Job overview

Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Foundation Trust are pleased to announce that we are currently recruiting a Senior Peer Worker to work across Tees Valley AMH (Adult Mental Health) Community Services. 

The Senior Peer Worker will be part of our Community Transformation work and will be part of an exciting new collaborative service alongside Teesside Mind and Darlington Mind, who will have Peer Workers based in the community. The Community Transformation represents a shift in the way we currently deliver care. It is aligned to a model that considers the whole person, beyond their diagnosis, and looks at what the whole system has to offer. The aim is to work together to ensure we collectively deliver trauma informed, person centred care to meet an individual’s wide-ranging needs.

Peer support is when people with shared experiences connect to build safe, trusting and non-judgemental relationships where we learn and grow together.  Peer Workers are people who have experience of mental health challenges and accessing services for mental health care, and are employed, trained and supported to work to the TEWV Peer Support Values and use their experiences to support others.

 For these roles, we are looking for people who have:

• Relevant experience of mental health challenges
• Personal experience of accessing secondary or inpatient mental health services.
• Significant experience of working as a peer worker or in another lived experience essential role.

Main duties of the job

Senior Peer Workers provide regular professional supervision to peer workers and peer practitioners, working to support those they supervise to adapt and thrive.  Senior peer workers also work autonomously to deliver peer support and are professionally accountable for their own caseload.

The post holder will work as designated by the leadership of the Peer Lead to support the development of the system wide Peer Support Services in line with the Community Mental Health Framework and TEWV Peer Support Strategy as appropriate. They will also work closely with the Senior Peer and Peer Lead within Teesside Mind.

This role will involve:

• Delivering 1:1 supervision to peer workers and peer practitioners
• Facilitating co-reflection spaces for peer workers and peer practitioners
• Working autonomously into designated teams to provide peer support.
• Working into designated team processes to support service users voices to be heard and bring lived experience expertise into team processes.
• Setting up and facilitating peer support groups
• Building connections with a range of peer support and other partners within the system.
• Actively working in partnership with VCSE partners.
• Contributing to the co-creation processes.

Working for our organisation

This role may involve working into a range of teams as the role develops.  For these roles in a developing community mental health transformation we need people who are able to embrace new and emerging challenges as we implement peer support into community teams across the area. 

This role will be based within community teams and various locations across Tees Valley and therefore some travel will be required.

We value diversity and want to have a wide range of identities represented in the peer workforce.  We welcome applications from people with lived experience of distress and mental health services from the characteristics protected by the Equality Act 2010 (age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation) and other diverse groups. 

We also value a diversity of experiences with mental health services in the peer workforce and welcome applications from people with helpful, difficult or mixed experiences of mental health services.

Successful applicants will receive training and regular line management and peer supervision to support them in the role. 

If the contract type on the vacancy states 'Fixed Term' this would mean the vacancy is being advertised to address a temporary need for the duration stipulated on the advert, however, in the event that permanent funding is secured for the post the successful applicant will be confirmed in post on a permanent basis.

Internal applicants must ensure that prior to applying they have agreement from their current line manager that they can be released on a secondment basis. 

Trust Welcome Day

Here at Tees, Esk and Wear Valley Foundation NHS Trust we want you to have a positive experience when you start your new role with us. To ensure you have great welcome, for all new starters joining the Trust, we offer two start dates per month on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of that Month.

On your start date, you will be invited to our in person Trust Welcome Day at our Flatts Lane Centre, Middlesborough. Your first day will be engaging and informative, it will allow you to meet and network with a range of Trust staff, learn more about us and what we offer. For certain clinical roles, your Welcome Day could then be followed by up to 9 days face to face training. If this is applicable to you, further information will be provided ahead of your Welcome Day.

Right to Work in the UK

Applications from job seekers who require sponsorship to work in the United Kingdom (UK) are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. Please note that from January 2021, to work in the UK all candidates who are not UK or Republic of Ireland (RoI) nationals require sponsorship unless you have permission to work via another route. Non UK / RoI candidates wishing to apply can self-assess the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship here Browse: Work in the UK - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Please provide full and accurate details of your current immigration status on the application form. Overseas applicants applying for entry clearance into the UK must present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided in continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).  Your current immigration status will not be considered as part of the shortlisting or interview process.

Please note that not everyone needs a ‘Skilled Worker’ visa. If you are applying for a vacancy in health or adult social care, you may be eligible to apply for the Health and Care Worker visa instead.

We are able to offer sponsorship for a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa, subject to candidate and position eligibility. Please review the job eligibility guidance for skilled workers here: Skilled Worker visa: Your job - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and for the Health and Care Worker visa here: Skilled Worker visa: eligible healthcare and education jobs - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Please note: if the job you are applying for does not meet the eligibility criteria above, we will be unable to offer you sponsorship and you will need to explore whether you may be eligible to apply for an alternative immigration route which will secure your right to work in the UK before you apply.  If you are in the UK already on a visa, please ensure you have no restrictions that would prevent you from taking this post. 

 AI in Recruitment

We are aware that Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology is increasingly being used to generate responses for application forms.  Applications for this role should be written by the applicant and if, during shortlisting, a Recruiting Manager believes AI has been used then the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Newly Qualified Nurses

All band 5 nursing positions are only open to those candidates who already have their NMC registration in place and have successfully completed a preceptorship programme. Please note: Newly qualified applicants or those due to qualify will be recruited via a separate process, for more information about this process please contact: [email protected]

TEWV encourages and supports all staff to be vaccinated as this remains the best line of defence against COVID19.

Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust is committed to the protection of staff, service users and visitors to the Trust from second hand smoke and currently operates a no smoking policy which ensures all buildings and grounds are smoke free.

We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from individuals who have experience of mental ill health or learning disabilities. Our service users and carers tell us our staff should be consistently concerned with maintaining and improving care with pride, empathy and compassion.

This job advert may close as soon as sufficient suitable applications have been received. If interested please apply for this post as soon as possible.

In order for your application to be successfully processed we will require references from your current and previous employer(s) which must cover a minimum period of three years.  Please ensure that the reference section of your application is completed appropriately giving the address, telephone number and work email address of each of your current and previous line manager(s).  If this section is not fully completed your application may not be processed.

If your application is successful, the information you give on your application form will be used to create and be retained on your electronic staff record and to provide access to core Trust systems.

Please note that if the post you are applying for requires a DBS check, you will be required to also subscribe to the DBS Update Service, if successful, and thereafter renew your subscription each year. The Trust will reimburse the subscription fee.

After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred Third party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, that as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website.

By applying for this post you are agreeing to Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Candidates who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by e-mail. You should check your SPAM folders as well as your inbox. If you have not been contacted within 4 weeks of the closing date you should assume your application has been unsuccessful.