Basic HTML Version
Practice exchange|
Peer mentoring
12 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| February 2014
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
Jenni Parker
tells DDN about the
Aurora Project Lambeth, a social
enterprise that offers volunteer-
led peer mentoring to people in
treatment
THE AURORA PROJECT LAMBETH
is situated in a quiet office on Stockwell Road in
Brixton, south London and was set up three years ago by a group of service users from
Lambeth. The project is an independent, not-for-profit social enterprise that is governed by
a board made up of service users, local residents and professionals.
The idea behind the project was to offer peer support and mentoring to individuals in
treatment for their substance use within the borough, and to promote the belief that those
in recovery have much to offer their local communities. It aimed to challenge the stereotype
that drug and alcohol users are a burden on society.
The board was successful in securing
£110,000 worth of funding from the local
primary care trust and the project continues to
be funded by the Lambeth local authority. Two
years ago I joined the organisation as their
only paid member of staff. My challenge? To
streamline the project’s operations.
I worked closely with the directors and
three service users, who gave their time to the
project on a voluntary basis, to recruit
volunteers who had been through treatment
themselves and were in recovery. We then
trained them to be peer mentors and matched
them to clients referred to us by the Lambeth
Alcohol and Drug Treatment Consortium.
The biggest challenge at this stage was
finding volunteers to give their time, but two
years on we have a team of 30 trained
volunteer peer mentors. One Aurora Project
Lambeth volunteer, who joined us six months
into his own recovery, said of his experience, ‘My time at Aurora Project Lambeth has been
one of the most positive, inspiring and fulfilling times of my life.’
My role involves the ongoing support and management of our volunteer team – ensuring
they get a good volunteering experience during their time with the project and ensuring that
they provide a great standard of support to others.
Our volunteers offer clients the chance to speak to someone who has ‘been there and
done that’. They give practical advice and information on a variety of topics, as well as
motivational support and encouragement, whether through attending groups, appointments
or meetings. Our volunteers offer clients their time, which is something that they seem to
value the most – time to work things out, to talk, to be heard.
‘It’s not clinical,’ said one client of her interaction with an Aurora Project volunteer. ‘I
know she understands and she’s been through the same thing.’
In addition to ongoing one-to-one peer mentoring, we also offer clients the chance to
come along to our art group, which is facilitated by a trained artist who is in recovery
herself. This group allows them to meet and support each other, as well as adding
structure to their day-to-day lives. It helps to raise self-esteem – and is also a way of just
having fun!
Last year we achieved the approved provider standard, a national quality standard
awarded by the Mentoring and Befriending Foundation. This standard was awarded to us
because we proved we offer an outstanding experience for our volunteers, supporting them
in their roles and in helping them to access further education. It also recognises that our
volunteers are trained thoroughly for their role, that the organisation is governed
exceptionally well and that we are offering a much needed and effective service for our
clients.
There have of course been teething problems along the way. We have learned that
although we are an independent organisation, it is vital to have the buy-in and support from
the Lambeth Treatment Consortium, ensuring communication channels are always open. We
have also learned that offering a high level of support to our volunteers is paramount when
asking people in recovery to work directly with clients, many of whom are still living chaotic
lifestyles. We do this by offering them clinical supervision, support from staff and ensuring
that the volunteers support each other.
The Aurora Project Lambeth continues to grow and has become embedded in the local
community.
Jenni Parker is the service delivery manager at Aurora Project Lambeth.
www.auroraprojectlambeth.org.uk
‘Our volunteers
offer clients
the chance to
speak to
someone who
has been there
and done that.’
Helping
Hands