Peer Mentoring

What’s a peer mentor?

A peer-mentor is another name for a befriender, the difference is that there is a goal involved. Young volunteers, aged 18-25ish (often students but not always) fill out an application form and send it via email or the post! Then they meet Sue Mackay (Volunteer Manager) and we see if they want to take up the opportunity.

They are then trained and disclosure checked to spend some time with a young carer for a couple of hours a week out in the community. Young carers interested in having a mentor are matched by each of you filling out a “matchmaker”.

The idea is to have fun, build a relationship and work towards that personal goal. There are some “rules” and these are in a leaflet given to you and your family to read.

A goal might be to have some “me” time, try new experiences, build on confidence and self esteem or develop independence by, for instance, learning to travel by bus together. The goal is your choice but if you are not sure what it could be you can get help by filling out a “How am I”.

It is also an opportunity to have someone to talk to. 

What do you do with a mentor?

You chat if you want to or do things like explore places, near your home and maybe in town. Visit museums or attractions, treat yourselves to cappuccinos or ice cream and save up if you want to do something special. You may have your own ideas and you can also use “explore” to get you started. This is helpful to the mentors too as many of them are not only not from Edinburgh but come from all over the world!

Some matches meet weekly and some meet fortnightly. The budget remains the same whichever you choose.

This mentoring opportunity allows you to see and do things you might not manage otherwise but more than that it is a chance to spend some time just being yourself, with someone who is there for you. The matches last for 6-12 months

When the match has ended, both mentor and young carer fill out an evaluation form. This is so we can see how the match went and if there is anything we can do to make future matches better.

The project has been live since 2009, in that time we have matched 35 young carers with mentors.