Family & Carer Peer Practitioner

Opportunity to support families & carers of those with mental health challenges utilising your own lived expertise

• Two Permanent, Part-Time roles (32hr per week and 22.8hr per week)
• Loddon Mallee Mental Health & Wellbeing Connect | Bendigo Location

Mind strongly encourages applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, people with a lived experience of mental ill health and recovery, and applicants from all cultures, genders, sexualities, bodies, abilities, spiritualities, ages and backgrounds.

Mind Australia is one of the country's leading community-managed specialist mental health service providers with a range of residential, mobile outreach, centre based and online services. We have been supporting people living with the day-to-day impacts of mental illness, as well as their families, friends and carers for over 45 years.

We provide practical and motivational support that helps people to develop the skills they need to move on, thrive and improve the quality of their lives. It's an approach to mental health and wellbeing that looks at the whole person in the context of their daily life. Mind is committed to diversity and social inclusion.

The Loddon Mallee Mental Health and Wellbeing Connect Centre will operate across the Loddon Mallee region through a partnership with Mallee Family Care. Centres have been established in Bendigo, Swan Hill and Mildura along with satellite sites across the region. Families, carers and supporters seeking information, advice, referral and peer support will be able to access Centre-based services, receive outreach support and support through telephone and other virtual platforms.

Staff will have a lived or living experience as a family member, carer or supporter of someone living with mental ill-health and will deliver services utilising a relational recovery approach, trauma informed practice and peer support. One-on-one support and group-based support will be provided including Mind Recovery College.

We are seeking two resilient, compassionate Family and Carer Peer Practitioners for two Permanent Part-Time (32 hours per week and 22.8 hours per week) opportunities in the Bendigo area. You will champion the voice of Living Experience, advocate for human rights and provide an alternative to traditional mental health responses through the practice of mutuality.

• Demonstrate knowledge and abilities gained from both an individual\'s Family/Carer lived/living experiences, collective impacts, and Lived Expertise.
• Support your team to understand and deliver services and approaches that are consistent with relational recovery-oriented practice from a peer/Lived Experience perspective.
• Deliver solution-focused, peer-led support either on a one-on-one basis or via facilitation of peer-led groups, where required.
• Provide services through a range of modalities including centre based and outreach, virtual and direct, both individually and in groups, where required.
• Engage with local mental health and alcohol and other drug services, and community-based organisations such as schools and neighbourhood houses, to identify family/carers and provide early support.

• Completion of Intentional Peer Support Core and/ or Advanced Training, or Certificate IV in Mental Health Peer Work, is desirable but not required.
• Has a lived/living experience as a family member, carer or supporter of someone who is experiencing, or has experienced mental ill-health and/or substance use challenges and understanding of, and ability and willingness to, contribute this Lived Expertise in working towards collective organisational impact.
• Signification experience in using lived experience and Expertise in a dedicated Family/Carer Peer role strongly desirable.
• Experience and/or commitment to learning how to provide empathic person-centred relational support, while starting to recognise positionality, relative power and privilege.

To apply visit Mind Careers - reference number 498180. Online applications must be submitted by 11pm Friday 19 September 2025. We encourage you to apply promptly as the advertisement may close early should a suitable applicant be sourced. Please contact the person below for more information.

Jo Pallant, Service Manager VIC North Western Region

jo.pallant@mindaustralia.org.au

PD - Family and Carer Peer Practitioner - Wellbeing Connect 20250904.pdf

The successful applicant is required to complete comprehensive reference and background checking prior to employment, including a Working with Children Check, NDIS Workers Screening.

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments to provide a positive, barrier-free recruitment process. If you require any support or reasonable adjustments to complete your application, please contact us at hr@mindaustralia.org.au