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Volunteer Mentor - Women And Mentoring

Women And Mentoring - VW

This role is advertised by Volunteer West, the volunteer resource centre of Australian Multicultural Community Services on behalf of Women And Mentoring.

Organisation Description: Women and Mentoring – WAM Limited (WAM) is an early intervention, community-based crime prevention program for women, transwomen and non-binary people who are being charged, or are likely to be charged, with a criminal offence.

Position description WAM mentors are good listeners who trust that women are the experts of their own experiences. Mentors believe in a community that is safe and welcoming for all women.

WAM mentors are carefully selected, screened, and trained before working in the program. Each mentor is required to participate in regular supervision with program staff and other WAM mentors.

Key functions of the mentoring role are:

  • Building rapport: Mentors focus on listening carefully and attentively to their participant and to focus on hearing the strengths; feeding back about how utilising her strengths she may be able to manage issues and difficulties herself (rather than fixing them for her).
  • Practical Assistance: Mentors could write court support letters, assist participants to search out and access resources, send appointment reminders, and other tasks as required by the participant. Often this involves working with professional services such as court, police, and the social service sector.
  • Boundaries: The mentor is a voluntary representative of WAM and behaves professionally at all times. However, as the role is voluntary, the mentor is also required to consider when activities that are beyond the scope of their role and access assistance and referrals with informed consent from the participant.
  • Social connectedness: Mentors work with participants on connecting with the community around them. Mentors are knowledgeable about opportunities for positive connections in volunteering, employment, social, activity groups.

Responsibilities

  • To complete all required training modules for endorsement as a mentor.
  • To participate in ongoing training and to attend at least 70% of monthly Peer Supervision sessions or advise the Program Coordinator of non-attendance.
  • To conform to ethical standards of behaviour as outlined in the WAM Code of Conduct and Mentor Handbook.
  • To engage regularly and consistently as a mentor with their matched participant.
  • To abide by the policies and practices outlined in this and other related program documents.
  • To report all concerns regarding the safety of participants or others to the Program Coordinator as soon as practically possible.
  • To record information as required about contact with participants and provide Mentor Logs to the Coordinator in a timely manner.
  • To inform the Program Coordinator if any of their circumstances change that may impact on their ability or eligibility to fulfill the mentor role.
  • To provide written reports to the Program Coordinator as required.

Key Selection Criteria

ESSENTIAL
Successful applicants will identify as women and will have:

  • The ability to demonstrate effective active listening skills and exercise self-awareness
  • An alignment to WAM values (integrity, empowerment, respect, belonging, social justice)
  • Regular availability during the day, either to receive phone calls or meet face-to-face
  • The ability to exhibit a non-judgmental attitude to alternate life choices/ life-styles
  • A warm and practical approach, as well as the capacity to be assertive and set firm boundaries
  • The capacity to commit to the program for at least twelve months

DESIRABLE
Some existing knowledge of local community services and the criminal justice system would be a great advantage. We encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and non-binary people.

Limitations of Mentoring Role
Mentors do not provide legal advice. Mentors are not a replacement for counselling and other professional interventions. When faced with situations such as alcohol and other drug use, mental health issues, legal issues, family violence, or financial issues the mentor’s role is to listen, encourage and support the participant to utilise appropriate services.

Conditions of Appointment
All applicants will be required to disclose to the Program Coordinator any criminal offence history and undergo a criminal record check. A prior criminal record will not automatically disqualify a person from becoming a mentor, this will be treated confidentially and worked through on a case-by-case basis. A Working with Children Check (volunteer) is also required. If you already have a WWCC WAM will need to be added as an organisation. Two non-related character references must also be provided.