Aboriginal Youth Mentor

• Full time, 76 hours per fortnight located in Esperance.
• Salary $37.35 p/hr + super + regional allowance of $1.01 p/hr
• Salary packaging benefits

HOPE has been a community service in Western Australia for over a century, providing much needed support to people affected by alcohol and other drugs, mental ill-health, youth justice issues and socioeconomic disadvantage. 

We have an exciting opportunity for a Aboriginal Youth Mentor to join the headspace team The position is full time, working Monday to Friday.

About the Opportunity 

The Aboriginal Youth Mentor is based at headspace Esperance and is a peer position which provides engagement to young people from a range of backgrounds, with particular attention to Aboriginal young men. This role will incorporate the incumbents lived experience to raise awareness to promote help seeking and early intervention for physical health, social and emotional wellbeing, alcohol and other drug use and vocational and educational support and facilitate access to headspace services through practical means such as transport. 

The Aboriginal Youth Mentor assists in the increase of community awareness mental health through psychoeducation on issues among Aboriginal young people, and their family and friends and assists to deliver health promotion activities, projects, and community events to engage identified target populations.  

Requirements of the Role: 

• Raise awareness and engagement of headspace Esperance through events, groups and individual mentoring support to young people via in-reach, outreach, and centre-based activities.  
• Advise on the development, implementation, and evaluation of a culturally and contextually appropriate Community Awareness Plan in which young people are the primary audience.   
• Support the planning, development, and delivery of mental health literacy education sessions for young people, parents, families and friends, sector, and community.  
• Work with the Clinical Team to ensure that health promotion messages and activities relating to Aboriginal youth mental health are consistent evidence-based and speak to community. 
• Participate in relevant community and centre-based events and activities such as headspace training activities, community events, promotional days/ weeks being Youth Week, Mental Health Week, Pride, headspace Day, R U OK Day, Pride and Reconciliation Week, and other activities within the Community Plan and on an ad hoc basis.  

About you:

• Demonstrates experience working with and engaging young people with mental health, alcohol and other drug, and other social issues.  
• Demonstrates experience coordinating and facilitating youth programs, events, or activities within a community setting.  
• Experience in the development of positive working relationships with stakeholders  
• Ability to problem solve and work creatively with young people.  
• Demonstrates ability to work effectively in a team.  
• Works to develop additional knowledge and skills.  
• Uses various styles of communication to ensure that information being delivered is tailored to the audience.  
• Ensures that communication is factual, accurate and presented in a clear and concise manner.  
• Conversant with relevant community based mental health terminology.  
• Demonstrates an understanding of organisational policies and processes and implements them appropriately.  
• Demonstrated understanding of the challenges and experiences of young people from diverse backgrounds including young people who are culturally and linguistically diverse and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders  
• Broad knowledge of the range of services available to young people in the local government, health, education, employment, and youth sectors  
• Competence regarding information technology, software packages and willingness to be trained and implement the headspace data collection tool.  

Desirable Criteria: 

• Experience in the Not for Profit and/or public health sector  
• Experience in a Youth Organisation, coordinating programs, education sessions and youth engagement and/or participation 

Appointments will be subject to Australian residency/visa, satisfactory National Police check (within 3 months), Working With Children card, Current C or A class driver's license, First Aid Certificate, and suitable work referee.

Our Culture  

Hope strives to provide a safe workplace and promotes progressive policies that prioritise the health, safety and unique needs of our team. Hope’s ambition is to be an employer of choice by supporting staff to grow, learn, innovate and achieve their potential. We invest in developing our people to sustain the workforce built on ‘growing our own’. 

Find out more about Hope on our  website. 

If you need support to submit your application, please email hr@hopecs.org.au  

Your benefits  

Knowing you are making a real difference in your community and being in a team that celebrates your successes and supports you during challenges. 

Not-for-profit salary packaging, reducing your tax (details via AccessPay).   

Discounts with a major health insurance provider. 

We offer employees and their family members access to a confidential, and professional counselling service.

What to expect next  

We vow to respond to every candidate that applies for a role at Hope/headspace.  

If your application is shortlisted, you will receive a phone call to discuss your skill further and may be invited to attend an interview either online or in person at our local office/Hub.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants are strongly encouraged to apply

HOPE acknowledges and welcomes diversity in all its forms amongst staff and clients, including culture, language, race, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex variations, religion, and socio-economic and relationship status.