NHS managers to visit Enable, Shropshire Council’s mental health employment service

NHS managers are visiting Shropshire Council’s mental health employment service Enable on Tuesday 21 February 2017 to find out how it gets such good results.

Managers from NHS England and the Department for Work and Pensions are meeting with the Enable supported employment service to hear about its fantastic results in getting people with mental health problems into work. Over the last nine months, the team at Enable have exceeded their targets of placing individuals into long-term sustainable employment, supporting over 80 individuals into paid work – surpassing their original target by 50%.

The purpose of the visit is to see how Enable’s model of work can be rolled out on a national basis. Enable is a national Centre of Excellence in “Individual Placement and Support” (IPS), a method of placing people with mental health issues into competitive paid employment, which is twice as effective as any other approach.

Shropshire is one of 17 mental health Centres of Excellence in IPS, and Enable has been extensively involved in developing and supporting this method across the West Midlands. The service is funded through a partnership between Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group and Shropshire Council.

Enable customer at their employment

Employment is often a vital step in the recovery from mental ill health, and IPS is therefore a key part of the Government’s strategy, the “Five Year Forward View for Mental Health”. Employment improves self-esteem and confidence and reduces social isolation, whilst unemployment increases the risk of mental illness and is linked to higher hospital admissions.

Enable customer being helped by the service

Lee Chapman, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for adult services, said:-

“Enable’s supported employment service plays a vital part in reducing the potential strain on the NHS and social care services. Its work on helping people with mental health problems into work is a shining example of how we successively innovative locally and then share our new approaches regionally and nationally.”

A client of the mental health service, who has been helped into employment, said of the service:

“Enable supported me to re-enter the jobs market after many years of mental illness. I had been told in rehab that I may need to accept that ‘I would never be able to hold down a job again’. But Enable, through compassionate and empathetic support, helped me to reclaim my life.”

Further information

Enable is a specialist organisation that supports people with disabilities into work. Their main focus is to assist individuals with disabilities and mental health needs to find a job that suits them. Enable delivers positive, individualised support into recruitment, as well as a comprehensive package of ongoing advice, guidance and support to both the jobseeker and the employer.

Enables services include:

• Shropshire Disability Employment Services
• Wolverhampton Disability Employment Services
• Shropshire IPS Mental Health Employment Services
• Shropshire, Telford and Wolverhampton Supported Internships – helping students with disabilities take the step from education into paid employment
• Shropshire and Telford Building Better Opportunities – funded by the European Social Fund to support people with disabilities that are furthest from the job market
• Shropshire Work Choice – a sub contract from Shaw Trust
• Veterans Employment Service
• Independent Travel Training – helping people with disabilities to travel independently on public transport

Shropshire is nationally one of 17 mental health Centres of Excellence of Individual Placement Support (IPS) in mental health employment. IPS is a proven method of getting people into competitive employment first with training and support on the job. Enable is the regional lead on IPS and is extensively involved in developing and supporting IPS across the West Midlands.

Enable was established in 1994 as a specialist mental health employment service and has since expanded to include employment services for all disability groups. Their highly experienced employment officers support and advise people in their efforts to find work that is suited to their skills and interests. Enable is nationally recognised for its learning disability and mental health employment services.

Enable firmly believes that employment improves health and builds self-worth, as well as bringing financial and social independence.This is something that they work closely with each of their clients to achieve. With the help of innovative employment schemes and approaches, Enable constantly strives to perform above the national average.

Enable offers help with:

• An initial assessment and development plan
• Career advice
• CV writing
• Preparation for work – practical skills assessment
• Appropriate work experience to develop skills
• Support with job searching
• Support with applications and interviews
• Job coaching – this is active, in-work support to people from day one of a job, supporting the employee and providing a valuable link for the employer.