What is a Peer Support Worker?
A Peer Support Worker is when people use their own experiences to support others who are having similar experiences. Examples of this are a Peer Support Worker who has experienced psychosis supporting service users with psychosis or a carer Peer Support Worker supporting family members of someone who has entered an inpatient ward.
Peer Support complements the support given by healthcare professionals to inspire hope and empower others to reach their own individual recovery goals and make sense of their personal recovery journey.
Peer Support Workers (PSWs) use their lived experience of mental health challenges, recovery and use of services to support people who are facing similar experiences. Their role is to build supportive, trusting relationships based on shared understanding and mutual learning.
They work alongside clinicians and other professionals within Multi-Disciplinary Teams, offering support that complements existing services.
Peer Support Workers connect with people through empathy, openness and shared experience. They use their lived experience safely and appropriately to promote hope and demonstrate that recovery is possible.
Peer support is relational and values-based rather than medical. PSWs work in a trauma-informed way that is non-judgemental, respectful and focused on trust, mutuality and empowerment.
Peer Support Workers provide emotional and practical support to help people feel understood, less isolated and more confident in their recovery.
They help people to:
• Develop hope and belief in recovery
• Build confidence and a sense of control
• Identify strengths and coping strategies
• Connect with services, communities and sources of support
Through supportive peer relationships, PSWs help people move forward in ways that feel meaningful to them.
