Oxford Health NHS Trust

Senior Peer Support Worker Apprentice

The closing date is 23 July 2025

Job summary

Are you an experienced Peer Support Worker looking for the next step?

We're looking to recruit a Senior Peer Support Worker to join our team to support other Peer Support Workers, team members and service users!

Peer Support Workers (PSW's) are people who have their own lived experience of mental health challenges. They use empathy informed by their own experiences to support service users who are accessing mental health services and their families.

This vacancy is for a position within our Keystone Mental Health and Wellbeing Hubs in North and West Oxfordshire. The hubs have been developed to improve the health and wellbeing of people who experience serious mental health difficulties in the community. This post holder will be covering both our Witney and Banbury hubs but will be primarily based at the Witney Hub on Welch Way.

This vacancy is open to existing Oxford Health Peer Support Workers and people with experience of working in a peer support role in another organisation. External applicants will need to undertake Oxford Health's PSW training programme, this is offered as an apprenticeship.

Main duties of the job

The Senior Peer Support Worker will be responsible for supporting the current PSWs to successfully embed the role within the clinical area, to support with their caseloads and to offer mentoring around using their lived experience to support others. This is in addition to, providing support with individual service users and leading or co-leading groups.

Lived experience:

Drawing on lived experience of mental health to provide emotional and practical support to an allocated group of service users to promote their recovery. This may include avoidance of admission and/or promoting recovery for inpatient's by helping them to identify and build their own support network.
To support service users to engage effectively with care being offered and access appropriate services.
To build relationships that are founded on the value of mutuality which will facilitate the provision of regular and practical support.
Where appropriate challenge discrimination and reducing the stigma of mental ill health.
To positively promote independent living of service users through role-modelling individual recovery journeys
To build rapport with service users, whilst maintaining professional boundaries, drawing on both experience and knowledge of the service user perspective and an evidence-based approach.

About us

Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust provides physical, mental health and social care for people of all ages across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath and North East Somerset.

Our services are delivered at community bases, hospitals, clinics and people's homes, delivering care as close to home as possible

Our vision is that no matter who you are or where you are, you will tell us that you receive:"Outstanding care delivered by an outstanding team"

Our values are:"Caring, safe and excellent"

At Oxford Health we offer a wide range of benefits designed to support your career and wellbeing. These include:

Excellent opportunities for career progression
Access to tailored individual and Trust wide learning and development
27 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days with continuous service
NHS Discount across a wide range of shops, restaurants and retailers
Competitive pension scheme
Lease car scheme
Cycle to work scheme
Employee Assistance Programme
Mental Health First Aiders
Staff accommodation (please note waiting lists may apply)
Staff networking and support groups hosted by our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion team

Date posted

09 July 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£26,530 to £29,114 a year per annum/pro rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

267-OA7311037

Job locations

Keystone Mental Health & Wellbeing Hub-Banbury

Unit 11A Castle Quay Shopping Centre,

Banbury, Cherwell

OX16 5UH

Job description

Job responsibilities

Eligibility criteria to enrol on the apprenticeship includes having GCSE/Level 2 Maths and English qualifications. You will be expected to provide evidence of these qualifications. If you do not have these qualifications, we would still welcome your application for consideration, but you would need to complete The Trusts functional skills courses on Maths and/or English whilst in the role before enrolling on the apprenticeship. All new Peer Support Workers will be provided with training for the role and support from a tutor and supervisor within their working hours.

Oxford Health offer the Peer Support Training programme as a nationally recognised accredited Level 3 Apprenticeship (fully funded by Oxford Health).

The Peer Worker Apprenticeship is completed over a period of 15-19 months depending on whether a Peer Support Worker works part time or full time (22.5-37.5 hours).

Please see attached document regarding the eligibility criteria for this role and ensure you have read this carefully.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Oxford Health offer the Peer Support Training programme as a nationally recognised accredited Level 3 Apprenticeship (fully funded by Oxford Health).

The Peer Worker Apprenticeship is completed over a period of 15-19 months depending on whether a Peer Support Worker works part time or full time (22.5-37.5 hours).

Please see attached document regarding the eligibility criteria for this role and ensure you have read this carefully.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

The ability to offer specialist support using their personal experience of recovery.
Demonstrate the importance of maintaining patient confidentiality, professional boundaries and actively promote positive role modelling.

Experience

Desirable

Be able and willing to facilitate the peer led supervision sessions.

Personal Qualities

Essential

Able to challenge and be challenged appropriately and with compassion.
The ability to develop and maintain sound working relationships with all members of the multi-disciplinary teams.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

The ability to offer specialist support using their personal experience of recovery.
Demonstrate the importance of maintaining patient confidentiality, professional boundaries and actively promote positive role modelling.

Experience

Desirable

Be able and willing to facilitate the peer led supervision sessions.

Personal Qualities

Essential

Able to challenge and be challenged appropriately and with compassion.
The ability to develop and maintain sound working relationships with all members of the multi-disciplinary teams.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.