Peer Advocate Supporter (On Your Side)
Role Summary:
On Your Side is our pioneering service to offer peer advocacy/information to navigate through the welfare and mental health systems for adults experiencing multiple barriers to access the right support at the right time.
In your Peer Volunteer role you will:
• Help people to deal with the welfare benefits system, accompany them to assessment meetings or access timely mental health support.
• Empower them to understand their rights, to make informed choices and self-advocate at meetings with professionals.
Key duties
Welfare Benefits tasks may include:
• Provide and/or find information, factsheets and support for clients, and explain how the key points affect their specific situation
• Attend PIP assessments or Work Capability assessments with clients who find it difficult to travel alone or need to be accompanied
• Support clients to make calls relating to claims and assessment appointments
• Support the client to obtain relevant documents to support for claims
• Facilitate referrals to specialist welfare benefits advice service if appropriate for ongoing support.
Mental health advocacy tasks may include:
• Accompany the client to GP or psychiatry appointment or assessment to support them to express the mental health support needs
• Support the client to challenge barriers to access primary or secondary care mental health services, including where there are language or cultural barriers
• Support the client to request or challenge their diagnosis or to request a change/review of medication or treatment/support
• Support the client to challenge their discharge from NHS mental health services
• Support the client to request a change of care coordinator or psychiatrist.
Criteria
• Lived experience of mental health problems
• Able to provide two satisfactory references and Enhanced DBS application with documentation
• Ability to listen
• Possess a non-judgmental attitude and have capacity to learn and self-reflect
• Ability to support people from diverse cultural backgrounds
• Willing to commit 3-4 hours per week for a period of 12 months
• Reliable, flexible, empathetic
• Excellent personal boundaries
• Good computer skills (email, Microsoft office, google searches)
• Some prior understanding of mental health would be desirable
Mind in Harrow welcomes applications from individuals who have lived experience of mental health problems and people from Harrow’s diverse cultural communities.
Mind in Harrow offers:
• 3-4 day training course covering all aspects of the Peer Volunteer role
• Group and one-to-one supervision and support by the On Your Side Coordinator
• Ongoing development sessions to enhance your effectiveness in your Peer Volunteer role
• Reimbursement of out of pocket expenses in accordance with Mind in Harrow’s Policy.
Hours
4- 8 hours per week
Responsible to:
Information & Advocacy Coordinator
Contact
Email: info@mindinharrow.org.uk
Tel: 020 8426 0929
Training provided
Applicants must complete a 4-day volunteer training course, run by Mind in Harrow.
The dates of the next course are:
11th July
13th July
15th July
18th July 2022
Applicants should be available for an interview over video-link during the week commencing 4th July.
Some of the training course sessions will be online and others will be in-person.
Deadline for applications
Please submit your completed application by 9am Monday 4th July to: info@mindinharrow.org.uk.
