach individuals, and confidence working independently within the community.
If you’re looking for a rewarding role where you can make a real difference in people’s lives through employment, we’d love to hear from you.
We are committed to our cause and the work we carry out as a charity. Equally the wellbeing and the employees who work for us are also important. Joining us an employee, we will offer you the following benefits:
* Flexible working
* Training and development opportunities
* Simply Health Cashback Scheme (optional)
* Season Ticket Loan Scheme
* Cycle to work scheme
* Crisis Loan Scheme
* Electric Car Scheme
* 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata'd for part time employees)
* Access to Blue Light Card
* 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays
* Contributory Pension Scheme – Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years’ service and up to 9% thereafter
* Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary)
* Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)
Please note that we may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
Diversity at Forward Trust
The Forward Trust commits to providing opportunities to everyone. We want to ensure we have a diverse team with a range of lived and professional experiences. This includes those with ‘Lived Experience’ of addiction, offending, or homelessness.
When we recruit, we welcome applications from everyone. This is inclusive of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and/or belief, marriage and civil partnerships, pregnancy and maternity and socio-economic background. Where operationally possible, we will consider flexible working requests and make reasonable adjustments for all roles.
We want our recruitment process to be accessible to everyone. If you require any reasonable adjustments at any stage, please let us know.
Employee Screening and Eligibility to Work
Dependent on role you may be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service Check, details of which will be shared with you at interview.
If successful in your application, you will be required to provide eligibility to work evidence in line with the ‘Eligibility to Work in the UK’ requirements.
To Apply
If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for Forward Trust, please click apply to be redirected to our website to complete your application
