Peer Support Worker Reconnect/ care after custody

Peer Support Worker – Reconnect Care After Custody covering South Cumbria/North Lancashire.

Reports To: Criminal Justice Operations Manager

Employer: Red Rose Recovery Lancashire

Base: You will be covering Cumbria/North Lancashire, the main office is in Preston.

Hours: 15

Salary: £13.45 per hour (real living wage)

Job Overview

The postholder will mainly be working in supporting people recently released from prison, therefore location is flexible and can be discussed at interview stage. The post holder will work within a newly established service, Reconnect Care after Custody for Lancashire, covering 6 prisons and also the wider community of Lancashire. Reconnect is a triage, assessment, referral and support service and starts working with people before they leave prison, where they will have access to Reconnect practitioners and support practitioners, helping them to make the transition to community-based services that will provide the health and care support that they need. It is offered to people in prison up to 12 weeks prior to release, and up to 6 months support post release. Reconnect will create an effective link between prison and community in order to:

• Increase access to and uptake of healthcare or relevant support services for vulnerable individuals who would otherwise struggle to engage.
• Reduce health inequalities for prison leavers.
• Ensure the health needs of individuals who are leaving prison are met.
• Ensure a safe transition from prison to community-based healthcare and support services and to provide follow-up to ensure engagement is maintained.

Support will focus on preparing individuals for release and supporting them on the day of release, to connect them to services in the community to meet their needs.

Key Responsibilities:

• To contact referrals and offer support relevant to their needs.
• To work in accordance with all Reconnect and Red Rose Recovery policies and procedures.
• Ensure any safeguarding disclosures are dealt with appropriately and in accordance with policy.
• To support service users to identify and overcome fears and empower them to access services by building a relationship based on empathy, trust, honesty, and challenge negative self-talk.
• To facilitate access to community groups and networks that enable service users to participate in community activities, in order to maximise opportunities for taking on socially valued roles and positive identity.
• To accompany service users to appointments/meetings of their choice and perform a range of practical tasks, aligned to recovery goals.
• To build a relationship of trust with clients and to understand the importance of empowering them.
• Be prepared to contribute own experiences to identify barriers and gaps in services.
• Develop and maintain positive and professional relationships with clients.
• Provide emotional and practical support and advice to enable clients to improve their quality of life, develop their skills and make decisions about their future. This may include:
• Encouraging and motivating clients to engage with appropriate services.
• Accompanying clients to other projects and external appointments.
• Encouraging and supporting clients to participate in meaningful activities.
• To plan and manage own delegated workload in conjunction with Reconnect Practitioners on a day-to-day basis.
• Liaise with external agencies as required.
• Maintain an effective reporting system by observing and reporting verbally and in writing on patient conditions.
• To remain up to date and compliant with mandatory training requirements.

General:

• Ensure health and safety compliance at all times.
• To maintain confidentiality at all times.
• To adhere to all relevant policies and procedures.
• To establish and maintain a positive working relationship with service providers, commissioners, stakeholders and other partner agencies.
• To undertake training as identified via personal development planning process.
• To undertake other duties commensurate to the grade of the post.

Vetting and Clearances:

• The post holder will be expected to go through Prison Vetting clearance in the near future, but this will not be an essential requirement to role.
• The post holder is also expected to have Enhanced DBS clearance.
• Any changes that may affect vetting clearance or DBS status will result in termination of post within Reconnect.

The range of duties and responsibilities outlined above are indicative only and are intended to give a broad flavour of the range and type of duties that will be allocated. They are subject to modification in the light of changing service demands and the development requirements of the post holder.

CRITERIA

Description

• Essential (E)/Desirable (D)

Experience

• Lived experience of the criminal justice system E
• Working with vulnerable and complex individuals E
• Experience of participation in service user involvement and consultation work D
• Experience of referral pathway into services D
• Experience of safeguarding D

Knowledge

• An understanding of the criminal justice system and identified vulnerabilities E
• The ability to work part of a team E
• To have an awareness of the Equality and Diversity and work across cultures E
• The ability and skill to form positive relationships, whilst maintaining professional boundaries E
• Support service users' own decision-making that empowers them to build on their own strengths E
• Well developed verbal and written communication skills E

Skill

• Driving licence and access to a vehicle E
• Computer literate in software applications such as Microsoft Word, Excel, Internet Explorer, Outlook etc. E
• Willingness to work flexibly D
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills E
• The ability to use electronic record keeping systems D

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: £13.45 per hour

Expected hours: 15 per week

Benefits:

• Casual dress
• Company events
• Company pension
• Cycle to work scheme
• Health & wellbeing programme
• Private medical insurance
• Store discount

Work Location: In person