Helping people with mental health conditions to find work

A SPECIALIST team has joined an initiative to help people from Warrington with long-term mental health conditions into employment.
The team from Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust has joined New Leaf – a £10.6 million initiative which brings together a diverse range of organisations to support those who have previously found securing and sustaining a job difficult.
As part of New Leaf, the Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust team will use their expertise of supporting people with mental health-related barriers into work and continue to support them throughout their first few months of employment.
According to the Trades Union Congress, more than 45 per cent of people with a long term mental health condition are currently out of work.
Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is designed to help change this. IPS is an evidence-based approach which provides 1-to-1 support to people with long-term mental health conditions.
Not only do the services find participants employment but they also work with participants’ employers to help keep them in work long-term.
New Leaf project manager Andy Rawlins said: “We believe that everyone should have the same opportunities to work, regardless of the history, disability or experience. The majority of the people we have helped through New Leaf have experienced poor mental health, so we know having Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust join our partnership will be tremendously beneficial”
As one of only 18 ISP Centres of Excellence in England, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust will be bringing with them a wealth of experience of supporting people with mental health conditions into employment.
Jane Holland, head of employment and inclusion development at Mersey Care, said: “The New Leaf partnership brings together the best of the best to create a stronger, more connected, and person-centric service – more than other employment support.”
Anyone with a long-term mental health condition and looking to get into work, or employers who want to make a difference to someone’s life, should contact Jennifer Keenan, e-mail [email protected] or telephone 07585884344.
https://www.tuc.org.uk/sites/default/files/Mental_Health_and_Employment.pdf