Mental Health Support Worker

This is a Permanent, 35 Hours vacancy that will close in 19 days at 23:59 BST.

We are looking for an experienced and passionate Mental Health Support Worker to work as part of our Willow Lodge Housing Team. Imagine being part of an organisation whose common purpose is to help those who are severely impacted by mental illness. We believe that everyone should be treated with respect and dignity – and that’s why equity is one of our core values.

Willow Lodge is a nine-bed supported living accommodation in Folkestone. We deliver up to 14 hours support per week to each tenant, with the hope to support tenants to be able to move on to more independent living. We are a low to medium support service for up to two years. We have a friendly small, experienced staff team.

As a Support Worker, you will offer people affected by mental illness the support and help they need to regain their confidence and get involved in everyday social and workplace activities. You will be working closely with service users to achieve their own personal goals and access all the support they need on their recovery journey.

Diversity is important to us and we appreciate difference through difference, inclusiveness and belonging. It gives us a deeper understanding of the world, our society and the diverse communities we’re working with. By including everyone, we are able to draw on the unique experiences and expertise of our people to help shape and enrich our workplace and improve our services.

We aim for our workforce to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve; for those who work for us to feel heard, valued and feel they belong; and for our work to help tackle wider mental health inequalities. We therefore actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including applicants with lived experience of mental illness, those who are LGBTQIA+, people who are neurodiverse, have a health condition, or a disability or hidden disability and people from an ethnically diverse background.

We have an ambition of becoming a truly anti-racist employer, campaigning organisation and service provider. We have designed a multi-year anti-racist programme of work contained in our Race Equality Action Plan which demonstrates our intention to hold ourselves accountable and be judged on our progress on becoming a truly anti-racist organisation.

We work tirelessly to provide support for everyone severely affected by mental illness. We offer hope of a better quality of life for all those severely affected by mental illness. We constantly use our expertise to provide practical and personal support for people who are severely affected by mental illness.

You will have plenty of opportunities to enhance your abilities with the opportunity to make a real difference every day. In addition, you will have excellent development opportunities including funded training, career development, and a range of e-learning courses. You will also receive:

• Employer funded pension
• Flexible working
• Life assurance up to £55 towards the cost of new glasses or lenses
• Training opportunities
• e-learning courses & much more
• Annual leave 25 days rising to 30, plus bank holidays
• PULSE Reward, Benefits and Recognition Platform
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Rethink day 1 day’s additional leave (pro rata) on your Birthday

Our colleagues say:

“From the very start I was made to feel welcome and respected in my new team. In the short time I have been working with Rethink Mental Illness as a service administrator I have been able to contribute ideas and make meaningful change, and I appreciate that Rethink allows me to direct my own role development and help me build on the skills I want to work on.”

“Working for Rethink Mental Illness is the most rewarding job I could ask for. As a Peer and Volunteer Co-ordinator I get to work with a huge variety of people, with a range of skills and support them to incorporate those skills into their volunteering roles.”

“I’ve previously worked in a large corporate environment, in the criminal justice sector and other charities. Without a shadow of a doubt, Rethink Mental Illness has been the best employer I’ve ever had. They care about their staff. It’s great working with like-minded people and knowing that you are making a real difference to people’s lives.”

“It feels very rewarding to be part of such a meaningful Organisation where everyone is valued and has the opportunity to make a difference.”

Please be mindful that we may need to close adverts early if we receive a high volume of applications, we therefore encourage you to apply as soon as possible.