Job Summary
An exciting opportunity has become available for a Care Navigator (befriender), to be part of the Luton Community Mental Health Service provision. This role is key to improving access, experience and engagement of service users, with community resources and providers. It is ideal for someone who has lived experience of a mental health condition, or cares for someone with a mental health condition and knows the local community well. It requires the individual to be able to move freely and conveniently around the locality, connect individuals to relevant services and build partnership relationships.
Service users with a diagnosis of a Serious Mental Illness have had the lowest uptake, the poorest outcomes and experiences of services.
Our focus is to promote independence for everyone – so that people can do the things that matter most to them. We want the individual to be at the centre of everything we do and look creatively at how we can meet people’s needs.
We are proud to offer an environment that is supportive and rewarding, working as part of an extended multidisciplinary team and across primary care.
Main duties of the job
You will be expected to work with service users, families and our community networks to agree creative solutions to enable people to thrive in the community.
You will work closely with voluntary and statutory organisations from health, social care and third sector, to provide better outcomes for people and improve the service user experience.
You will provide really useful information and advice to people and their families.
You will have conversations with people to identify what they are worried about or what they want to achieve, what support they already have and what they need.
You will update persons’ on local services and solutions to suit their needs. It is your role to encourage people to be independent, to help them grow their confidence and make the most of the support available in their local community.
You will make connections with local services and work in partnership with local organisations to achieve the best outcomes for local people.
There is no upper age limit to the client group thus you will be expected to work across all gender, ethnicity and age group, of service users.
You will provide a friendly ear and ‘hand-hold’ individuals into services, stepping down or transferring from mental health services, to primary care, to improve access.
About us
Our mission is to make a positive difference to people’s lives by improving the quality of life for all we serve. Our values are: We Care, We Respect, We are Inclusive – so we are looking for people who live and breathe these qualities when supporting service users and carers, and in their relationships with colleagues in the Trust and our partner organisations.