Lived Experience Recovery Support Specialist Apprentice

**Salary: Real living wage**

The Lived Experience Recovery Support Specialist project in Stockton is a three-year project, funded by Stockton Borough Council. The aim of the project is to improve health, wellbeing, and life chances for people with multiple disadvantage in Stockton-on-Tees using an asset-based approach to working with individuals

As a Lived Experience Recovery Support Specialist apprentice you will build workplace experience and core competencies including a relevant qualification.

You will work alongside colleagues to identify and support people with multiple disadvantage in the Stockon -on-Tees area.

Multiple Disadvantage refers to the experience of three or more of the following: homelessness; substance misuse; contact with the criminal justice system; domestic abuse victim/survivor and/or perpetrator; and mental health problems

You will engage people using your lived experience and work with colleagues to travel alongside in a way that promotes hope, optimises engagement and connection. We envisage the majority of this work to be undertaken on an outreach basis.

Your role will be to build relationships and work alongside the people we support. You will work alongside colleagues to work with people to support them to identify their growth goals - this is what matters most to them to achieve change. You will then work with colleagues alongside the person to work towards achieving their identified goals. Your work will be rooted in a strength-based approach and will be trauma-informed.

This post requires flexible working to ensure consistent cover and some occasional out of hours working over a 7-day period

**Key Duties**:

- Assist in supporting people to identify their own growth goals
- Assist in working alongside people as they work towards their own self-identified growth goals, at their own pace.
- Assist in building relationships with people and explore a way forward in relation to their support needs.
- Utilise your own lived experience to build relationships and trust, offering hope as a tool for positive change.
- Knowledge and understanding of the impact of multiple disadvantage
- Provide general information and advice to people on the assets within their community and help them discover the assets they have to share.
- Acknowledge and challenge stigma in order to reduce barriers for the people we support.
- Help identify changes needed to systems and services in order to improve the outcomes for people facing multiple disadvantages.
- Contribute to a positive workplace culture to ensure that everyone feels supported, can develop and are motivated to work effectively, treating people fairly, with dignity and respect.
- Where necessary and appropriate, participate alongside colleagues in regular multi-disciplinary review meetings and complete notes/reports as appropriate.
- Communicate professionally over the phone and in person with anybody contacting the service.
- Assist in collating relevant data and information for monitoring and evaluation processes.
- Complete administrative tasks in an accurate and timely manner.
- Perform as a full team member supporting colleagues across the service and being open to reasonable requests from line management in order to ensure effective working relationships.
- Such other responsibilities allocated which are appropriate to the grade of the post.
- Understand, uphold and work with the values, ethos, aims and objectives of the organisation.
- Complete organisational induction, relevant training and any other continuous professional development as identified through a line management process.
- At all times adhere to relevant legislation, good practice and in line with CQC standards.
- Represent the organisation, raise its profile and promote its cause.
- Promote and uphold people’s rights in line with a peer led approach.
- Always maintain professional boundaries within the culture of a Lived Experience Recovery Organisation.
- Work to safeguarding legislation and policies for children and vulnerable adults at all times.
- Prepare for and participate in supervision and appraisals.
- Keep abreast of developments in services, legislation and practice relevant to the client group.
- Seek to improve personal performance, contribution, knowledge and skills.
- Attend and participate in project discussions and team meetings as required.
- Work within and be familiar with policies and procedures.
- Work flexibly to maintain the most appropriate level of service provision, respond to organisational change and development.
- Undertake such other duties as reasonably requested by your line manager.

**Person Specification - Essential Criteria**
- A deep curiosity in the strengths, assets, talents and gifts of the people you work alongside
- A caring attitude and a belief in people and their ability to achieve self-identified growth goals
- The ability to work alongside - and to support individuals to achieve change and work towards their ident