Job summary
As a Peer Support Worker at Addiction Recovery Community Hillingdon (ARCH), you'll be a vital part of a passionate and multi-disciplinary team. Your lived experience of recovery won't just be welcomed -- it will be celebrated as a powerful tool for change. You'll offer practical support, empathy, and hope to individuals using the service, helping them take back control and shape their own unique recovery journeys.
In this role, you'll work closely with professionals such as Psychologists, Advanced Lived Experience Practitioners, and the Lead Group Facilitator, supporting service users both one-to-one and in groups. You'll have opportunities to co-work with colleagues and contribute to the development of peer-led, trauma-informed, and inclusive care. A key part of your work will include creating and facilitating group sessions, using your personal insights to bring authenticity and connection to every interaction.
At CNWL, we're committed to offering high-quality, evidence-based support while fostering a culture of learning, reflection, and innovation. We have strong academic links with institutions like Imperial College, University College London, and others, and we're always evolving through clinical governance, audit, and research. As a Peer Support Worker, your contributions will be valued not just by the people you support -- but by the entire organisation.
Main duties of the job
Main Duties of the role:
To work as part of the multi-disciplinary team in order to deliver support to individuals in ARCH Hillingdon and the Addictions directorate, and support the interventions used in these services.
To use personal, experiential knowledge and to share lived experience, as appropriate to the peer role, in building safe, trusting relationships with named service users.
To assume a 'coaching' role supporting service users in developing personal recovery tools; this can be delivered individually or in groups.
To empower and enable each individual service user, in a non-directive, non-prescriptive way, to discover and make use of their own strengths and to build and strengthen positive connections with their peers, networks and wider communities.
To use personal experience of recovery to help motivate service users and act as a role model to service users to inspire hope, share life experiences and lessons learned as a person in recovery.
To provide opportunities for service users to direct their own recovery process and support service users in identifying and overcoming fears within a relationship of empathy and trust.
About us
Values Central and North West London NHS Trust expects the Advanced Lived Experience Practitioner to act in a way that shows an understanding of our core values. and is active in putting them into practice with service users, their friends, family, carers and also other staff members.
COMPASSION: contribution to a caring and kind environment and recognition that what you do and say can help to improve the lives of others.
RESPECT: acknowledge, respect and value diversity of each individual, recognition of uniqueness.
EMPOWERMENT: commitment to providing information, resources and support to help others make their own decisions and meet their own needs. The Trust endeavours to support all staff to enable them to develop and grow.
PARTNERSHIP: work closely with others and behave in a way that demonstrates understanding that commissioners and users of our services are the people who generate and fund our work.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Within this role, the Peer Support Worker will contribute to group interventions in collaboration with the RDP and Group Facilitator, drawing on their unique lived experience to offer meaningful support to our service users. They will also have the opportunity to develop and lead their own peer support groups, bringing creativity and personal insight into their practice.
To work in accordance with CNWLs Trust Values, Aims and Objectives.
To act as an ambassador for the Trust with external agencies and partner organisations.
Work at all times to promote equality, diversity and individual human rights.
Be efficient, responsible and maintain a high level of personal organisation; keeping accurate and appropriate records and providing information for monitoring and evaluation as required
Job description
Job responsibilities
Within this role, the Peer Support Worker will contribute to group interventions in collaboration with the RDP and Group Facilitator, drawing on their unique lived experience to offer meaningful support to our service users. They will also have the opportunity to develop and lead their own peer support groups, bringing creativity and personal insight into their practice.
To work in accordance with CNWLs Trust Values, Aims and Objectives.
To act as an ambassador for the Trust with external agencies and partner organisations.
Work at all times to promote equality, diversity and individual human rights.
Be efficient, responsible and maintain a high level of personal organisation; keeping accurate and appropriate records and providing information for monitoring and evaluation as required
Person Specification
OTHER
Essential
- oA preparedness to work flexible hours through prior arrangement as the needs of the job dictate (e.g. some evenings & weekends)
EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS
Essential
- Commitment to obtain underpinning knowledge through work based learning and mandatory training, (including accredited peer support worker training if not previously undertaken)
- Acceptable level of written literacy and numeracy
- Basic IT skills i.e. word & email
Desirable
- Accredited peer support worker training
- Accredited certificate in Life Coaching
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE (Paid/unpaid relevant) to the job)
Essential
- Lived experience of substance misuse problems, with 12 months abstinence from dependent & problematic drug & alcohol use; including prescribed opiate substitutes
- Paid or unpaid working experience in health care setting
- Willing to positively share your own life experiences and personal experience of substance misuse with service users and carers
- Developed plans for managing own recovery
- Experience of actively supporting individuals to identify and work towards achieving personal goals in a related social care or health setting (paid or unpaid)
- Experience of facilitating groups
Desirable
- Involvement in service redesign and development
- Paid or unpaid, peer support worker experience
SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE, ABILITIES
Essential
- Able to demonstrate understanding of Intentional Peer Support
- Ability to demonstrate first person experiential knowledge of personal recovery
- Ability to demonstrate knowledge of personal recovery as it may relate to others
- Evidence of good interpersonal skills and an ability to form peer relationships with service users and carers
- Effective listening skills
- Ability to communicate on all levels and to a broad scope of individuals, both internally and externally to the Trust
- Ability to appreciate / understand other people's worlds
- Ability to demonstrate empathy, compassion and patience
- An ability to be non judgemental
- An ability to act calmly and to respond in a professional manner to distress, disturbance and unpredictability
- Knowledge of how to build community links and networks
- Ability to problem solve and create innovative solutions to help empower service users
- Understanding of issues arising from experiencing ill health related to substance use
- Ability to work unsupervised in a range of settings
- Sensitive understanding of diversity issues and an ability to promote antidiscriminatory practice/ equal opportunities
- Ability to demonstrate practical skills to provide support with daily living activities
- Resilience
- Good organisational skills
- Effective team player
Desirable
- Knowledge of current legislation which underpins Health and Social Care and a working knowledge of the Equalities Act 2010 and Human Rights Act.
- Knowledge of basic first aid
- Basic Health and Safety awareness
- Moving and handling awareness
- Awareness of local services
- Knowledge of benefits/ employment systems
- Ability to speak other languages
- Ability to demonstrate a good understanding of substance misuse issues
Person Specification
OTHER
Essential
- oA preparedness to work flexible hours through prior arrangement as the needs of the job dictate (e.g. some evenings & weekends)
EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS
Essential
- Commitment to obtain underpinning knowledge through work based learning and mandatory training, (including accredited peer support worker training if not previously undertaken)
- Acceptable level of written literacy and numeracy
- Basic IT skills i.e. word & email
Desirable
- Accredited peer support worker training
- Accredited certificate in Life Coaching
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE (Paid/unpaid relevant) to the job)
Essential
- Lived experience of substance misuse problems, with 12 months abstinence from dependent & problematic drug & alcohol use; including prescribed opiate substitutes
- Paid or unpaid working experience in health care setting
- Willing to positively share your own life experiences and personal experience of substance misuse with service users and carers
- Developed plans for managing own recovery
- Experience of actively supporting individuals to identify and work towards achieving personal goals in a related social care or health setting (paid or unpaid)
- Experience of facilitating groups
Desirable
- Involvement in service redesign and development
- Paid or unpaid, peer support worker experience
SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE, ABILITIES
Essential
- Able to demonstrate understanding of Intentional Peer Support
- Ability to demonstrate first person experiential knowledge of personal recovery
- Ability to demonstrate knowledge of personal recovery as it may relate to others
- Evidence of good interpersonal skills and an ability to form peer relationships with service users and carers
- Effective listening skills
- Ability to communicate on all levels and to a broad scope of individuals, both internally and externally to the Trust
- Ability to appreciate / understand other people's worlds
- Ability to demonstrate empathy, compassion and patience
- An ability to be non judgemental
- An ability to act calmly and to respond in a professional manner to distress, disturbance and unpredictability
- Knowledge of how to build community links and networks
- Ability to problem solve and create innovative solutions to help empower service users
- Understanding of issues arising from experiencing ill health related to substance use
- Ability to work unsupervised in a range of settings
- Sensitive understanding of diversity issues and an ability to promote antidiscriminatory practice/ equal opportunities
- Ability to demonstrate practical skills to provide support with daily living activities
- Resilience
- Good organisational skills
- Effective team player
Desirable
- Knowledge of current legislation which underpins Health and Social Care and a working knowledge of the Equalities Act 2010 and Human Rights Act.
- Knowledge of basic first aid
- Basic Health and Safety awareness
- Moving and handling awareness
- Awareness of local services
- Knowledge of benefits/ employment systems
- Ability to speak other languages
- Ability to demonstrate a good understanding of substance misuse issues
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
