Service details

How we can help

We can help you if your mental health is contributing to you being unable to work or to find work. 

We specialise in:

• Job retention to help you if you are in paid employment and need support to retain or maintain your job
• Individual placement and support (IPS) to help you find paid employment of any number of hours.

Once employment has been secured we can support you at work and liaise with employers around reasonable adjustments.

If you are looking purely to do voluntary work or to learn new skills, we can signpost you to local providers.

Job retention

Workways has a Job Retention team which supports employed people experiencing mental health disruption to retain their job, find an alternative job, or leave their job as smoothly as possible.

The Job Retention team accept self-referrals from people who have support from Devon Partnership NHS Trust or who have spoken with their GP about their mental health. The team offers a service to people who live within the Exeter, East and Mid Devon area.  

A holistic assessment identifies employment needs with the client. Short-term advice and guidance is then offered. We can also try to engage with employers to support both them and their employees, provided the employer takes up this offer. Depending on circumstances, we can: accompany people to Occupational Health appointments or employment meetings; oversee reasonable adjustments and phased return to work; support or provide information for clients to complete an employment WRAP, which may be shared with their employer. This is all subject to assessment and no actions are taken unless agreed with the client.

NOTE: We DO NOT offer job coaching but offer signposting advice in relation to any identified needs in this area. If a client is a member of a union we work collaboratively with their representative. We have knowledge of employment law but are unable to comment on specific cases and therefore we can signpost to relevant organisations who may be able to assist.

See below for details of how to get help.

Individual Placement and Support

Workways uses the evidence-based Individual Placement and Support (IPS) approach and is a Centre of Excellence in supporting people who use mental health services for employment.

Our service is open to people who have a Care Co-ordinator. Our Employment Specialists (ES) help people who want to work and is focussed on what each person wants to do. We cover the whole of Devon (excluding Plymouth).  

IPS is based on the best available evidence about what works to support people with mental health conditions find and begin work. It is different from other approaches because:

• Employment Specialists (ES) are fully integrated into each clinical team, and jointly supervised by the team manager, so  there is a joined-up approach.
• Competitive employment is the primary goal - individuals are not asked to take part in lengthy pre-vocational training or sheltered work.
• Job search begins quickly (within one month) after a person engages with the service. Supporting people to develop work skills on the job is more effective than preparation in a sheltered environment.
• People using services decide when they are ready to start the job search process. Anyone who is interested is eligible for support - motivation to work is an important predictor of success.
• The focus is on job matching based on an individual's choices and preferences about types of work, location, number of hours worked and disclosure. Unsurprisingly, people tend to stay employed longer in jobs that meet their preferences.
• In-work support is provided to the individual and the employer on an on-going basis, and assistance is provided if individuals want to change jobs.

See below for details of how to get in touch.