IPS Grow Fidelity Assurance Lead – (Connect to Work)

We are seeking IPS professionals based across England and Wales with current or recent experience working within an IPS service, with a solid understanding of the IPS model and it’s practical application. The Connect to Work fidelity assurance contract offers a unique opportunity to strengthen and elevate the impact of IPS across the national work and health landscape. We are seeking ambitious, adaptable and purpose‑driven individuals who are motivated by delivering change at scale and improving people’s lives through high‑quality, evidence‑based practice.

A key responsibility of this role is coordinating and undertaking fidelity reviews for the Connect to Work supported employment programme. The postholder will conduct on-site IPS fidelity reviews, produce clear and insightful fidelity reports, and facilitate local Communities of Practice (COPs) to promote shared learning and continuous improvement. Following fidelity reviews they will support the development of action plans that enhance performance, embed best practice, and ensure high‑quality outcomes for people accessing IPS.

Post holders will receive comprehensive training to build the skills and knowledge required to become a confident and effective IPS fidelity reviewer.

A mix of remote and on-site work across England and Wales is required, and a commitment to national travel is essential (associated costs are paid for). Attendance at quarterly organisational events and regular team days in London is required. Please get in touch with IPS Grow if you have any questions about the locations and/or travel required.

IPS Grow is a national programme designed to support the expansion of Individual Placement and Support (IPS) services in mental health, primary care, and drug and alcohol teams across England. The programme is led by Social Finance in partnership with the Centre for Mental Health. It is funded by NHS England (NHSE), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID).

A core element of the programme is the expert delivery of detailed IPS fidelity reviews by a team of IPS professionals, enabling providers to deepen their understanding of fidelity requirements and strengthen employment outcomes for their clients.

Responsibilities

 Quality assurance and fidelity reviews

• Train to become a fidelity reviewer and conduct regular fidelity reviews across IPS services.

• Guide services through the fidelity review process, ensuring each stage is well‑coordinated, timely, and delivered to a high standard.

• Produce impactful, concise and accurate fidelity reports within agreed timescales.

• Ensure active, measurable fidelity action plans are implemented.

Stakeholder engagement

• Maintain clear and consistent communication with services throughout the fidelity review process to support understanding, preparation, and smooth delivery of fidelity reports, COPs, and action plans.

• Communicate effectively with stakeholders at all levels, including accountable body representatives, adapting style and approach to achieve clarity, build understanding, and support the intended outcomes of the assessment process.

• Work with services and key stakeholders to identify case studies that showcase impact and support the national promotion of the fidelity assurance process.

Facilitate learning networks and communities of practice

• Use insights from fidelity reports to shape the content and focus of localised COPs, ensuring sessions address priority themes and deliver maximum impact for services.

• Facilitate localised in person COPs that encourage shared learning, reflective discussion, and continuous improvement.

• Support the delivery of national webinars and workshops in line with wider team objectives.

About You

Successful candidates will be able to demonstrate:

Skills, Experience & Qualifications

• IPS experience and expertise: Demonstrable experience working within an IPS service with a solid understanding of the IPS model, the fidelity scale, and their practical application. Applicants with experience in roles such as Employment Specialist, Team Leader, IPS Trainer, or other IPS‑related positions would all be well‑suited to this role.

• Driving quality improvement: Proven experience delivering high‑fidelity IPS practice, with an understanding of how strong adherence to the fidelity model directly contributes to improved employment outcomes

• High‑performance delivery: Experience working in a fast‑paced, performance‑driven environment, consistently delivering high‑quality outputs at volume while maintaining accuracy and attention to detail.

• Planning and organisational skills: Manage workloads and competing priorities efficiently and meet deadlines consistently while maintaining detail focussed high-quality output.

Personal Attributes & Competencies

• Driven by a core belief in evidenced-based employment support and integrity to the IPS model.

• Takes a structured approach to solving problems and develops creative and innovative solutions to overcome challenges.

• Highly organised and meticulous, with strong attention to detail and a consistent ability to produce accurate, high‑quality work.

• Commitment to race equity and willingness to contribute to IPS Grow race equity objectives.

• High level of integrity, empathy and commitment to driving social change.

• Thoughtful and effective communicator.

• High levels of initiative and personal leadership and with the ability to adapt quickly.

• Commitment to travel. The role involves significant travel to undertake fidelity reviews as well as meeting with IPS Grow team members from across England and Wales.

About Social Finance

We are an ambitious not for profit organisation that helps to design, fund and scale better solutions to complex social problems. Our vision is a fairer world where together we unleash the potential of people and communities.

We do this by working in partnership with local and national governments, funders, communities and the social sector to tackle complex and enduring social problems in the UK and across the world.

Our skills include financial analysis, data and digital insight, outcomes-focused partnerships, strategy, research and design. We combine these specialisms in different ways to address specific social challenges. We

create effective solutions that blend the expertise of communities and professionals to deliver better outcomes in issues such as homelessness, domestic abuse, children’s services, health, employment and skills.

Our multi-skilled team of over 120 people come from diverse backgrounds in the public, private and charity sectors, all sharing a passion for making change happen. We provide a high-quality training and development programme in-house with great opportunities for career progression. We’re a friendly and intellectually curious bunch, always up for a debate.

Our work improves the lives of people and communities in the UK and across the world. We are experts in systems change – shifting the way a whole system works around a specific social issue in order to ensure long-lasting change. Examples include:

• Employment & skills: Scaling evidence-based employment services through IPS Grow.

• Health & social care: Investing in health transformation, such as in End of Life Care services.

• Children & young people: Maximising access to education by building more inclusive systems.

• Housing & homelessness: Developing innovative funding models to help meet government new homes supply.

Our approach is a collaborative one, where we bring the best capabilities and people from across the organisation together to solve the challenges we face.

Our values

Everyone at Social Finance believes that change for communities is possible. To help us achieve it, we have three core values that guide everything we do. We are curious, empathetic and pioneering.

Working at Social Finance

The fixed salary for this position is £39,000 per annum. Working for a mission driven organisation is more than just what we pay though, it’s about our culture, our approach and what else we offer.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

We actively encourage applications from under-represented and minoritised groups, including those with lived experience of the social issues we are working to address. We are an equal opportunities employer.

We support a range of flexible working options and welcome UK based applications from outside of London/the Southeast so far as they can meet the in-person meeting requirements for the role. We can also accommodate secondments and part-time working.

We work on some projects where our clients may require different levels of DBS checking for our employees. Candidates deemed suitable for a role after interview will be asked to declare any unspent convictions to ensure that we are able to resource them to projects appropriately.

Read more about working for Social Finance on our website.

Closing date for applications: Monday 16th February 2026 - 9am

• First stage 30-minute telephone Zoom interviews will take place: 26th and 27th February 2026

• Face to face interviews will take place: 11-13th March 2026

Should you require any reasonable adjustments to allow you to attend, please highlight this when you are invited.

If you would like more information about the role, please email david.venables@socialfinance.org.uk