Job summary
- Main area
- SUN for EUPD Pathway
- Grade
- Band 5
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (part-time hours also considered)
- Job ref
- 371-MHS720-A
- Employer
- Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- University of Reading
- Town
- Reading
- Salary
- £31,469 - £38,308 per annum (inc. of HCAS)
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 30/05/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Lived Experience Group Facilitator
Band 5
Job overview
Band 5 Service User Network (SUN) Lived Experience Group Facilitator: – Erlegh House, University of Reading, RG6 6BZ.
Are you someone with personal experience of personality disorder or significant mental health challenges who wants to make a real difference by supporting others who have been through similar struggles? If so, we invite you to join our team as a Lived Experience Group Facilitator within the Service User Network (SUN).
SUN (Service User Network) is an initiative aimed at improving services for people with complex emotional needs or difficulties often associated with the diagnosis of ‘personality disorder. The SUN service provides community-based, peer support groups that offer members a space to provide and receive support.
As a Lived Experience Group Facilitator your personal journey will be a powerful asset. You’ll co-facilitate groups and support our members by drawing upon your own experiences of mental health, treatment, and self-management. You’ll help create a supportive environment that fosters understanding among group members.
The SUN Team sits within IMPACTT (Personality Disorder Pathway Services), and there may be opportunities to assist in the delivery of other aspects of the EUPD pathway, including the Managing Emotions Programme.
This is a permanent post – Full Time (part time hours of 3-4 days a week will also be considered).
Main duties of the job
-
Group Facilitation: Working alongside other facilitators in peer support groups, sharing insights from your own journey.
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Supervision: Participate in regular SUN meetings and weekly group clinical supervision, training and reflective practice.
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Networking: Attend promotional events and support opportunities to network and promote SUN within the community.
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Flexibility: You’ll need to travel to other locations across Berkshire whilst also having an option to work from home when appropriate.
This role will require a good understanding of the difficulties that individuals may encounter, as well as retaining self-awareness around the emotional impacts of working from a lived experience perspective.
As with all our team, you will be provided with specific SUN facilitation training as part of your induction.
Groups are usually delivered both online and face to face in the 6 localities across Berkshire: Newbury, Reading, Wokingham, Bracknell, Windsor, Ascot and Maidenhead and Slough. The successful candidate will therefore need to be able to both work from home as well as at community sites across these localities in Berkshire as required.
Working for our organisation
Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist mental health and community health services trust. Rated ‘outstanding’ by the CQC, we’re committed to providing the best possible care to people across Berkshire. As an employer, we’re committed to offering an inclusive and compassionate environment where our people share in a sense of belonging and are supported to flourish.
Our values at Berkshire Healthcare are:
- Caring for and about you is our top priority
- Committed to providing good quality, safe services
- Working Together with you to develop innovative solutions
Your wellbeing is important to us. Some of the benefits of working for us include:
- Flexible working options to support work-life balance
- 27 days’ annual leave rising with service + opportunity to buy and sell
- Generous NHS pension scheme
- Excellent learning and career development opportunities
- ‘Cycle to Work’ and car leasing scheme including electric vehicles
- Access to a range of wellbeing tools and services
- Discounts at hundreds of popular retailers and restaurants
- Staff networks for race, diversity, disabilities, the environment and armed forces community to support equality
- Generous maternity, paternity, adoption and special leave
- Free parking across Trust sites
FOR SECONDMENT ROLES ONLY - If the secondment role becomes permanent, the successful candidate may be offered the permanent position.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The “must haves” for you to be considered for this role:
- Previous experience of using lived experience associated with the diagnosis of ‘personality disorder’ in a work role (either voluntary or paid employment).
- Ability to be compassionate and to work as part of a team in ensuring excellent service for our SUN members.
- Good communication and interpersonal skills and ability to form positive relationships with people accessing services.
- An ability to be self-reflective, open to learning and to reflect sensitively on your personal experience of recovery to support others.
- Passion for group work and supporting people with complex emotional needs or difficulties associated with personality disorders.
For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification.
We strongly encourage you to review how you meet the criteria in the person specification and write about this point-by-point in your supporting statement for the best chance of being shortlisted.
We’re committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Race Equality Matters Silver Trailblazer, Neurodiversity in Business Corporate Member, Disability Confident Leader, Carer Confident Level 2, and the Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. Reasonable adjustments will be provided to candidates as needed.
We welcome a conversation about flexibility and any other questions you may have. Please don’t hesitate to call: Charlie Thomas on 0300 365 8000 or email [email protected], who’ll be delighted to help.
Please note, if we receive a high number of applications, we may close this role earlier than the advertised closing date, so please submit your application as soon as possible
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Completed or willing to work towards an accredited peer support training or coaching.
- Any relevant training / qualifications in the mental health field.
Knowledge and Experience
Essential criteria
- Lived experience of the difficulties associated with a diagnosis of ‘personality disorder’
- Prior practice of using lived experience in a work role (either voluntary or paid employment)
- Willingness to positively share lived experience as appropriate.
- Ability to guide others towards improving quality of life.
- Knowledge of personality disorder, and other mental health difficulties.
Desirable criteria
- Paid or unpaid experience of support worker/training/teaching or coaching others.
- Good understanding of mental health services.
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to understand and maintain healthy boundaries.
- Good communication and interpersonal skills.
- Be non-judgmental, empathetic and compassionate.
- Ability to remain calm and respond in a professional manner to distress.
- Understanding of diversity; to promote anti-discriminatory practice and equal opportunities.
- Ability to work co-operatively as part of a multidisciplinary team.
- Willing to engage in supervision and to be able to raise concerns which may affect you or the work.
- Proficient in Microsoft Word, Outlook, and basic Excel skills.
- Ability to use / learn Microsoft Teams.
- Ability to travel to multiple sites by car or public transport
- Demonstrates a flexible approach to working practices
Desirable criteria
- Experience of facilitating / co-facilitating groups.
- Ability to enter data into a database as required.
- Hold a clean driving licence and have use of a car for work
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Application numbers
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Charlie Thomas
- Job title
- Service User Network (SUN) Service Manager
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 0300 365 8000
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