Apprentice Lived Experience Peer Worker

Summary

Do you have lived experience of the criminal justice system, mental health issues, substance misuse, being in care, being arrested, appearing in Court or being in prison? Are you interested in helping other people in similar situations? Our team provides support for adults and children who come into contact with the Criminal Justice System.

Wage

£23,800 a year

Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

£12.21 per hour

Training course

Peer worker (level 3)

Hours

Monday to Friday with the opportunity to work flexibly. Exact shifts to be confirmed.

37 hours 30 minutes a week

Start date

Thursday 5 June 2025

Duration

1 year 6 months

Positions available

2

Work

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you’ll do at work

You will use your own lived experience to help your clients to recover and stop offending by:

Giving emotional and practical support
Helping them attend appointments
Listening
Giving hope
Building their confidence

Where you’ll work

Kings Park Community Hospital
Gloucester Road
Bournemouth
BH7 6JF

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

College or training organisation

PARAGON EDUCATION & SKILLS LIMITED

Your training course

Peer worker (level 3)

Equal to A level

Course contents

Develop and maintain mutual and reciprocal peer relationships
Mutually establish the purpose and boundaries within the peer relationship
Engage with and support families and carers
Manage and prepare for the ending of the peer relationship
Purposefully share lived experience within the context of the peer relationship
Establish connections with the individual based on shared understanding of experiences
Model self-help and self-management approaches for the individual they are supporting
Support the individual to develop self-management and problem-solving skills
Support individuals to identify opportunities and overcome setbacks and challenges when trying to achieve self-defined goals
Support individuals to work toward self-defined goals using peer-based approaches in 1-to-1, drop-in or virtual settings
Support individual-led activities
Collaboratively discuss care and support options with the individual
Actively contributes to an individual’s care and goal plans with the individual
Sets up and work with groups to facilitate working toward individual or shared goals within the group setting
Support individuals to safely access support for their goals through digital platforms
Support the individual during changes in their life circumstances
Discuss concerns with the individual and when necessary raise any issues with an appropriate colleague or supervisor
Support the individual to self-advocate and through self-determination, make choices and control the care and support options open to them
Signpost to advocacy services
Support the individual to prepare for reviews and complete applications or referrals, e.g. housing, medication review, food bank, benefits
Identify new resources or community projects that could be accessed by individuals being supported
Raise awareness and understanding of the opportunities available to the individuals being supported
Act as a community connector to build links with community resources
Support individuals to navigate through systems to access support, signposting resources relevant to their circumstances and self-defined goals that they can access independently
Support co-production and delivery of learning and development activities to raise awareness and understanding of the Peer Worker’s role and remit
Use service development activities to tackle stigma and labelling to encourage culture change
Give presentations and deliver training to small groups
Promote the lived experience perspectives and concerns of the individual being supported across own workplace and other organisations and services
Promote and embed peer-based approaches in teams and services with which they work
Use meetings with other multi-disciplinary team members to facilitate understanding of the individual’s perspective and their rights
Work collaboratively with the multi-disciplinary team and other organisations or services
Positively challenge low expectations and discriminatory practice to influence system change and enhance services
Seek advice, support or assistance from the appropriate person when the limits of own responsibility and competence has been reached
Manage own time and work priorities, using resources effectively
Develop and maintain peer and professional networks
Actively participate in team and peer supervision
Reflect on and applies learning to practice
Recognise the importance of self-care, taking appropriate action when required
Participate in appraisal, personal development planning and continuous professional development
Identify risks and contribute to required risk assessments
Facilitate discussions with individuals and between the individual and the services they use on potential risks to their health and safety when working toward their self-defined goals
Promote positive risk taking and different perspectives on risk within the team
Take action in line with organisational policy where there are safeguarding concerns
Recognise high-risk situations and takes action in line with organisational policy
Adapt their communication to meet the needs of others
Support individual's who are experiencing distress
Provide relevant and supportive feedback to the individual in the peer relationship
Actively seek feedback from individuals or groups on the support provided
Maintain accurate records, ensuring where records are about the individual being supported, these are co-produced
Follow legal and organisational requirements when dealing with confidentiality, consent and information sharing
Develop and maintain mutual and reciprocal peer relationships
Mutually establish the purpose and boundaries within the peer relationship
Engage with and support families and carers
Manage and prepare for the ending of the peer relationship
Purposefully share lived experience within the context of the peer relationship
Establish connections with the individual based on shared understanding of experiences
Model self-help and self-management approaches for the individual they are supporting
Support the individual to develop self-management and problem-solving skills
Support individuals to identify opportunities and overcome setbacks and challenges when trying to achieve self-defined goals
Support individuals to work toward self-defined goals using peer-based approaches in 1-to-1, drop-in or virtual settings
Support individual-led activities
Collaboratively discuss care and support options with the individual
Actively contributes to an individual’s care and goal plans with the individual
Sets up and work with groups to facilitate working toward individual or shared goals within the group setting
Support individuals to safely access support for their goals through digital platforms
Support the individual during changes in their life circumstances
Discuss concerns with the individual and when necessary raise any issues with an appropriate colleague or supervisor
Support the individual to self-advocate and through self-determination, make choices and control the care and support options open to them
Signpost to advocacy services
Support the individual to prepare for reviews and complete applications or referrals, e.g. housing, medication review, food bank, benefits
Identify new resources or community projects that could be accessed by individuals being supported
Raise awareness and understanding of the opportunities available to the individuals being supported
Act as a community connector to build links with community resources
Support individuals to navigate through systems to access support, signposting resources relevant to their circumstances and self-defined goals that they can access independently
Support co-production and delivery of learning and development activities to raise awareness and understanding of the Peer Worker’s role and remit
Use service development activities to tackle stigma and labelling to encourage culture change
Give presentations and deliver training to small groups
Promote the lived experience perspectives and concerns of the individual being supported across own workplace and other organisations and services
Promote and embed peer-based approaches in teams and services with which they work
Use meetings with other multi-disciplinary team members to facilitate understanding of the individual’s perspective and their rights
Work collaboratively with the multi-disciplinary team and other organisations or services
Positively challenge low expectations and discriminatory practice to influence system change and enhance services
Seek advice, support or assistance from the appropriate person when the limits of own responsibility and competence has been reached
Manage own time and work priorities, using resources effectively
Develop and maintain peer and professional networks
Actively participate in team and peer supervision
Reflect on and applies learning to practice
Recognise the importance of self-care, taking appropriate action when required
Participate in appraisal, personal development planning and continuous professional development
Identify risks and contribute to required risk assessments
Facilitate discussions with individuals and between the individual and the services they use on potential risks to their health and safety when working toward their self-defined goals
Promote positive risk taking and different perspectives on risk within the team
Take action in line with organisational policy where there are safeguarding concerns
Recognise high-risk situations and takes action in line with organisational policy
Adapt their communication to meet the needs of others
Support individual's who are experiencing distress
Provide relevant and supportive feedback to the individual in the peer relationship
Actively seek feedback from individuals or groups on the support provided
Maintain accurate records, ensuring where records are about the individual being supported, these are co-produced
Follow legal and organisational requirements when dealing with confidentiality, consent and information sharing

Your training plan

You will be enrolled on the Peer Worker level 3 apprenticeship with Paragon Skills and you will have study time for assignments with lots of on-the job learning opportunities
Where required, your apprenticeship assessor will visit you in the workplace

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE in:

English (grade C/4 or above)
Mathematics (grade C/4 or above)

Let the company know about other relevant qualifications and industry experience you have. They can adjust the apprenticeship to reflect what you already know.

Skills

Communication skills
IT skills
Customer care skills
Administrative skills
Non judgemental

About this company

At Dorset HealthCare we’re on a mission to empower people to make the most of their lives through our outstanding, joined-up healthcare services. We’re a dynamic, forward looking Trust, running 12 community hospitals, specialist inpatient facilities and a wide range of integrated community and mental health services for a population of almost 800,000 people. We do things differently here – it’s one of the reasons the CQC rated us ‘outstanding’ in 2019. It’s also why 95% of patients across our services say they have a good or very good experience of our services and 89% of staff feel they can really make a difference. Whether you’re looking to work with us in one of our bustling market towns, vibrant urban locations, thriving seaside spots, or among the rolling hills of Dorset, there are lots of ways you can make a difference in our communities. Our 7,000-strong workforce is at the heart of what we do and our success is a testament to our brilliant people. We're all about building a workplace for the future, we believe in equal opportunities and we celebrate diversity. We’re an inclusive workplace, where everyone is welcome, everyone can be authentic, and we are all encouraged to be the best version of ourselves. Working with us you’ll be part of a strong team, challenge yourself, build a career, and teach us what we don’t know. And you’ll be working towards our vision to be better every day through excellence, compassion and expertise in all we do.

https://www.dorsethealthcare.nhs.uk/join-us/apprentices (opens in new tab)

Disability Confident

A fair proportion of interviews for this apprenticeship will be offered to applicants with a disability or long-term health condition. This includes non-visible disabilities and conditions.

You can choose to be considered for an interview under the Disability Confident scheme. You’ll need to meet the essential requirements to be considered for an interview.

After this apprenticeship

Upon successful completion of this apprenticeship, further opportunities may be available to you within the company, but the experience and skills gained should prepare you for future progression within the industry.

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust

Sally Tatton

sally.tatton@nhs.net

07500 125 749

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000314521.

Apply now

Closes in 15 days (Monday 5 May 2025)

When you apply, you’ll be asked to sign in with a GOV.UK One Login. You can create one at the same time as applying for this apprenticeship.

After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.

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