Recovery Steps Cumbria in partnership with Humankind and The Well help recruit those in recovery for addictions into employment. Unlike other recruitment organisations that look to immediately place someone into work, we work closely with the individual and the employer to ensure that the position we are putting them forward for is a suitable fit for all parties involved. Our support doesn’t stop at employment and continues for a minimum of six months into employment.
We have two Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Employment specialists: Daniel Carr focusing on South Cumbria (Kendal, Barrow in Furness and Penrith) and Charlotte Percival focusing on North Cumbria (Carlisle, Workington, Whitehaven)
Free Employment Service
Our service is completely free and takes away some of the stress of the recruitment process for you! We provide a free, tailor-made and personalised recruitment service for your business and for those who are in recovery for drug and alcohol misuse looking for work.
Our approach is called IPS – Individual Placement & Support and is a tried and tested method across the world for recruitment. We not only support your business through the recruitment process but also for a minimum of six months afterwards while you and your new employee settle into the new working relationship.
Why Our Candidates Make Good Employees
Research suggests that people in addiction recovery are often:
- Highly motivated to work because employment grants the opportunity to get their lives back
- Loyal and committed to the employer willing to give them a chance and help them achieve financial, social and personal stability.
- Less likely to take sick days.
- If the individual has worked the 12 Steps or a similar program, they’ve embraced principles like honesty, humility and integrity, which serve them well both personally and professionally. Those who have completed a treatment program also have learned the importance of self-care, which often translates into increased productivity and focus at work.
Why Would I Recruit Someone In Recovery?
Having a regular job to go to is a big deal. In fact, recovery experts say that work is an important part of long-term recovery. This is true for a lot of reasons. Let’s look at a few of them.
NDTMS and LMS figures showed that people who are in employment are more likely to successfully complete treatment.
Being in paid work is consistently associated with successfully completing treatment.
John Varley, former chief executive at Barclays, has argued that shunning job applicants in recovery would mean long-term problems for both the recovery community and the economy.
Even in times of economic downturn, it makes business sense to send a valued employee who is struggling with addiction to treatment and to hire new employees who have recovered from the disease and successfully maintained their sobriety.
“I have seen first hand the real benefits for those businesses that are prepared to hire suitable candidates from the widest possible pools of talent (including disadvantaged members of the communities in which we live and work),” Varley wrote in The Guardian.
What is Individual Placement and Support?
Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is a specialised form of employment support that has been developed over the last 25 years. It is a structured county wide approach for Recovery Steps Cumbria. It differs from most employment support in several ways:
- Employment support is deeply integrated with clinical teams
- It is a ‘work first’ intervention that focuses on competitive, paid employment (rather than volunteering, education or training)
- It is preference-led, with specific employers being identified and, where permission is given, approached by the IPS specialist with a particular client in mind
- In-work support is provided
The aim of IPS is to help people into paid employment rather than into volunteering, education or training. If you’re not sure whether IPS is the right option for one of your clients, please speak to one of your service’s IPS specialists, or ask the client to do so themselves.
Why should I make a referral, and when?
IPS should be offered to everyone in structured treatment. There is evidence that employment can support recovery and reduce the severity and frequency of relapse. Focusing on jobs that people
can do – and want to do – minimises the risk of employment turning out to be unsustainable.
Employment can – and should – be part of the recovery journey, not the destination. This means referrals can be made at any stage of the journey. Discussing employment may need careful and skilful handling by keyworkers. People who have been without paid work for a prolonged period, or who have never worked, can feel discouraged or demotivated, and may need reassurance, or
support to improve their motivation, self-confidence or self-esteem.
Positive role models or examples of people who have gone on to employment can help, including where peer support or recovery champions are available within the service or area.
What Support Is Out There?
Access to Work https://www.gov.uk/access-to-work
Disability Confident https://disabilityconfident.campaign.gov.uk/
Alcoholics Anonymous https://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/
Narcotics Anonymous http://ukna.org/
NHS Drugs https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/drug-addiction-getting-help/ Alcohol https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/#drink-less-alcohol
Get In Touch!
Daniel Carr – South Cumbria (Kendal, Barrow in Furness, Penrith offices) daniel.carr@recoverystepscumbria.org.uk or 07814 060151
Charlotte Percival – North Cumbria (Carlisle, Workington, Whitehaven offices) charlotte.percival@recoverystepscumbria.org.uk or 07814 060154
Trish McKitterick – Senior Employment Specialist trish.mckitterick@humankindcharity.org.uk