Peer support manager jobs

We are looking for an experienced leader with key skills in line management, bid-writing and safeguarding, preferably with a qualification in social work. Our ideal candidate will be emotionally resilient, compassionate and empathetic with a proven background in managing people and overseeing service delivery.  You will be responsible for service quality, operational strategies and policies, providing high-level support to a small, dedicated team of staff and volunteers and bid writing to secure long term funding for the charity to continue its vital work. 

The charity provides support to vulnerable parents with pre-school aged children living in the borough of Gravesham, supporting up to 85 families at any given time.  Waterside offers 1:1 support, peer group sessions, structured family sessions, access to local agency clinics, counselling services, and courses, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year.

Reporting to the Chair of Trustees, you will work with the team, trustees and external providers to ensure the delivery of impactful services and cultivation of strong partnerships in order to respond to the local needs of our families. 

The Centre Manager role will be expected to work from the centre the majority of the time as it is important to have a presence with the families and staff. On occasion, when it is required to meet key deadlines, working from home is supported but this is on an ad-hoc basis and not part of a regular working pattern. 

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead, manage and co-ordinate the work of Waterside Parents’ Centre to ensure smooth running of the service. 

• Designated Safeguarding Lead.

• Manage day-to-day operations, ensuring high-quality service delivery and adherence to best practices.

• Lead and support a dedicated team, providing supervision, training, and professional development opportunities.

• Ensure you are visible and approachable to the families we engage with specifically in family sessions. 

• Effective bid writing to secure crucial funding for the charity

• Build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, funders, and commissioners.

• Develop and implement strategic plans that align with the organisation’s goals and values.

• Manage all policies and procedures ensuring that they align with appropriate legislation and regulatory requirements.

• Work with the Finance Officer to ensure accuracy of financial recording and reporting.

Skills and Experience:

Desirable

• Experience in a social work environment.

Required

• Experience of leading services in the charity or social care sector.

• Non judgmental approach ensuring focus is on acceptance and understanding.

• Proven ability to manage diverse funding contracts and reporting requirements.

• Strong team leadership, with a focus on collaboration and staff development.

• Excellent communication and partnership-building skills.

• A commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.

What we are offering you:

Waterside is a family-centric employer and we provide our employees with a supportive and engaging environment. 

As well as ongoing development and training, we offer a generous annual leave entitlement, flexible working and hybrid working on occasion.  We offer a contributory pension scheme and free on-site parking.

Waterside is committed to safer recruitment and equality of opportunity and diversity.  This role is subject to DBS checks

Flexible home working, with requirement for travel to BDA Office Birmingham twice a month.

Salary £50,755 per annum - full time 36 hours per week (job share will be considered)

Benefits include: 30 days holiday, working flexibly policy, non-contributory healthcare benefits and a company pension scheme.

Deadline for applications:    Friday 23rd May 2025

Interview Date:  Thursday 5th June 2025

We are the British Dietetic Association (BDA). We are an award-winning not-for-profit organisation, based in Birmingham, employing dedicated, dynamic and professional staff who deliver services for our membership of more than 12,000 dietetic professionals.

We are the leading organisation of nutrition professionals in the UK; representing the entire nutrition and dietetic workforce across all sectors. Our vision is to improve the health of the UK population by protecting and improving health and care services, developing health and social care policy, improving the impact of dietetics and promoting positive discussion on food, nutrition, wellbeing and health.

Role details:

The BDA is seeking a new Research Manager to work as part of the Education and Professional Practice Team, leading on the research and impact activities of professional dietetic practice. The role will also provide line management within the team.

The role will support the BDA’s Strategic Plan 2024-34 and lead the growth and delivery of the annual Research Symposium. The role will suit a candidate with a sound understanding and experience of the breadth of dietetic practice and research, and the factors that influence it. Working innovatively the post holder will develop and progress research within dietetic practice, building confidence in the dietetic workforce to be research active.  

 Ideal candidate:

We are looking for somebody who is an expert in research methodologies, and appraisal and is comfortable setting and influencing research strategy.  Ideally we would like somebody who has or is studying for their doctorate in dietetics and experience working in a practice setting would be advantageous. This is a senior internal and external facing role working alongside the Director of Education Practice and Research, and the Education and Practice Managers. The candidate will enjoy supporting colleagues and members to engage and deliver research related projects, and demonstrate impact through evidence-based practice.

In return, we offer exciting opportunities to raise the profile of research, innovate, and build purposeful external stakeholder relationships. The BDA have a collection of small departments who all work closely together and have a ‘one team’ ethos. The role will require somebody who enjoys the challenges that come with delivering and reporting on strategic targets and measuring impact.

For full details of the role, please download and refer to the Job Description.

We would strongly encourage any dietitian interested in the role to contact the BDA for an informal, confidential discussion about this post and opportunities for flexible working. Please refer to our website for contact details.

The job advert is shown on the BDA website, and for discussion about the role, please telephone the Birmingham office number and ask for Najia.

Please note: Only applicants who submit a covering letter will be shortlisted for interview.

Family Support Foster Carer

Overview

The family support foster carers (FSFCs) mentor their families and offer short breaks for children, offering stability and giving parents time to address their challenges with support. They provide feedback on their involvement with the families during review meetings.

The FSFCs could be experienced foster carers within the service who want to develop their skills and explore a new opportunity within fostering. Alternatively, they can be recruited specifically to this role in SUSD but must gain approval prior to commencing in the role. Is it imperative that the FSFCs have the skills and commitment to working with both parents and children as part of the SUSD programme. A role description for the FSFC is included in this pack.

Role and Responsibilities

The key aspects of the role are to

• provide weekly mentoring support for parents who are referred to SUSD. There is maximum caseload of 4 families at any one time.
• support the family to set and review goals, using our Person Centred Planning app.
• provide one planned short break each month for each referred child.
• offer crisis response support to families in the form of phone calls, visits or crisis short breaks.
• attend training provided by The Fostering Network & the Local Authority, enabling the FSFC to provide training and support to families.
• help with family activities, such as outings, family activities, summer schemes and residentials

The Family Support Foster Carer will be required to record details of the support provided, sharing with the supervising social worker as appropriate. During weeks that the FSFC has attend a review or support meeting for a family, they will not be required to complete another mentoring session with that family.

Working with parents and families

Families are referred to Step Up Step Down by their social worker. The scheme is voluntary, and families are empowered to decide whether they want the support. SUSD support has 4 primary aspects:

• mentoring for parents
• short breaks for children
• family activities
• community supports.

SUSD Mentoring Sessions are based upon areas of identified need. These are decided through the referral process and the initial planning meeting and are reviewed every three months throughout the duration of SUSD support. The key areas of support are: Routines, Budgeting, Healthy Living, Mental and Physical Wellbeing, Behaviour Management, Access to supports, Family Relationships, Dealing with Crisis Situations, Play and Stimulation.

The FSFC will also be required to give updates and share progress at review meetings. Information required will be:

• number of parent mentoring sessions since the previous SUSD review (including cancelations), and details of the work covered with the parent;
• number of short breaks since the previous review, and details of activities;
• any and all other support given to the family.

Support for the Family Support Foster Carer

Personal development and self-care is important, as we know that the best supporters are well supported themselves. There are several ways that SUSD will support the FSFCs.

• There will be regular supervision where they can discuss complex cases or raise any issues.
• FSFCs will be encouraged to attend training that will support them in the role, and to take an active role in identifying what this training should be.
• Quarterly carer support sessions are organised to enable the FSFCs & other SUSD team members to meet and learn from each other.
• FSFCs are also encouraged to form informal peer support networks.

Service: Children's Services

Salary: To receive a minimum allowance of £19,700, up to a maximum of £32,700 per annum

Please note, this is a self employed role and you will receive a weekly allowance. As a registered foster carer you will qualify for Qualifiying Care Relief and can earn up to £18,000 before paying tax.

About the role

As a Peer Support Worker, you will use your skills and experience to work directly with people with mental health issues in group and one to one settings. You will work with the Wellbeing Assessors and Team Leads to provide Wellbeing support to patients within their particular Primary Care Network (PCN). This part of the Solent Mind Wellbeing Service provides one to one wellbeing support within the GP practices, working alongside the wider Primary Mental Health & Wellbeing service.

• Hours: 7.5 hours per week
• Location: Chandlers Ford PCN (GP surgeries within the Chandlers Ford Primary Care Network)

About you

You will need to have personal, lived experience of a mental health issue, as well as experience of working with people with mental health needs, excellent communication skills and a strong understanding of the key difficulties and challenges faced by people on their recovery journey

About us

We're Solent Mind! We’re part of a network of over 100 Local Minds who tailor trusted mental health services to our communities. We set our own strategies and partnerships and rely on the support of our brilliant local fundraisers.

We collaborate with Mind to make sure their pioneering campaigns, information and research make a difference in Hampshire. Together, we make better mental health possible both locally and nationally.

Benefits 

Our Gold Award for Workplace Wellbeing Index 2022/2023 and being a Mindful Employer reflects our commitment to our lively, friendly teams. We empower our people to have a voice, discover new opportunities and develop their careers. In addition to knowing you’re making a difference, you’ll also enjoy excellent benefits, including:

• Flexible working to promote a healthy work/life balance
• 25 days’ annual leave rising incrementally to 30 days per year (pro rata for part-time)
• Pension plan
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Season ticket and cycle-to-work scheme

If you’re ready to join the fight for mental health, visit our website to find out more and apply.  

Closing date: Thursday 15 May 2025.

Interview date: Week commencing 26 May 2025.

Posts may be subject to a relevant DBS check.

Solent Mind welcomes applications from all the communities in which we work. Appointments are made on merit.

Registered Charity No: 1081116. Registered with Limited Liability in England and Wales No: 4004500.

Senior Philanthropy Manager

The Christie Charity is a vibrant, fast moving, energetic organisation with a passionate team and a fantastic reputation. We are looking for an experienced, dynamic senior philanthropy manager to join our philanthropy team. We require someone who has demonstrable experience in philanthropy fundraising or has strong transferable skills. It is desirable that you have experience in managing people as this role manages a philanthropy fundraiser.

As a Senior Philanthropy Manager, you will play a key role in maximising charitable income for The Christie Charity, through high-net-worth individuals by building with authentic, sustainable relationships.

The Research and Community Engagement Manager will have significant knowledge and experience of health and social care services and community engagement including managing key research projects and working with people who use services.  We are excited to be managing the Healthwatch North Northamptonshire Service and appointing new staff for the service. Our aims and mission are to give voice to the public and engaging communities especially those who are least heard and the most vulnerable. You will also be committed to working collaboratively with communities, VCSE and statutory sector services.

You will be able to lead all the key functions including:

• Carry out priority areas of research, using a range of methods and sources of data, on health and social care. 

• Produce high quality analysis, reports and presentations for a range of audiences. 

• Facilitate co-production activity, working with experts by experience, service users, carers, and peer researchers.

• Work with Healthwatch NN staff and volunteers

We are looking for someone who is committed to social justice and equalities and able to translate this into practice. We need a confident research specialist who is credible and can lead an effective work research and community engagement programme relevant to meeting the needs of local communities and informing change to policy and practice of health and social care services.

 

Job Purpose:

A core element of Healthwatch NN’s work is the management of research, collection, analysis, and subsequent reporting on information and data relating to people's experiences of publicly funded health and social care services. The Research and Community Engagement Manager is responsible for overseeing this crucial function, ensuring its effective delivery.

In addition to managing research activities, the Research and Community Engagement Manager takes the lead in developing and executing the CRM system. Furthermore, they spearhead the creation of impact measures for the organisation, ensuring that our efforts are aligned with our mission to improve health and social care services in North Northamptonshire.

Our aim is to raise awareness amongst commissioners, providers and other agencies about the importance of engaging with communities, and the expertise and value that individuals can bring to discussion and decision making on local and national issues.

We hope to carry out activities across a number of different programme areas to enable us to fulfil our statutory functions and the Research and Community Engagement Manager will be responsible for:

· By capturing community views through people’s experiences and by understanding and reporting on these experiences to health and social care services.

· By actively promoting community involvement in the commissioning, provision and scrutiny of health and social services, giving people and communities a stronger voice to influence and challenge how health and social care services are provided within their locality.

· By undertaking community-led research in priority areas to examine the impact of health and social care services, its pathways and make any recommendations for change.

· Healthwatch can monitor and review how local services are planned and run (except for social care facilities for children and young people) and have the statutory power to ‘Enter and View’ premises delivering health and social care services. This enables authorised representatives of Healthwatch to observe the nature and quality of services, report on their findings and make recommendations so that local authorities and health services can exercise their duty to respond. 

· By providing Information & Signposting Service to help people understand the services available in their local area and to make informed choices about different health and social care services.

KEY TASKS:

To work closely with the Healthwatch Service Manager, Healthwatch NN Advisory Group and the Support Northamptonshire’s CEO to:

Main duties and responsibilities

· Organise, design and carry out participatory qualitative fieldwork. 

· Designing peer-research models of social research investigation.

· Conducting qualitative analysis of data conducted through interviews, focus groups, workshops or other methods, with a focus on lesser heard voices.

· Carrying out quantitative data analysis using Excel.

· Utilising a wide variety of research approaches, particularly participatory approaches, which inform, involve and bring together individuals, groups, service providers and decision makers.

Research and analysis

· Carry out priority areas of research, using a range of methods and sources of data, on health and social care. 

· Produce high quality qualitative analysis, reports and presentations for a range of audiences. 

· Facilitate co-production activity, working with experts by experience, service users, carers, and peer researchers.

· Work with Healthwatch NN staff and volunteers and provide regular progress feedback.

· Analyse quantitative information gathered through research and engagement collected by Healthwatch NN to draw out trends in relation to health and social care service provision. 

· Translate research findings into practical learning for developing and improving health and social care services.

· Take responsibility for data and project management and administration as it relates to our social research activity. 

· Collaborate with stakeholders and colleagues to develop the annual research programme.

· Lead and oversee the delivery of the annual research programme, ensuring alignment with organisational objectives.

· Utilise creative and appropriate methodologies to design and manage research projects, employing both quantitative and qualitative methods.

· Apply various research techniques, including document analysis, surveys, focus groups, interviews, and case studies, to gather relevant information.

· Produce research-based briefings and provide support to stakeholders in understanding key points.

· Analyse and evaluate research findings, interpreting data to identify key issues and develop actionable recommendations.

· Present research data in formats suitable for different audiences, including reports and infographics.

· Collaborate with CEO and team to gain insight into themes identified through community-based activities.

· Support in developing engagement activities based on service user feedback and intelligence.

· Identify simple interventions that Healthwatch NN can implement to impact service improvement.

· Develop an impact reporting system to measure and communicate Healthwatch NNl's impact effectively.

· Liaise with admin regarding information requests, research promotion, and evidence collection from web and social media.

· Analyse the Healthwatch NN database to produce representation reports for commissioners, providers, stakeholders, and the Executive Board, informing them of current trends.

· Provide regular performance reports for the Advisory group.

· Produce reports from the Healthwatch NN database for multidisciplinary boards such as the Health and Wellbeing Board, Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, Overview and Scrutiny Committee etc.

Team working

· Train and support people to take on peer research roles, putting control and ownership of the research process with people interested in and affected by health and social care services. 

· Support those actively involved in Healthwatch NN to develop a shared understanding of the implications of gaps in involvement of people from different communities.

In consultation with the Healthwatch NN Service Manager and Support Northamptonshire CEO:

· Represent Healthwatch NN at strategic meetings, conferences and public engagement events as required, acting as a spokesperson for Healthwatch NN at such events.

· Deliver presentations to the public, stakeholders and partner organisations. 

· Engage with the Healthwatch network, and health and social care system partners across Northamptonshire and neighbouring area as appropriate. 

Peer educator manager 
 
Location: Contracted to our Peterborough office with the flexibility for hybrid working
Salary: £33,000 - £36,000 FTE depending on experience
Hours: Full time: 37.5 hours pw (Part time: minimum 30 hours pw considered), with flexible hours including evening and weekends
Benefits: We want all our employees to feel valued and engaged and are committed to offering a positive working culture along with a good work-life balance. As well as ensuring they pay their employees fairly, they offer the following benefits: Flexible working, Generous annual leave, Private Medical Insurance, including dental and optical, Pension Scheme, Sick Pay, Death in Service, Employee Assistance Programme, Bike Loan Scheme, Cycle2Work Scheme, Eyecare, Discount Portal.
 
Closing date: Monday 5 May 2025
Preliminary telephone interviews will be held week beginning 12 May 2025
Interviews will be held week beginning 19 May 2025
 
No agencies please
 
Be a part of an energetic and vibrant team who are driven by the desire to improve the lives of people living with kidney disease. Our vision is the day when everyone lives free from kidney disease. 
 
In our recent report “Time to Act: A New Review of Kidney Health Inequalities” one of the urgent priorities highlighted the need for additional services and new approaches for high-risk and underserved group to reduce the risk of developing kidney disease or prevent kidney disease progressing in those that have it. 
 
To help achieve this we are significantly expanding our peer educator initiative, an evidence-based and multi award winning model to engage and reach underserved communities, support health awareness and literacy and instigate behavioural change; delivered by trusted, trained peer educators through attendance at events and community spaces. We aim to scale up the roll out and adoption of peer educators within the care pathway across the UK, with a particular focus on improving early detection and diagnosis of chronic kidney disease and associated conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. 
 
This new post will play a significant role in the growth of the peer education programme and the initial focus of the role will be to:   

• Coordinate the development and delivery of the Peterborough peer educator project 
• Support the development and delivery of the UK wide peer educator programme

 
You will have knowledge of health inequalities and experience in effective community outreach and engagement as well as experience of project delivery, ideally in a health-related role. In addition, you will have clinical experience in a related area.
 
If you are interested in the position, please complete the online application form and submit together with your CV.
 
We are committed to providing equal opportunities for everyone and encourage applications from all sections of the community.
 
About Kidney Research UK:
 
Kidney Research UK is the leading charity in the UK focused on funding research into the prevention, treatment and management of kidney disease. Our vision is the day when everyone lives free from kidney disease and for more than 60 years the research, we fund has been making an impact. But kidney disease is increasing as are the factors contributing to it, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity, making our work more essential than ever.
 
At Kidney Research UK we work with clinicians and scientists across the UK, funding and facilitating research into all areas of kidney disease. We collaborate with partners across the public, private and third sectors to prevent kidney disease and drive innovation to transform treatments.
 
Over the last ten years we have invested more than £71 million into research. We lobby governments and decision makers to change policy and practice to ensure that the estimated 7.2 million people living with all stages of kidney disease in the UK have access to the most effective care and treatment, and to make kidney disease a priority.
 
Most importantly, we also work closely with patients, ensuring their voice is heard and is at the centre of everything we do, from deciding which research to invest in to how we plan our priorities and our work across the charity.
 
Those patient contributions are vital, always helping us and our partners to understand what life is like with kidney disease, always ensuring we see the patient behind the treatment and always reminding us that behind every statistic and every number is a person – the patients and the carers who inspire our mission and push us forward to make a difference and change the future of kidney disease.
 
You may also have experience in the following: Peer Education Program Manager, Community Engagement Manager (Health), Health Outreach Coordinator, Peer Education and Outreach Lead, Peer Support Program Manager, Health Inequalities Project Manager, Community Health Program Manager, Peer Mentor Program Lead, Public Health Engagement Manager, Health Awareness and Education Manager, Charity, Charities, Third Sector, Not for Profit, NFP, etc.
 
REF-220 906

The Volunteer Engagement Manager will manage a range of volunteers and support groups, and support staff across the charity to ensure volunteers are recruited, trained and managed effectively

About us:

Muscular Dystrophy UK is the charity bringing individuals, families and professionals together to fight muscle-wasting conditions. We bring together more than 60 rare and very rare progressive muscle-weakening and wasting conditions, affecting around 110,000 children and adults in the UK. 

We share expert advice and support to live well now; fund groundbreaking research to understand the different conditions better and lead us to new treatments; work with the NHS towards universal access to specialist health; and together, campaign for people’s rights, better understanding, accessibility, and access to treatments.

Benefits:

We appreciate the range of skills and experience our staff have to offer. In return for your enthusiasm and commitment we commit to actively developing and supporting you. We also offer a range of benefits including pension, life assurance, cycle scheme, health cash plan, financial wellbeing and an employee assistance programme.

Please download the job description to see full role responsibilities.

Location: We operate a hybrid model (home and office, London SE1). 

Closing date: 15 May 2025

The Public Affairs Manager will be a key member of our busy External Affairs Team within the wider Policy and External Affairs directorate.

Reporting to the joint Heads of Public Affairs & Stakeholder Relations, and working closely with communications and public policy colleagues, you will play an essential role in enabling and driving engagement with parliamentary, government, political and sector stakeholders.

You will be politically astute, with experience engaging across Westminster and Whitehall with competent written and communication skills, able to both brief and prepare senior leaders within the organisation for key engagement activities as well as meeting stakeholders independently as appropriate.

Strong organisational, people and project management skills are essential; you will be responsible for managing dedicated key influencing ‘moments’ with stakeholders and partners, such as organising and managing panel events, roundtables, webinars and showcase programme visits. You will also lead the co-ordination and secretariat activity for the Youth Employment Group (YEG), working closely with the Director of Policy and External Affairs as one of the five co-chairs.

This role can be based at any of our hubs located in Birmingham, Leeds or London. We currently operate a hybrid model of two-days per week in the office and three-days from home.

For more information and a full job description, please download the Recruitment Pack.

Due to receiving high volumes of interest in our opportunities, this vacancy may close earlier than the advertised deadline. To ensure your application is considered, please submit it as soon as possible.

HIV Peer Support Worker

About Trade

Trade Sexual Health (Trade for short) is a small health and wellbeing charity based in Leicester. We currently have seven staff and more than 40 volunteers.

Trade began as a grassroots gay community response to HIV in Leicester in the late 1980s. Throughout the 1990s, Trade worked in creative ways to spread information about sexual health and HIV prevention to gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men in the city (GBMSM).

Trade has been a registered charity since 2000. Over the last 25 years, the core of our work has been focused on improving the sexual health of gay and bisexual men across Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland. We have always taken a holistic approach to understanding and addressing the range of issues that might impact on gay and bisexual men’s capacity to look after their sexual health. As a result, we started a counselling service – Approach Counselling – to support community members to improve their mental wellbeing. We now draw on this experience to tackle wider health inequalities in relation to sexual health and HIV, and to provide peer support for anyone living with HIV in the areas where we work. For a small charity, Trade has always ‘punched above its weight’ and we have a national profile for the innovative sexual health work we do.

We currently hold contracts to deliver sexual health promotion and HIV prevention outreach in the City of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland to LGBTQ+ people, asylum-seekers, and a range of racialised communities that experience significant inequalities in relation to their sexual health.

We have a history of providing peer support to people living with HIV and this is now becoming a growing strand of our work. In addition to the HIV Peer Support contract in Northamptonshire (which this post relates to), we expect to be delivering enhanced HIV peer support across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.

The primary purpose of this role is to deliver first line peer support to people living with HIV, of all genders and backgrounds, in Northamptonshire. The postholder will spend most of their working week embedded within the HIV clinics in Northampton and Kettering. They will ensure that people who have been recently diagnosed, or are struggling with their diagnosis, and those re-engaging with their HIV care feel supported and have the information they need to live well and thrive with HIV.

The postholder will be responsible for:

· Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team (MDT), bringing their own knowledge and experience to that work.

· Work with a small group of volunteer peer mentors from the clinics to support people living with HIV

· Help recruit new volunteers and ensure that patients needing ongoing peer mentoring are matched to the most suitable volunteer.

· Help people living with HIV to develop self-management strategies, deal with stigma, reduce social isolation and improve their wellbeing.

· Develop a catalogue of services, groups and support in the area where people can be signposted to for further wellbeing support either in addition to or instead of peer mentoring.

· Help people to stay engaged with their HIV treatment and care, improving antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence, and consequently ensuring ongoing viral suppression. 

Job Activities

The post-holder will:

· Normally spend at least one day a week in the HIV clinic at Kettering General Hospital and one day at Northampton General Hospital. Some travel to other sites may be required.

· Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team (MDT) including nursing staff, doctors, clinical psychologists, and pharmacists within the HIV clinics, bringing their own knowledge and experience to that work.

· Triage new patients requiring peer support to understand what specific issues they are facing and the support they need.

· Work with a small group of volunteer peer mentors from the clinics to support people living with HIV. The volunteer peer mentors will be trained and managed by our partner organisation, Northamptonshire Carers, but the postholder will help recruit new volunteers in clinic, ensure that patients needing ongoing peer mentoring are matched to the most suitable volunteer, and help manage booking appointments between mentors and mentees.

· Help people living with HIV to develop self-management strategies, deal with stigma, reduce social isolation and improve their wellbeing.

· Help people to stay engaged with their HIV treatment and care, improving antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence, and consequently ensuring ongoing viral suppression. 

· Refer/signpost people into specialist services such as mental health services, drug and alcohol services, and services offering advice on housing, benefits and immigration issues.

· Support the eight standards listed in the British HIV Association Standards of Care for people living with HIV.

· Follow the National Standards in HIV Peer Support guidance and its four standards.

· Contribute to the development of innovative ways of delivering HIV peer support appropriate to the local context.

· Keep accurate, confidential and secure records of all peer support referrals and interactions.

· Contribute to the compilation of quarterly monitoring reports about our performance for the Integrated Care Board commissioning team for Northamptonshire.

· Develop and maintain professional working relationships with partners

· Represent Trade in a professional manner at relevant forums and meetings

Accountability / Reports:

The post-holder will report to the Chief Executive Officer

Peer staff supervision for project specific needs.

All positions are monitored by the Trade Board of Trustees and will be responsible to this Committee.

Duties and responsibilities must always be undertaken with due regard to the values and service principles of the organisation and in accordance with Trade Policies and Procedures, as well as all other policies and procedures by which Trade is contractually bound.

General Working Skills, Competencies and Conditions. What follows in this section will be applicable to all staff as per the requirements of specific roles.

Competencies and Skills

· competent in using computer-based software for word processing, data management (e.g. Excel) and social media literacy

· ability to work in a variety of venues throughout Northamptonshire in line with service requirements

· hold a full driving license (preferred, but not necessary)

· effective, independent decision making is necessary to signpost clients to other services if query is outside the remit of the post or the services which Trade provides

· ensure professional boundaries are always maintained

· dealing with clients’ fears and distresses

Working Conditions

· work will take place within a hospital or clinic setting at an integrated HIV and sexual health clinic

The post-holder will:

· attend team meetings and staff training days

· attend key events (as part of working hours) during the year including: World AIDS Day, and National HIV testing week

· contribute to professional working relationships and engage effectively with other partners to promote Trade services

· ensure that all premises are safe and secure for staff, volunteers, and service users

· share in domestic tasks with other staff members and volunteers

· undertake any other duties which may be reasonably required by the Trade Board of Trustees

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) : Enhanced DBS disclosures will be requested on appointment.

Person Specification

This person specification serves as the selection criteria for the post. The more of the criteria that you demonstrate you can meet in your application, the greater the likelihood of you being invited to interview. In answering the questions on the application form, explain how you meet these criteria.

Experience:

Lived experience of HIV and an understanding of the impact of receiving a new diagnosis Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Experience of supporting people in vulnerable circumstances, or from marginalised communities, particularly people living with HIV or other long-term health conditions Desirable: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Experience of working collaboratively with multiple teams or organisations (including NHS services, charities and other support organisations) Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Skills:

Ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with a wide range of people and organisations Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Ability to work independently, using your own initiative Essential: will be assessed through Interview

Strong mentorship skills to support and motivate individuals Desirable: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Excellent organisational and time management skills to manage multiple priorities, including appointments, supporting people access the service, and reporting Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Ability to deliver and develop a comprehensive peer mentoring scheme, understanding the importance of person-centred care and support Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Knowledge and understanding:

Knowledge of HIV, its impact on individuals, and the specific support needs of people living with HIV Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Knowledge of the benefits of providing peer support to and with people with long-term health conditions Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Familiarity with safeguarding policies and practices, particularly in health and support services Desirable: will be assessed through application form

Understanding of the benefits and challenges of volunteering (as a peer mentor) Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

Personal attributes and approach:

A commitment to improving your own knowledge and skills Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

A commitment to Trade’s mission, vision, and values Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

A commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion when working with patients, volunteers, and the wider organisational/project team Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

A commitment to providing development support to team members (including volunteers) and to ensuring that colleagues understand your priorities and work streams Essential: will be assessed through application form and or Interview

We plan to hold interviews on 13/14th May 2025

Partnership Experience Manager (Maternity Cover)

Salary: £38,814 - £44,581 pro-rata (depending on experience and FTE)

Contract: 12 months fixed-term contract (Maternity Cover- might be potentially extended)

Start Date: Date to be agreed (potentially August)

Location: This is currently a blended-working role with two in-office days (Tuesday-Thursday) during term time and the flexibility to work from home during school holidays. Occasional travel to schools and events will be required. 

We will consider reduced office days for a successful candidate based in one of our target regions across the North and Midlands. If this might be relevant for you we are happy to explore in a conversation with you before or during the recruitment process. 

We are currently based at Resource for London near Holloway Road station, however, our office will be moving to another location in London in the coming months. 

Working Pattern: 37.5 hours per week. Our core hours are 09:30 - 16:00 from Monday to Friday. This role can be either full-time or part-time (0.8 FTE minimum) and we are open to flexible working requests. 

Benefits of working for Challenge Partners

• Work-life balance

• Annual leave

• Employer pension contributions

• Health and wellbeing support

• Training and development

• Family-friendly policies

• Connection and celebration

About the role

You will play a key role in driving the continuous improvement and growth of our national partnership through deepening the quality and impact of our local collaboration hubs. You will also oversee the day-to-day running of hubs of our schools and trusts, which includes holding responsibility for the operations of the Partnerships Team and working closely with the Partnership Lead to ensure that all hubs, schools and trusts have an excellent experience with Challenge Partners. 

You will also oversee the implementation of the organisation’s Account Management strategy, working closely with members of the Leadership Team  to implement our strategy for effective partnership experience (our term for account management and customer service) for our partner schools and trusts. This includes holding some key strategic relationships, representing the organisation at external meetings and overseeing partner experience operations.

Key Responsibilities

The Partnership Experience Manager will have the following key areas of responsibility and will be expected to undertake other responsibilities commensurate with the role as requested:

Strategic Leadership and Management  - Hub Quality and Impact

• Develop and lead our strategy to improve the quality and impact of Challenge Partners’ Hubs, continuing to develop high performing hubs and supporting rapid improvement in new and emerging hubs

• Deliver, grow and evaluate the impact of our hub-led programmes: Middle Leaders’ Quality Assurance Review and Leadership Residency Programme

• Oversee the continuous improvement of national Knowledge Exchange and Areas of Excellence

• Lead a Hub Quality and Impact team, including all central team hub owners and executive hub links, through providing clarity on the Hub Quality and Impact strategy and operations.

Strategic Leadership and Management - Partnership Experience and Communications

• Develop and lead the implementation of our Account Management strategy ensuring that accounts are given the attention needed to ensure a smooth experience and high satisfaction rates

• Oversee Customer Care processes across the organisation, guaranteeing that any issues are resolved in a professional and timely manner 

• Oversee whole partnership communications, including half termly partnership newsletters

• Develop and maintain effective stakeholder relationships (Senior Partners, Hub Managers, trust CEOs) with your allocated key accounts to ensure that regular dialogue with them informs the strategy and continuous improvement in our support of hub quality and partner experience

• Act as an ambassador for Challenge Partners, representing the organisation externally where required

• Lead an Account Management approach through providing clarity on the account management strategy and operations.

Oversight of partner experience and hub management operations 

• Line management of the Partnership Lead and one or two Partnership Co-ordinators

• Team leadership of the Hub Quality and Impact and Account Management teams, delegating tasks appropriately 

• Work closely with the Partnership Lead to ensure the smooth day-to-day running of all hubs 

• Act as a point of escalation for any issues across hubs

• Identify hubs at risk, and lead on creating sustainable solutions with team members

• Work closely with the Finance Team to facilitate our invoicing processes for each academic year 

• Oversee hub funding processes across all hubs, proactively considering any changes needed in line with Hub Quality work

• Oversee Pricing Governance processes

Leadership Responsibilities for all Managers

• Foster a collaborative, high-performance team culture.

• Provide coaching and mentorship to develop team members’ potential.

• Drive innovation and professional development, aligning with Challenge Partners’ vision and growth strategy.

• Collaborate with Managers across teams to align efforts, ensuring a seamless experience for our school and trust partners.

• Contribute to organisational strategy, future planning, and priorities as part of the middle leadership team.

General Responsibilities

• Champion Challenge Partners’ vision, values, and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

• Take ownership of personal development and actively contribute to team learning.

• Work flexibly, undertaking additional duties as required.

• Maintain high standards of health, safety, and welfare for yourself and others.

• Attend events and external meetings, which may require travel and occasional overnight stays.

Person Specification

• Strong commitment to Challenge Partners vision and mission.

• Proven track record in strategic leadership and managing key external relationships.

• Knowledge and experience of the education sector.

• Excellent interpersonal skills used to build positive relationships with diverse stakeholders.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

• Experience in leading teams and developing others (formal line management experience is not required if transferable people management skills can be demonstrated).

• Proactive in improving processes, identifying risks and solving problems.

• Exceptional organisational skills, with the ability to prioritise and adapt to changing needs

How to apply

Please submit your application on Applied by 10am on Monday 19th May 2025. You will be asked to upload your CV and answer five competency and scenario-based application questions.

• First round of interviews (remote)- wlc 26th May 2025 (Specific dates TBC)

• Second round of interviews (face-to-face)- wlc 2nd June 2025 (Specific dates TBC)

A note on AI 

At Challenge Partners, we are committed to a fair and inclusive recruitment process. We don’t use Artificial Intelligence (AI) for recruitment - applications are reviewed by members of the team and we use blind shortlisting to mitigate potential bias and ensure all candidates are considered on merit.

Whilst we recognise that AI can be a useful tool for tasks like proofreading, we encourage you to share genuine examples from your own experience so we can better understand your unique skills and perspective. Authenticity is important to us and we want to hear your voice throughout the application process.

DEI Statement

Challenge Partners is committed to further enhancing diversity, equity and inclusion within our team and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, gender, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation or age. 

Safeguarding Statement

Challenge Partners is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, beneficiaries and staff. We expect all employees, consultants and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment or contracts with us are subject to a satisfactory DBS check and references. 

No agencies please.

Job Purpose

• This role sits within our crisis alternative service, Safe Space, which is a core and out of hours service providing a safe and welcoming space for people who are feeling distressed and experiencing crisis. Our aim of the service is to keep individuals well in the community and prevent readmission into hospital. The service operates 365 days a year from 14:00-22:00pm across all our boroughs.
• Staff within the service will provide person-centred, practical and emotional support, face to face or via telephone or virtual on a one-to-one basis to individuals experiencing mental health crisis or preventing crisis.
• The objectives of the service include:
• To improve the mental wellbeing of people experiencing mental health and social crisis in HFEH.
• To proactively work with keeping people well in the community to reduce re-admitters into hospitals by working with WL NHS teams (e.g. discharge, LPS, CATT, MINT and SPA)
• To provide a true alternative to A&E via a non-clinical drop-in service to support clients
• To provide support to clients accessing the service- for instance: signposting, de-escalation and crisis recovery planning.
• To contribute to an improvement in individual mental wellbeing.
• To remain a source of independent support for all clients.
• To treat service users with respect, dignity and personalised support
• To raise awareness of mental health services available with the goal to improve long term mental health and reduce social isolation
• To increase self-management skills of those accessing the service
• To reduce the use of police, ambulance and statutory mental health services whilst experiencing crisis via a drop-in service.
• To reduce the use of statutory crisis services by people experiencing mental ill health without positive outcomes for the individual.

The Role

The role of the senior support worker is to support the team manager with the smooth running of the allocated site and staff; supporting development and rest of the team including volunteer recruiting, induction (training and development) and supervision. Senior support worker will also lead in delivering interventions on a one-to-one. The role will also involve triaging and assessing all clients accessing the service, signposting and delivering collaborative self-management plans with clients to improve mental wellbeing. The role will include deputising for the team manager where applicable including debriefing and providing support to the team.

Key Responsibilities

• Providing a person centred and recovery orientated approach in all aspects of the roles and responsibilities.
• Understanding of risk and risk management
• Understanding safeguarding adults and children processes and legal requirements
• Working closely with re-admitters and clients being discharged through the drop-in service on a weekly basis
• Responsible for keeping allocated site to a high standard and reporting any health and safety concerns
• To work autonomously in a fast-paced environment and under pressure
• To attend all mandatory training including safeguarding and GDPR.
• Good time keeping skills - Essential
• To attend and contribute at weekly team meetings
• This role will be considered a key worker role
• Understanding of safety planning and de-escalation
• Experience of working with challenging behaviour
• Working collaboratively with clients to understand their needs and developing flexible and realistic crisis support packages/person centred plans
• Promoting people’ rights and responsibilities
• Considering each person as an individual
• Listening to clients and encouraging positive steps towards self-management of crisis and recovery
• Providing advice, information, practical and emotional support to clients
• Proactively recognising the indicators of deteriorating mental health and facilitate appropriate action, whilst liaising with relevant agencies e.g. CATT, Emergency Duty Teams, CMHTS, etc
• Engaging with clients to show empathy, inspire hope and promote recovery
• Establishing supportive, empowering and respectful relationships with clients and carers/ family
• Maintaining accurate records, detailing interventions
• Ensuring that outcomes, outputs and impact are recorded
• Understanding CQC standards and NICE guidelines around mental health
• Providing administrative support to the team
• Overseeing and provide shadowing to new staff members and volunteers
• Attend reflective practice, peer debriefing and line management supervision
• Maintaining good working relationships with partner agencies
• Actively participate in training and development
• Provide guidance to support workers and volunteers
• To work with team managers and assist with reporting and monitoring
•  

Person Specification

• Minimum of 1 year working in mental health services and with clients experiencing mental health distress and crisis
• Experience of contributing to multi-disciplinary teams
• Experience of de-escalation
• Experience of managing challenging behaviour and dealing with clients with complex needs
• Evidence of continual professional development
• Understanding of the Recovery Model in mental health
• Understanding of the principles of trauma informed care
• Understanding of suicide prevention and safety planning
• Experience of managing safeguarding risks and understanding legal requirements for safeguarding adults and children
• Understanding of how to report and mitigate risks
• Understanding of the relationship between mental health and social issues and how these issues may impact on physical, mental and emotional wellbeing
• Understanding of relevant legislation and policies
• Understanding safeguarding adults and children processes and legal requirements
• Awareness of issues in mental health service provision
• Experience of working with vulnerable individuals
• Creative and flexible approach to working with individuals
• Ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations in a calm manner and de-escalate challenging situations
• Ability to prioritise and manage workload
• Ability to involve clients and carers in all aspects of work
• Empathy and non-judgemental approach
• Good communication skills
• Capacity to work within an agreed shift pattern
• Experience of delivering information and advice (housing, benefits, debt etc)
• Experience of non-clinical, therapeutic interventions like psychoeducation
• Good IT skills including Word, Outlook, Excel and PowerPoint, with proven ability to input and extract information and produce reports
• Understanding of different databases such as Views, Salesforce and NHS
• Car driver with sole ownership of a vehicle and ability to travel to multiple locations (e.g. NHS sites and community sites) would be essential.
• Ability to work out of hours and on weekends at multiple locations including NHS sites and community sites

Job Purpose

This role sits within our crisis alternative service, Safe Space, which is a core and out of hours service providing a safe and welcoming space for people who are feeling distressed and experiencing crisis. Our aim of the service is to keep individuals well in the community and prevent readmission into hospital. The service operates 365 days a year from 14:00-22:00pm across all of our boroughs.

Staff within the service will provide person-centred, practical and emotional support, face to face or via telephone or virtual on a one-to-one basis to individuals experiencing mental health crisis or preventing crisis.

The objectives of the service include:

• To improve the mental wellbeing of people experiencing mental health and social crisis in HFEH.
• To proactively work with keeping people well in the community to reduce re-admitters into hospitals by working with WL NHS teams (e.g. discharge, LPS, CATT, MINT and SPA)
• To provide a true alternative to A&E via a non-clinical drop-in service to support clients
• To provide support to clients accessing the service- for instance: signposting, de-escalation and crisis recovery planning.
• To contribute to an improvement in individual mental wellbeing.
• To remain a source of independent support for all clients.
• To treat service users with respect, dignity and personalised support
• To raise awareness of mental health services available with the goal to improve long term mental health and reduce social isolation
• To increase self-management skills of those accessing the service
• To reduce the use of police, ambulance and statutory mental health services whilst experiencing crisis via a drop-in service.
• To reduce the use of statutory crisis services by people experiencing mental ill health without positive outcomes for the individual.

 

 

The Role

The role of the support workers will be to support the rest of the team in delivering interventions on a one-to-one. The role will also involve triaging and assessing all clients accessing the service, signposting and delivering collaborative self-management plans with clients to improve mental wellbeing.

Key Responsibilities

• Providing a person centred and recovery orientated approach in all aspects of the roles and responsibilities.
• Promoting people’ rights and responsibilities
• Considering each person as an individual
• Working collaboratively with clients to understand their needs and developing flexible and realistic crisis support packages/person centred plans
• Understanding of safety planning
• Experience with de-escalation, recognising and mitigating risks.
• Experience of working with challenging behaviour
• Listening to clients and encouraging positive steps towards self-management of crisis and recovery
• Good time keeping skills – Essential
• To attend all mandatory training including safeguarding and GDPR
• To work autonomously in a fast-paced environment and under pressure
• Providing advice, information, practical and emotional support to clients
• Proactively recognising the indicators of deteriorating mental health and facilitate appropriate action, whilst liaising with relevant agencies e.g. CATT, Emergency Duty Teams, CMHTS, etc
• Engaging with clients to show empathy, inspire hope and promote recovery
• Establishing supportive, empowering and respectful relationships with clients and carers/ family
• Maintaining accurate records, detailing interventions
• Ensuring that outcomes, outputs and impact are recorded
• Providing administrative support to the team
• Attend reflective practice, clinical supervision, peer supervision and line management supervision
• Create and maintain good working relationships with partner agencies
• Follow workplans and actively participate in training and development
• Provide and manage resources for clients and staff

 

Person Specification

• Minimum of 1 year working in mental health services and with clients experiencing mental health distress and crisis
• Experience of managing challenging behaviour and dealing with clients with complex needs
• Experience of managing safeguarding risks and understanding legal requirements for safeguarding adults and children
• Evidence of continual professional development
• Understanding of the Recovery Model in mental health
• Understanding of the principles of trauma informed care
• Understanding of suicide prevention and safety planning
• Understanding of the relationship between mental health and social issues and how these issues may impact on physical, mental and emotional wellbeing
• Understanding of relevant legislation and policies
• Experience of working with vulnerable individuals
• Creative and flexible approach to working with individuals
• Ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations in a calm manner and de-escalate challenging situations
• Awareness of issues in mental health service provision
• A good understanding of mental health conditions
• Experience of working with vulnerable individuals
• Creative and flexible approach to working with individuals
• Ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations in a calm manner and de-escalate challenging situations
• Ability to prioritise and manage workload
• Ability to involve clients and carers in all aspects of work
• Empathy and non-judgemental approach
• Good communication skills
• Capacity to work within an agreed shift pattern
• Experience of delivering information and advice (housing, benefits, debt etc)
• Experience of non-clinical, therapeutic interventions like psychoeducation
• Good IT skills including Word, Outlook, Excel and PowerPoint, with proven ability to input and extract information and produce reports
• Car driver with sole ownership of a vehicle and willingness to travel to locations would be desirable.
• Ability to work out of hours and on weekends