Lived Peer Support Advocate

Hours: Based around your availability / Contract

Closing date: 24/08/2026

Job reference: LEP-261

Are you a proactive, collaborative and compassionate individual with proven experience of working positively with adults to engage successfully despite ‘challenging’ behaviour? Do you have the ability to be a positive role model, demonstrating the virtues of engaging with treatment support services? If so, St Giles is looking for a Lived Experience Peer Volunteer to join our team and provide interventions and build meaningful, peer‑led relationships with service users to encourage them to engage in drug and alcohol treatment following arrest.

An ambitious, well‑established charity that helps people facing adversity to find jobs, homes and the right support they need. Central to our ethos is our belief that people with first‑hand experience of successfully overcoming issues such as an offending background, homelessness, addictions and gang involvement hold the key to positive change in others.

As a Peer Volunteer, you will increase client engagement with drug and alcohol treatment services by providing vital peer‑led support and building trust and motivation among a client group that has been historically disengaged/not offered support previously. You will provide holistic, short‑term intervention to bridge the gap between referral and full treatment engagement, capture client experiences and barriers to improve service design and accessibility and develop a strong service user voice to inform future service improvements.

Areas of support from Peer Volunteers may also include initial engagement and motivation such as welcome calls, check‑ins, peer‑led conversations and motivational chats over coffee. You may also offer practical support such as appointment reminders, transport assistance and paperwork support, plus help to build positive routines such as activity‑based engagement and supporting small lifestyle changes, including meal planning, budgeting, and time management.

• Personal experience of the criminal justice system or lived experience of the issues facing this client group (i.e. experience of substance misuse and recovery)
• Proven experience of working in a high‑intensity environment, being self‑motivating, with an ability to effectively manage your own wellbeing
• Knowledge of the issues facing those arrested for potential criminal offences
• Knowledge of, and commitment to, safeguarding practices and policies
• The ability to use monitoring systems to record all aspects of the work
• Excellent interpersonal, relationship‑building and communication skills, verbal and written

Please note:

as an organisation that works with adults at risk we are committed to safeguarding, protecting and promoting the safety of our clients and successful applicants will be subject to an Enhanced Adult DBS check.

We are an equity and inclusion‑confident employer. We welcome all applications, and we particularly encourage applications from people of the global majority (black, brown, multi‑heritage) and those who identify as disabled, neuroexpansive, neurodiverse, with any protected characteristics and/or social barriers or challenges. We value the empowering and informative impact that all lived experiences and diversity of thought can offer the organisation.

St Giles will guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria set out in the Job Description for the vacancy.

We will be reviewing applications as they are received and reserve the right to close this advert early if a suitable candidate is appointed. We therefore strongly encourage early applications to avoid any disappointment.

Interviews to be held on a rolling basis.