Role Profile

Job Description (JD)
Band 6
Group Profile: Advisor(A)

Job Description: A: Prison Employment Lead

Document Ref.
OR-JES-2974-JD-B6 : A : Prison Employment Lead
v4.0
Document Type
Management

Version
4.0
Classification
Official

Date of Issue
26 January 2024
Status
Baselined
Produced by
Job Evaluation Assurance and Support Team
Authorised by
Reward Team
JD Evidence

OR-JES-2974-JD-B6 : A : Prison Employment Lead v4.0

Job Description
Job Title
A: Prison Employment Lead
Group Profile
Advisor
Organisation
First Line Management
Level

Band
6

Overview of the
The job holder has responsibility for improving prison leavers’
job
employment outcomes by assessing the work readiness of
prisoners and matching them to suitable jobs; working with
employer engagement colleagues, DWP and other partners to
promote jobs and training opportunities from the prison
Employment Hub.
Summary
HMPPS have invested significantly in a variety of activities that
give prisoners the opportunity to develop work skills and gain
experience.

Employment is managed as part of the Education, Training and
Employment pathway, which alongside Finance, Benefit and
Debt and a range of support services, provides prisoners with
the skills and knowledge to live a law-abiding life after leaving
prison.

A key aspect of this service is to support prison leavers into
meaningful, sustained employment on release by working with
employers in the community.

The New Futures Network (NFN) is a national network of
employment brokers and industry leads, who work to establish
relationships with a range of sector-based employers. The
specific aim is to increase the number of prison leavers entering
into employment on release. In order for these employers to
benefit from the potential labour pool that exists within Prisons in
England and Wales, it is essential that work ready candidates
are identified pre-release.

The role of the Prison Employment Lead (PEL) is to identify
work-ready prisoners and match them to jobs through face-to-
face interventions.

The Prison Employment Lead will principally be responsible for:

i.
Identifying work ready candidates.
ii.
Referring prisoners to work readiness support.
iii.
Matching work ready candidates to suitable vacancies
supplied by the New Futures Network, DWP and other
employment.

This is a non-operational job with line management
responsibilities.  This role is non-rotational.
OR-JES-2974-JD-B6 : A : Prison Employment Lead v4.0

Responsibilities,
The job holder will be required to carry out the following
Activities and
responsibilities, activities and duties:
Duties

The role of the PEL is to improve employment outcomes for
prison leavers. In order to achieve this, they will:

•  Engage with stakeholders within the prison to establish a
system that identifies work ready prisoners and highlights
actions needed to support prisoners to achieve work
readiness.
•  Work with prison staff and DWP Prison Work Coaches to
match work ready candidates to job opportunities from the
New Futures Network (NFN), DWP Employment Advisers
and National Employer and Partnership Team.
•  Support contracted IAG and Education providers to ensure
the prison induction process properly:
o  promotes employment, education and skills training
opportunities to prisoners upon arrival at the prison
o  effectively captures information relating to prisoner
education, work experience and skills
o  encourages prisoners to develop personal and social
skills that improve employability
•  Manage an Employment Hub which centralises employment
support services within the prison and promotes live
vacancies to prison leavers within the resettlement period.
•  Champion innovations in employment and industry focused
recruitment practices, such as hospitality/construction drives
etc.
•  Work in partnership with the Prison’s Strategic Employment
Advisory Boards to improve systems that support prisoners to
develop employability, ensuring they meet commercial
needs/standards of employers.
•  Contribute to the Local Partnership Agreement (LPA) with
DWP detailing the responsibilities of the PEL, Prison Work
Coaches and DWP Employment Advisers and how they will
work together at the prison.
•  Organise regular opportunities for NFN, DWP and other
stakeholders to bring employers into the prison and facilitate
prisoner forums.
•  Work in partnership with Community Offender Management
(COM) to ensure prison leaver information is supplied to
relevant agencies post release in order to remove duplication.
•  Liaise with COM to ensure prison leavers who require further
support on release are signposted to Education, Training and
Employment Commissioned Rehabilitative Services (CRS)
who can continue to support them on their journey towards
meaningful, sustained employment.
The duties/responsibilities listed above describe the post as it is
at present and is not intended to be exhaustive. The job holder is
expected to accept reasonable alterations and additional tasks of
a similar level that may be necessary. Significant adjustments
may require re-examination under the Job Evaluation Scheme
and shall be discussed in the first instance with the job holder.
OR-JES-2974-JD-B6 : A : Prison Employment Lead v4.0

An ability to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence
through the medium of English or (where specified in Wales)
Welsh.

Civil Service Success Profile Criteria

Behaviours
•  Communicating and Influencing
•  Working Together
•  Managing a Quality Service
•  Changing and Improving
Strengths
It is advised strengths are chosen locally, recommended 4-8.

Experience
•  Experience of working with senior officials.
•  Experience of working across stakeholder groups and Other
Government Departments and excellent influencing skills,
showing the ability to deal effectively with conflict and deliver
objectives.
•  Has experience of setting goals and achieving targets.
•  Has commercial experience and an understanding of contract
management.
•  Has previous experience/understanding of recruitment
processes/legislation (desirable).
Technical

requirements
Ability
•  Ability to engage at Local and Regional Management level.
•  Ability to work in partnership with NFN Managers,
communicating strategy and priorities to providers and
stakeholders.
•  Resilience under pressure, ability to articulate and defend
decisions on behalf of HMPPS.
•  Strong written and excellent verbal and non-verbal
communication skills.
•  Strong team building and working skills.

Minimum
Please do not alter this box
Eligibility

•  All candidates are subject to security and identity checks prior to
taking up post.
•  All external candidates are subject to 6 months’
probation.  Internal candidates are subject to probation if they
have not already served a probationary period within HMPPS.
•  All staff are required to declare whether they are a member of a
group or organisation which HMPPS consider to be racist.

Hours of Work
37 hour working week (standard).
(Unsocial Hours)
Allowances

OR-JES-2974-JD-B6 : A : Prison Employment Lead v4.0