Volunteer Mentor West Midlands - Volunteer

Can you commit half a day each week or fortnight to mentor a young person in prison during the final six months of their sentence, helping them prepare for release and then supporting their reintegration in the community to create positive change and reduce reoffending? What difference will you make? Volunteer mentors are at the heart of Trailblazers’ work. Your involvement enables us to deliver consistent, relationship-based mentoring to people at one of the most challenging and high-risk points in their lives – the transition from prison back into the community.

By giving your time, you help Trailblazers maintain and grow a service that is proven to reduce re-offending and support long-term change. Each mentoring relationship strengthens our ability to work effectively within prisons and communities, ensuring individuals are not released without meaningful support in place. Your contribution directly supports our organisational mission to reduce re-offending and improve outcomes for people leaving prison.

With the backing of committed volunteers, we can offer tailored, one-to-one mentoring that complements statutory services and fills critical gaps in support. This helps us build trust with prisons, partners and communities, and ensures our programmes remain responsive, person-centred and impactful. The results of this approach are clear. Nationally, around 30% of people leaving prison reoffend within a year. For those supported by a Trailblazers mentor, that figure drops to just 7%. Your role helps us continue delivering these outcomes and demonstrates the value of mentoring to funders, stakeholders and partners.

Beyond individual mentoring relationships, your involvement strengthens Trailblazers as an organisation. Volunteers bring lived experience, skills and perspectives that enrich our practice, inform service development and help us better reflect the communities we serve. Your commitment allows us to reach more people, deepen the quality of our work and contribute to safer, more resilient communities.

By volunteering with Trailblazers, you help turn our evidence-based approach into real-world impact – supporting individuals to move forward with confidence and helping our organisation deliver lasting social change.

What are we looking for?

• We are looking for volunteers who are committed, reliable, and able to build positive, supportive relationships with people at a pivotal moment in their lives.
• Your ability to connect, listen, and encourage is more important than prior experience – although certain skills and qualities will help you succeed in this role.

Ideal volunteer:

• Non-judgemental and empathetic, focusing on the person rather than their offense.
• Professional yet relatable, able to communicate clearly and build trust with your mentee.
• Resilient and patient, understanding that change takes time and setbacks are part of the journey.
• Supportive and proactive, able to advocate for your mentee and work with Trailblazers staff to access opportunities that support their resettlement.
• Reflective and open to guidance, willing to follow training, supervision, and advice to provide safe and effective mentoring.

While previous knowledge of the criminal justice system is helpful, full training is provided, so you don’t need prior experience. Basic IT skills are required to record mentoring activities and communicate with Trailblazers staff. Awareness of adversity and how to overcome barriers is valuable, helping you support your mentee to build a strong, supportive network around them.

We particularly welcome volunteers who bring:

• Lived experience of the criminal justice system, provided you have been off licence for at least 12 months and are not currently in crisis.
• Professional experience or skills relevant to our mentoring focus, including wellbeing, creative arts, business, employability or other transferable skills.
• Diversity of perspective, including individuals from underrepresented communities.

To meet the practical requirements of this role:

• Be over 21 and have at least three years’ professional experience relevant to our work.
• Be a British citizen to meet security clearance requirements.
• Be physically fit enough to move around the prison, including stairs.
• Not have committed an offense that bars them from working with vulnerable adults or children.
• Live within a 30-mile radius of the prison where they volunteer.
• Not apply to a project at a prison where they were previously a resident.

Above all, we are looking for people with a genuine passion for supporting others, the patience to commit to at least one mentee for up to 12 months, and the dedication to help someone take the next step toward a positive future.

What will you be doing?

Trailblazers has been delivering mentoring services in prisons since 1998, with the aim of supporting people to make positive, lasting changes and reduce re-offending. We work with men aged 18–35 during the final six months of their prison sentence and continue mentoring for up to 12 months as they resettle into the community.

We are currently recruiting Volunteer Mentors for our project at HMPYOI Brinsford. As a volunteer mentor, you will be matched with one mentee and commit around half a day per week. Mentoring sessions typically last around one hour and take place in prison and, following release, in the community.

You will provide one-to-one support focused on listening, encouragement and practical goal-setting, helping your mentee to navigate the challenges of transition from custody to community life. Your role will involve building a consistent, trusting relationship, acting as a positive role model and supporting your mentee to identify their strengths, aspirations and next steps.

You will work alongside Trailblazers staff, sharing updates, recording mentoring activity and raising any concerns so that the right support is always in place. Maintaining professional boundaries and working within Trailblazers’ policies is a key part of the role. No previous mentoring experience is required. We provide a full induction, training and ongoing reflective practice to equip you with the skills and confidence needed to volunteer safely and effectively.

You’ll also receive practical support, including expense reimbursement, DBS checks and equipment to protect your identity. We welcome volunteers from all backgrounds and particularly encourage applications from people with lived experience of the criminal justice system, individuals from underrepresented communities, and those with skills or experience in areas such as wellbeing, creative arts, business or employability. What matters most is that you are reliable, non-judgemental and committed to supporting someone at a pivotal point in their life.

By joining Trailblazers, you will become part of a supportive mentoring community dedicated to helping people move forward with purpose and stability.