Volunteer Mentor with People in Prison

Could you help someone change their life and avoid reoffending? Belong’s vision is of hope, rehabilitation and recovery for victims and perpetrators of crime. We inspire change by providing long term, individualised responses to conflict and crime through restorative justice, psychotherapy, mentoring, and training for criminal justice professionals.

We have exciting opportunities available for committed, compassionate people to volunteer as one-to-one mentors with us. Volunteers will work with young people and adults serving prison sentences at HMPYOI Feltham and HMPYOI Isis or serving community sentences in London.

• Build a professional working relationship with individuals as they serve their prison or community sentence and work towards a crime-free future.
• Provide one-to-one mentoring sessions once per week or fortnight, lasting one to two hours per session.
• Support individuals to access education, training and employment; develop life skills; work through previous traumas; and build positive relationships.
• Deliver mentoring sessions during weekdays or weekends.
• Commit to the role for at least one year.

• Qualification in criminology, psychology or a relevant area, and/or at least one year of experience working with children, young people or adults facing disadvantages.
• For genuine occupational requirement reasons, applicants must be aged 21 years or over (exemption under the Equality Act 2010 Part 1 Schedule 9).
• Prison security vetting and/or an enhanced DBS check are required for this role; all volunteers will be supported to undergo this.
• After vetting, further training will be provided at the prison where mentors are volunteering, with a range of dates available.

Full support and supervision will be provided to volunteers. We particularly encourage applications from people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and from people with lived experience of the criminal justice system.

To apply, please submit a CV and covering letter as soon as possible, and by Sunday 22 February. Interviews will be held remotely on Zoom or via phone. Applications will be screened on a first-come, first-served basis, and we have a limited number of spaces available on the March training course. We reserve the right to close recruitment before the closing date if we receive a high number of suitable applications.