Fast Track to Employment
What is Fast Track to Employment?
Fast Track to Employment is a free, voluntary service that helps anyone supported by mental health teams in Hackney to find work. We work closely with you to understand your employment goals and design an action plan to help you get into a job that is right for you. Once you start work, we will continue to meet with you regularly to ensure you settle in and thrive in your new role. If you wish, we can meet with your employer to provide wrap-around support and, if relevant, explore reasonable adjustments to facilitate you in the role.
Who is eligible?
To be eligible for the programme, you must be:
- 18 and over
- Under the care of the Hackney Neighbourhood Recovery Team (East or West), Hackney Rehab and Recovery Team or the EQUIP team
- Legally entitled to work in the UK
- Motivated to find or retain meaningful employment
Working closely with employers
As a team, we aim to build close links with local and supportive employers. We spend time fostering good relationships with hiring managers to provide a smooth transition for you into work. By doing this, we ensure that you get the support you need and to guide employers on the provision of any reasonable adjustments you require. This improves staff retention which is good for both you and employers.
Part of a dedicated clinical team
By being part of the clinical team, it enables us to work closely with care coordinators, occupational therapists, doctors, psychologists, support workers, social workers and nurses offering combined, holistic support while you are on your employment journey. We liaise with the multi-disciplinary team to help address any practical or emotional barriers to ensure you thrive in the workplace.
What support do we provide?
We are an Individual Placement and Support service (IPS) and follow these eight principles in our work:
- We aim to get you into competitive paid employment.
- We are open to anyone who wants to work who meet our eligibility criteria with no exclusions based on diagnosis or health condition.
- We aim to find jobs consistent with your preferences.
- We aim for individuals to apply for roles within four weeks, regardless of any extended absence from work. We do not expect candidates to undergo training or face unnecessary obstacles before applying.
- We place employment specialists into clinical teams so that employment becomes a core part of your mental health treatment and recovery.
- We aim to develop relationships with employers based on your work preferences.
- We provide ongoing, individualised support to both you and your employer.
- We work with benefits advisors to ensure that you are not financially worse off when you start working.
For more information or to self-refer simply fill in the form below and a member of our team will be in touch.
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