It’s almost exactly a year since I started in post as Director of IPS Grow. The role has been everything I’d hoped for – and more. I’ve been blessed to represent an incredible community of IPS services across the country and an equally special group of colleagues here at Social Finance.  

Together, we’ve achieved so much over the past 12 months: 

  1. The launch of our NHS England-funded workforce initiative in partnership with Think Ahead. The pilot phase is providing hands-on support for services with their recruitment and retention challenges. We’ve helped Think Ahead to host 5 free recruitment training sessions and recruited 15 IPS ambassadors to raise awareness of our sector. We’ve also shared a good-practice recruitment checklist. We know how important workforce is to the future of IPS services. We’re working hard on a further package of initiatives, including the development of an accredited qualification for IPS employment specialists. 
  2. Collaborating with colleagues at the Department of Health and NHS England to secure an unprecedented funding package for IPS in Severe Mental Illness (SMI) in the Spring and Autumn budgets. The funding from the Spring budget will begin to flow to systems from this month, Critically, it’s a multi-year, ring-fenced funding package. In our recent IPS Grow 2023-25 strategy, we said that the IPS community was crying out for this kind of security and long-term vision. With our Department of Health and NHSE colleagues – who’ve worked tirelessly throughout the year to secure the funding – we’ve answered this call in a way that everyone involved can be proud. 
  3. Supporting the continued success story that is IPS in drug and alcohol services. IPS in substance recovery is one of those rare stories that’s actually even more impressive up-close than it is from afar. The employment outcomes being achieved by IPS in drug and alcohol teams are excellent. The leadership of OHID has been pivotal in that, with a laser-like focus on performance and attention to detail that’s simply staggering given the resources at their disposal. They have not just our thanks but our profound respect. 
  4. Rolling out the IPS in Primary Care (IPS-PC) programme across 12 areas of the country. We are honoured to support the further piloting of IPS in primary and community care settings. It’s part of the DWP’s exciting vision to put evidence-based employment models, like IPS, at the heart of commissioned support. We’re proud to work alongside DWP colleagues, Combined and Local Authorities and service providers to learn about IPS in this new context, learning we hope can inform the future shape of health-related employment support. 
  5. Working with the Centre for Homelessness Impact to secure funding for a Randomised Control Trial of IPS for homelessness. We’re thrilled that our partners, the Centre for Homelessness Impact (CHI), have been successful in their bid to the Department of Levelling Up, Homes and Communities (DLUHC) to trial IPS for homelessness. We’ve been collaborating with CHI throughout the course of this year on the plans. That’s included forming a working group of IPS services, who have contributed valuable insights and stories of impact. You can read more about the working group in our upcoming report, which we’ll release in early 2024. 

    Aside from the above, my personal highlight of the year has been getting to know and work alongside colleagues at IPS Grow. In a busy 12 months, in which the number of IPS teams has grown by 40%, our team of Managers, Regional Leads and support staff have risen to the occasion. They’ve done so not just without complaint but with genuine passion and pride on behalf of their services. 

    As we enter the festive season, where the theme of kindness is writ large, I am struck by the empathy, warmth and care that our team have for their counterparts in services. Just this last week, I was lucky enough to attend a celebration of success for IPS services in the Midlands that our team had taken the time to organise. I was also approached by colleagues working on ways to support the wellbeing of Team Leaders and others as they complete Fidelity Reviews. Fidelity Reviews are very much a learning tool, not an audit. However, they can be a source of anxiety too. That IPS Grow colleagues were thinking about others in this way – at the end of a year in which they themselves have been pushed so hard – tells you everything you need to know about their character. 

    It’s for this reason that I share a wish for 2024: that the kindness of our team is reciprocated and their service recognized in the way it deserves to be. In the vast majority of our interactions with providers and commissioners, that’s the case. But there are also times where it isn’t. Even if vanishingly rare, it’s never acceptable for our Leads to be abused in the course of their work. It’s not OK – even once – for them to experience unkindness or hostility just for doing their job. And it can’t be right that the country’s leading experts in the world’s best-evidenced employment model should ever be forced to defend the very basic principles of IPS, like employer engagement and integration, that bind our community together. That’s not a good use of anyone’s time. 

    So, I end this year with pride in the achievements of 2023 and hope for a wonderful 2024. I end it with heartfelt thanks to the outstanding Service Managers, Team Leaders, Employment Specialists and support staff around the country for the impact you’ve had on so many lives. But I also end it with a sense that in the coming year we need to renew the compact that unifies our community, built on those 8 core principles and anchored in kindness and mutual respect for one another’s work. With those firm foundations, our combined potential in the year ahead is limitless. 

    Thank you for reading. I hope you and your families have a peaceful festive season and the happiest of New Years. 

    Niall O’Reilly

    Director of IPS Grow