Employability Mentor – Pathways to Work
Pathways to Work provides pre-employment support to refugees, asylum seekers and other vulnerable migrants, through a combination of employability and ‘working English’ group sessions, and 1:1 mentoring.
We are looking for volunteers to mentor clients on a 1:1 basis. Employability Mentors will provide clients with extra, tailored support with goal-setting, getting ready for work, volunteering or education, and with their English language.
What are the main duties?
- Hold 1:1 weekly sessions with your mentee/s at set times, via Zoom
- Check in by phone with the designated staff member
- Set goals with your mentee/s and work with project staff to develop a support plan for your mentee/s
- Prepare activities to support your mentee/s with the development of their English language abilities and other learning needs
- Help your mentee/s to navigate the job market: assist them with looking for work or volunteer opportunities, support them with applications and preparation for interviews
- Support and encourage your mentee/s to access other services and opportunities being delivered remotely or face-to-face
- Maintain regular contact with project staff, to feedback on mentee progress and to flag any concerns, including completion of a weekly mentoring log
What is the time commitment?
- 30 minutes for a video call interview and chat about the project
- 5 hours of online Refugee Action induction and role-specific training, delivered across two sessions and organised according to your availability
- 2.5 hours per week for the planning, delivery, and reporting of mentoring sessions.
- Ongoing training opportunities to meet your support and development needs (Optional)
- Refugee Action volunteers commit to the service for at least two cohorts of mentoring – this is the equivalent of 16-24 weeks (roughly four to six months). With breaks inbetween mentoring cohorts the time spent in this role is flexible.
Where would I be based?
- This is a remote volunteering opportunity – you would be volunteering from home, using video calls and email
What support and benefits can I expect to get?
- Online induction and training
- Ongoing support and wellbeing checks from Volunteer project staff
- Access to development opportunities such as extra training and workshops, to improve skills such as active listening, and increase cultural awareness and knowledge of our specific context and the charity sector as a whole
- Opportunity to gain a variety of skills and experience, meet new people and make a lasting impact on clients’ lives
What skills are we looking for?
- Ability to listen and respond to mentees’ needs and build their confidence, taking an empowerment approach
- Ability to work with people from a range of ages, backgrounds and cultures. Experience of this would be an advantage
- Ability to complete tasks using own initiative
- Ability to record information accurately and update our database
- Ability to volunteer within confidentiality and safeguarding guidelines
- Ability to provide support to people who might be emotionally vulnerable
- Ability to communicate clearly and accurately, with a good standard of English
- Up-to-date knowledge of your sector/industry and the world of work
- Punctuality and reliability
- Willingness to develop new knowledge and skills
- Those with lived experience as a refugee, asylum seeker or migrant are encouraged to apply
We ask for 2 references from all our volunteers.
We welcome applications from people with lived experience as a refugee, asylum seeker or migrant. We are committed to making every reasonable adjustment to the workplace or working arrangements to accommodate people with disabilities or specific learning difficulties.
If you have any questions about this role please contact SamuelF@refugee-action.org.uk. If you’d like to apply please use the button below.
Apply now