Peer Support Worker

Are you passionate about supporting men's wellbeing and creating safe, empowering spaces for open conversation? Do you have lived experience or a strong understanding of the challenges men face around mental health, identity, and emotional resilience—and want to use that insight to help others thrive?

North Kent Mind is seeking a dedicated Men's Peer Support Worker to facilitate our Men's Peer Support Group. In this meaningful role, you'll offer peer-led support to men from all walks of life, providing guidance, encouragement, and a non-judgemental space where they can connect, share experiences, and build confidence.

Drawing on your own lived experience, you'll help foster an inclusive, supportive environment that promotes empowerment, healthy coping strategies, and positive mental health. You'll play a key role in facilitating group discussions, helping individuals develop skills, strengthen resilience, and navigate the unique challenges that many men face today.

This is a rewarding opportunity to join a compassionate, forward-thinking team where your contribution will have a direct, positive impact on the lives of those we support. If you're ready to make a difference and champion men's mental health, we'd love to hear from you.

Purpose of Post

As a Mens peer support worker, you will play a key role in delivering a wide range of community-based mental health and wellbeing services, primarily through in-person sessions across the North Kent area. Our men's peer support group will delivered a framework based around positive change, challenging stereotypes, challenging toxic masculinity and providing a safe space for men to discuss their mental wellbeing, building social connections and friendships. Thus reducing social isolation, stigmatisation associated with men's mental health and improving men's mental wellbeing within our community. The group will run once a week in the evenings.

Structure of Post

Wellbeing Coaches are supervised by the Adult Support Services Manager and form part of a wider multi-disciplinary team. The role requires flexibility to work across multiple venues in and around North Kent, with occasional travel beyond the area to support service needs.

For the purpose of calculating travel expenses, the North Kent Mind office in Dartford will be considered the contractual base. Travel time between venues during working hours will be counted as time worked. Travel expenses can be claimed only for distances that exceed the normal commute from home to base. There may be times you will need to facilitate groups within the Medway area as the service will run across North Kent, including Dartford, Gravesham, Swanley and Medway.

Evening work is required and may include the occasional delivery of remote sessions (subject to service demand and manager approval). Contracted hours are worked on a flexible monthly average basis, rather than a fixed weekly schedule.

Key Responsibilities

General Duties (All Staff)

• Adhere to all North Kent Mind policies and procedures, including those on Equal Opportunities, Confidentiality, Safeguarding, and Health & Safety.
• Uphold the values of social inclusion, empowerment, and the recovery model in all service delivery.
• Respect and promote the autonomy, coping strategies, and individual strengths of all service users.
• Foster effective communication with external agencies and build positive working relationships with colleagues across the organisation.
• Participate in regular supervision, performance appraisal, and all relevant staff and team meetings.
• Attend required training sessions and organisational events.
• Undertake additional duties as reasonably delegated by the Adult Services Manager, CEO, or Board of Trustees.

Specific Duties

Service Delivery responsibilities include;

• Conduct initial assessments with new clients, providing a welcoming, respectful, and informative registration process.
• Co-develop person-centred support plans in collaboration with each participant, incorporating their goals and aspirations.
• Deliver structured psychoeducational group aimed at supporting men in improving their mental wellbeing.
• Achieving wider outcomes such as improved wellbeing for family and friends, reduction of pressures on the NHS.
• Service Quality and Administration
• Embed and monitor all relevant outcomes frameworks and evaluation methodologies into service delivery.
• Maintain accurate and timely records, including client data, outcome measures, and feedback analysis.
• Support the continuous improvement of services by participating in feedback reviews, course updates, and service evaluations.
• Assist with the intake process, ensuring accurate referral management and signposting as necessary.
• Signpost and refer individuals to alternative services when they are not suitable for current provisions.

Teamwork and Collaboration

• Work closely with peers and embed co-production into all aspects of service design and delivery.
• Support the induction and ongoing development of volunteers as directed by the Adult Support Services Manager.
• Participate in community outreach and engagement events, promoting services and reducing stigma around mental health.

Professional Standards

• Maintain a high standard of session delivery, ensuring all activities are:
• Appropriately planned and structured
• Inclusive, safe, and accessible
• Culturally sensitive and trauma-informed
• Manage risk and respond appropriately to incidents or crises, following safeguarding and escalation protocols.
• Promote and ensure adherence to the service's Code of Conduct for all participants.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

Mental Health Awareness & Experience

• Demonstrable experience or a strong understanding of supporting people with mental health challenges, either in a professional, voluntary, or personal capacity.
• An understanding of the impact mental health conditions can have on an individual's daily life, relationships, and recovery journey.

Group Facilitation & Engagement

• Proven ability to plan, facilitate, and evaluate structured group interventions, psychoeducational courses, or wellbeing workshops.
• Confident in creating safe, inclusive, and engaging group environments that promote participation and learning.

Communication & Interpersonal Skills

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to engage sensitively and effectively with a diverse range of people.
• Strong active listening skills and the ability to build trusting, professional relationships with service users, colleagues, and external partners.
• Adaptability with communication styles when working directly with service users with neurodiversity.

Person-Centred & Trauma-Informed Approach

• Awareness of trauma-informed practice and a commitment to delivering support that is person-centred, strengths-based, and empowering.
• Respect for personal autonomy, cultural diversity, and lived experience.

Flexibility & Travel

• Willingness and ability to travel to multiple community venues across North Kent (primarily Medway).
• Flexibility to work some evenings and occasional weekends to meet service needs.

Organisation & Administration

• Strong administrative and IT skills, including accurate record-keeping, data input, and outcome monitoring.
• Excellent time management and the ability to work independently within agreed boundaries and deadlines.

Desirable Criteria

Lived Experience

• Personal or close experience of mental health challenges, either directly or through supporting others, with the ability to draw on this insight in a reflective and professional way.
• Understanding of mental health, and men's mental health statistics, either through own diagnosis or family and friends with diagnosis or who identify as such.

Local Knowledge

• Understanding of the mental health and wellbeing landscape in North Kent, including community resources and referral pathways.

Qualifications & Training

• Relevant qualifications or training in mental health, counselling, psychology, social work, education, or a related field.
• Be willing to attend a full days training bespoke to the course content.
• Shadow other team members within their roles to understand the structure of service.
• Undertake half a day's induction with service manager.
• Attend a mandatory 3 day internal training.

Multi-Agency Working

• Experience working collaboratively with other professionals or agencies to support individuals with complex or ongoing needs.

Innovation & Creativity

• Ability to contribute to service development by bringing new ideas, adapting resources, and responding creatively to the evolving needs of service users.

Additional Information

• This role may require an Enhanced DBS check.
• Travel expenses are reimbursed in accordance with North Kent Mind's policy.
• All staff are responsible for ensuring they meet ongoing training and CPD requirements as directed by their manager.

Job Types: Part-time, Fixed term contract

Contract length: 12 months

Pay: £12.87 per hour

Expected hours: 8 per week

Benefits:

• Bereavement leave
• Company pension
• Health & wellbeing programme
• Sick pay

Work Location: In person