Outreach Support Volunteer - Lived Experience

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Overview

Volunteers make an enormous contribution to our work at Change Grow Live.

Last year over 1400 volunteers donated over a quarter of million hours of their time to our organisation.

Would you like to join our growing team of volunteers, and make a real difference?

Responsibilities

As an Outreach Support Volunteer with lived experience, you will be a visible face of recovery, inspiring hope and demonstrating that positive change is possible. Your personal story and insights play a crucial role in normalizing concerns, reducing stigma, and fostering trust within the community. By sharing your lived experience, you will help bridge the gap between professionals and service users, offering relatable and non-judgmental support that empowers individuals to take steps toward recovery. In this role, you will actively engage with service users, engaging those individuals who are not currently, but would benefit from being in treatment - which may include rough sleepers, treatment-naive heroin users, and others to promote services and build meaningful connections. Volunteers with lived experience model effective coping strategies and self-advocacy in treatment, creating a powerful example that recovery is achievable.

Your responsibilities will include:

- Supporting the team to engage and support individuals with complex needs or substance misuse issues.

- Building positive, trusting relationships and fostering hope through your unique perspective.

- Collaborating with partner agencies, signposting individuals to services, and empowering them to access resources.

- Advocating for individuals, supporting them to achieve their goals, and managing expectations of all involved. Your lived experience will allow you to relate authentically to those you support, offering encouragement and understanding while helping them feel less alone.

You will assist in re-engaging clients who have dropped out of treatment, advising them on available services, and equipping them with the knowledge to keep themselves safe. You will also support staff in conducting home visits and engaging individuals who may struggle to access services.

Outreach can be fast-paced and challenging, requiring adaptability, resilience, and the ability to work effectively under various conditions. Your lived experience, combined with your training, will enable you to navigate these challenges and make a meaningful impact.

No two days are the same, but every day offers the chance to make a difference by supporting our service users and helping to keep them safe.

This role is incredibly rewarding, allowing you to inspire hope and transform lives while showing that recovery is not just possible - it is real.

We will provided you with comprehensive training, ongoing support, and the skills needed to excel in the role. This position is ideal for someone sociable, outgoing, and driven to give back to their community using their lived experience to effect positive change.

Please note these roles will be spread across our hubs in Birmingham.

Closing Date

24/1/2025

If you have any questions on this opportunity that you would like to talk through please contact us using the below details:

Jason Cuthill | Jason.Cuthill@cgl.org.uk

Please note that we require you to be 18 years of age or older to be considered for this volunteering role.

This post is subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check at an enhanced level.