Recovery Connector Practitioner

This community-based team works with people living in Derbyshire that are in recovery from drug and/or alcohol use. This role will focus on linking people in with local recovery communities, teams, projects and mutual aid groups. You will work alongside a team of 4 Recovery Connector workers, a Tier 4 Rehab Worker and a Lived Experience Pathway Coordinator, and will be led by a Recovery Connector Team Manager.

In this community-based role you will deliver recovery-focused interventions to clients on your caseload. You will engage clients accessing treatment at DRP in recovery-focused sessions and will support them to attend local recovery support services, or other structured meaningful activities which may also include supporting them to attend local mutual aid meetings and recovery-led activities. This role will involve helping to deliver some small recovery-oriented group work sessions to people in recovery (in person and online), including open peer-led recovery groups, structured relapse-prevention groups and facilitating SMART meetings. Within this role you will complete accredited SMART facilitator training. This role will involve advocating for clients, travelling with them to appointments and meetings to help build their confidence and overcome barriers to accessing aftercare and community-based recovery support. You will put the client at the centre of your work, helping them to achieve their personal goals and will complete a strengths-based assessment and recovery plans together.

This vacancy is for a full time and permanent role. You would be working 37.5 hours per week, Monday-Friday, typically within 9am-5pm, but there are opportunities to work flexibly (e.g. if you were supporting someone to attend an evening AA/NA meeting, you may agree with your line manager to work 11am-7pm that day). In this role we will give you lots of training and all the support you need to thrive and succeed in your role and find your place amongst our incredible and collaborative team. We will train you to be a SMART facilitator too.

The core focus of this new role is helping people in recovery to engage and reconnect with structured recovery support, groups and activities within their local community; helping them to improve health, unlock potential and achieve personalised recovery goals. You will help us to break down barriers, reduce stigma and promote visible recovery.

You will be based in our Buxton office on Hardwick Street and will be able to claim mileage for your journeys around the area you will be working in (Buxton, New Mills, Glossop and North Ashbourne). Applicants for this role must have a driving licence with access to a vehicle for work due to the geography of the region this role covers and the limitations of public transport.

Completing strengths-based assessments, creating recovery plans and building good working relationships is vital in this role, therefore successful applicants will have excellent communication skills, both written and verbal. As this role will involve documenting work completed with clients and filling in spreadsheets, you will need very good IT skills and be proficient in the use of Microsoft Word and Excel. We encourage applications from people who are creative in their ideas for recovery groups/activities and are passionate in supporting people to achieve and maintain long term abstinence/reduced use and improve health outcomes. Successful applicants will be able to show in their personal statement application a clear passion for working with people in recovery and will have a positive, motivating and proactive approach to their work.

Full role training and shadowing opportunities will be included as part of your induction. This wonderful, diverse team is knowledgeable and supportive, with a wealth of knowledge to impart. If you want to help others change their lives for the better, to support and inspire people on their recovery journey; we would love to have you in our team. We are keen to hear from anyone with experience of working within the field of drug and alcohol use, and/or has lived experience, and is very motivated and passionate about recovery and supporting others.

Your Rewards:

• Starting salary of £24,637 with opportunity to access potential yearly salary increments subject to appraisal, meaning potential salary increase up to £28,000 per annum (pro rata)
• 25 days’ annual leave plus Bank Holidays (increasing each year to a maximum of 30 days) (pro rata)
• Benefits including season ticket loan, pension scheme and life assurance
• Support through occupational sick pay, eye-care vouchers and regular wellbeing talks and activities
• Continuous training and career development via PXL our dedicated learning management system
• Access to a 24/7 Employee Assistance programme including telephone and online access

As we work in partnership with the Healthcare Foundation Trust in Derbyshire, staff have access to some NHS-related training and opportunity to apply for discounts e.g. Blue Light. A rewarding role with the opportunity to help us support people on their journey to recovery and change their lives for the better. We’ll ensure you get all the training and support you need to thrive and succeed in your role and find your place amongst our incredible and collaborative team.

About Phoenix Futures:

Phoenix Futures Group is a charity with over 50 years’ experience and a leading provider of drug and alcohol treatment. Our values are what define us and ensure we work to the highest standards. We believe in being the best, we are passionate about recovery, we value our history and use it to inform our future. We work with local authorities, other charities and service providers across the country to deliver innovative programmes and projects that change lives for the better, setting people on the path to health and emotional wellbeing. We provide a diverse range of services, our expertise in psychosocial treatment and support is the common thread that runs through everything we do. People need psychological interventions, social support, meaningful use of time, sense of purpose and a place of safety to sustain their recovery. At our core, we support people, families and communities to recover from drug and alcohol dependency. We encourage and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and believe it is important to include people with lived experience to ensure the needs of the people we support are represented. We are committed to creating an inclusive working environment where everyone is free to be themselves and we ensure equity of opportunity.

If you’re unsure if this role is for you and you’d prefer to consider a Trainee role / Volunteering within the service first, please look at the opportunities we have currently available on our Phoenix Futures website. If you have drug/alcohol lived experience and would like to gain some skills qualifications and experience in the field of drug and alcohol work before applying for a role like this, please email us at dhcft.derbyshirelivedexperiencecareerpathway@nhs.net so we can talk to you about our new lived experience substance use career pathway in Derbyshire and how it can help you.

Location: High Peak

Type of Contract: Full Time

Hours: 37.5

Closing Date: 22-02-2026

How to Apply: Apply here