Peer Support Development Officer (South East and the M4 corridor)

Funded by the Department of Education, the national peer support service is a game-changing service that creates a sustainable and life-changing legacy. It builds on Kinship’s 10 years of experience in developing peer support groups and 2 years of delivering a national service that has set up 145 new groups.

This role is community-based and focuses on engaging kinship carers, bringing them together to form peer support groups, and supporting them to achieve independence at which point they will receive ongoing support from our national hub.

You will do this by working with local authorities, schools, other charities and community groups. Arranging information events such as coffee mornings to engage kinship carers. You’ll create a welcoming, inclusive, and supportive community for kinship carers, building belonging, resilience, and empowerment.

Service delivery

• in-person (face-to-face) strategic outreach into local communities, including setting up and attending local engagement events
• setting up and developing sustainable in-person peer support groups, initially attending and leading sessions in person before transition to self-sufficiency
• working with existing groups that are at risk, closed or need support to maintain DfE service level agreement, in addition to new groups (targets are subject to change and are not fixed)
• recruiting and retaining support group leaders to develop their peer support groups
• assisting with the delivery of training to support group leaders and groups to become self-sufficient
• developing strong boundaried and positive relationships with support group leaders – building resilience, empowerment and community
• supporting established groups (including independent) in your area to access support group leader networks and training (this includes visiting groups in person) to build a peer community
• following (and, where appropriate, supporting further development of) the service blueprint to develop sustainable peer support groups
• collaborating with the peer support hub team to provide a joined-up and positive user experience for kinship carers
• managing special interest groups and regional online groups as required, transitioning to peer support hub team for sustainability and work with partners

Service quality, development and data management

• accurately recording all recruitment, contact information and volunteer case management in Salesforce in line with service framework and data protection requirements
• ensuring accurate data entry in Salesforce to support service performance, evaluation and learning
• providing regular reports to ensure targets and SLA are met for the service
• supporting continuous development and improvement of the service (new systems and processes) as required

• proven experience in reaching and establishing strong relationships with hidden or underserved communities in person
• significant experience developing peer support communities
• proven experience of recruiting, managing, training and supporting volunteers in community settings with an emphasis on understanding and working with vulnerable volunteers
• proven experience of ensuring outcomes and impacts of services are evidenced through high-quality data collection
• evidence of developing and delivering training/support to volunteers, based on the needs of service users (in this case kinship carers)
• strong facilitation skills and essential experience of peer support or user-led groups with charity beneficiaries
• proven experience of using a customer relationship management system effectively (we use Salesforce)
• in-depth understanding of safeguarding, particularly around vulnerable families
• excellent communication and engagement skills, with good attention to detail

• lived experience of kinship care
• understanding of children’s social care
• digital community building experience, using tools like Facebook and WhatsApp
• full, clean driving licence and access to a car