Prison Peer Support Lead

Location: Shepherd’s Bush

Salary: £28,207 per annum

Vacancy Type: Permanent

Closing Date: 12^th December 2025

Ready to lead change from the inside out? Join our passionate team at HMP Wormwood Scrubs and help shape a recovery-focused, peer-led culture within the prison.

We’re looking for a Peer Support Lead to join our integrated substance misuse team at HMP Wormwood Scrubs—a closed category men’s prison in West London. This is a unique opportunity to shape and lead peer-led recovery initiatives that empower individuals to take control of their health and wellbeing while in custody.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Recruit, train, and supervise Peer Supporters, Mentors, and Health & Wellbeing Champions (HAWCs)
• Develop and deliver peer-led interventions across all prison wings, promoting engagement and recovery pathways
• Work closely with healthcare, prison staff, and other partners to ensure joined-up, trauma-informed support
• Coordinate and support health and wellbeing initiatives that encourage service users to take ownership of their recovery
• Monitor and report on outcomes, ensuring peer-led services meet quality standards and contribute to service KPIs

What You’ll Bring:

• Experience in substance misuse, recovery services, or peer mentoring
• A strong understanding of trauma-informed and person-centred approaches
• Excellent communication, coordination, and leadership skills
• Confidence working in a secure environment and engaging with diverse stakeholders
• Flexibility to work some evenings and weekends as part of a rota

Why This Role Matters:

This role is central to building a recovery-focused culture within the prison. By championing lived experience and peer support, you’ll help service users develop confidence, purpose, and resilience—laying the foundation for successful reintegration into the community.

Why Join Us?

• Be part of a mission-driven team making a real difference in people’s lives
• Lead innovative, peer-led programmes that are transforming prison recovery services
• Work in a collaborative, supportive environment with opportunities for growth
• Help shape a more compassionate, effective approach to substance misuse in custody 

Please note the role includes an Interim allowance of £3000 reviewed every 6-months, basic salary based on 35 hours would be £25,207.00. This interim scheme will be reviewed on 31st March 2026. 

About Us

We are The Forward Trust, the social enterprise with charitable status that empowers people to break the often interlinked cycles of crime and addiction to move forward with their lives. For more than 25 years we have been working with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past. We believe that anyone is capable of lasting change. Our services have supported thousands of people to make positive changes and build productive lives with a job, family, friends and a sense of community.

We are committed to our cause and the work we carry out as a charity. Equally the wellbeing and the employees who work for us are also important. Joining us an employee, we will offer you the following benefits:

• Flexible working
• Training and development opportunities
• Simply Health Cashback Scheme (optional)
• Season Ticket Loan Scheme 
• Cycle to work scheme
• Crisis Loan Scheme
• Electric Car Scheme
• 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata'd for part time employees)
• Access to Blue Light Card
• 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays 
• Contributory Pension Scheme – Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years’ service and up to 9% thereafter 
• Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary) 
• Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)

Diversity at Forward Trust

The Forward Trust commits to providing opportunities to everyone. We want to ensure we have a diverse team with a range of lived and professional experiences. This includes those with ‘Lived Experience’ of addiction, offending, or homelessness.

When we recruit, we welcome applications from everyone. This is inclusive of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and/or belief, marriage and civil partnerships, pregnancy and maternity and socio-economic background. Where operationally possible, we will consider flexible working requests and make reasonable adjustments for all roles.

Employee Screening and Eligibility to Work

We recognise the importance of safeguarding, dependent on role you may be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service Check, details of which will be shared with you at interview.

If successful in your application, you will be required to provide eligibility to work evidence in line with the ‘Eligibility to Work in the UK’ requirements.

To Apply

If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for the Forward Trust, please proceed through the following link to be redirected to their website to complete your application.

https://careers.forwardtrust.org.uk/vacancies/295/prison-peer-support-lead.html

Contact information

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