Full-time Bilingual Family Peer Supporter – (Helpline and One-on-One)

About PLEO 

Helping parents of children facing mental health challenges find their way forward.  

PLEO is an incorporated non-profit family peer support organization for parents whose children to age 25 are facing mental health challenges. We are staffed with parents who have supported their own children with these challenges – we have travelled the journey. 

We support parents of children, youth, or young adults who are struggling, with or without a diagnosis, and across a broad range of challenges including ADHD, anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, learning disabilities, schizophrenia, autism, eating disorders, addiction, and others. 

Our proven model of family support is unique within Ontario. Our integrated services include a parent’s helpline providing peer support and guidance in navigating a fragmented mental health system; facilitated parent support groups where families can share information and learn from one another, and more intensive one-on-one family peer support. 

Our services continuously deliver tremendous positive results. More than 90% of parents who have used our services report feeling better able to cope, better able to support their child, and better able to access the services they need. They also report feeling less anxious, stressed, and isolated. 

In addition to working directly with families, we champion positive system change to create a more effective, family focused approach to mental health care. Through collaboration with service providers and key stakeholders, we ensure that the real needs of the thousands of families we support are understood.  

We know first-hand that parents play a significant role in their child’s outcomes and research supports this. We recognize that parents can’t do it alone. We understand the challenges and the stressors on families, and we believe that recovery is possible. Hope over despair. 

Our vision is that families facing mental health challenges can flourish, stigma-free, with the support and services they need. For more information, please visit  pleo.on.ca. 

Position:  We are currently seeking a Full-time Bilingual Family Peer Supporter to join our growing team in Ottawa.  

Reporting to the Program Manager, the primary responsibilities include answering our confidential Parent’s Helpline, and providing one-on-one support to families whose children are experiencing mental health challenges.   

As a Family Peer Supporter, lived experience as a parent or caregiver supporting your child with mental health and/or addiction challenges is required.   

Primary Responsibilities: 

• Support parents/caregivers who are concerned with their child’s mental health and/or addiction challenges. Offering emotional support, helping to understand, navigate, and advocate within the mental health system and connect to resources, and providing tools and knowledge to build capacity to best care for themselves and their child. Support Caregivers in establishing goals and researching relevant information and resources.  

• Support parents/caregivers one-on-one in our Individual Support Program: Meeting weekly over a two-month period, support parents/caregivers to identify and achieve goals that build capacity to best care for themselves and their child. This includes offering emotional support, equipping parents/caregivers with effective advocacy and self-care skills, navigating the mental health and education system, and connecting to appropriate services/supports. Currently provided through video conferencing due to Covid restrictions. Once restrictions are lifted, support will be provided in person or through a combination of in person and virtual support, based on the client’s needs. 

• Represent PLEO in the local community: Participate in agency or mental health planning committees, develop/maintain relationships with local resources and partners, and participate in education/outreach events. 

• Reporting: Maintaining accurate and timely confidential records to ensure continuity of care within PLEO’s full model of support, for program evaluation and tracking. 

• Ongoing training and professional development: Actively and independently keep up-to-date on mental health services available in the community. Participate in regular team meetings, internal and external job-related training for continuous program and performance enhancement. 

Qualifications: 

Mandatory 

• Have lived experience as a parent/caregiver supporting your child, youth, or young adult with mental health and/or addiction challenges 

• Fluently bilingual in English and French 

• Basic knowledge of mental health and the mental health system in the Ontario region 

• Ability to demonstrate and work through a lens of sensitivity to diversity related to race, religion, culture, cognitive functioning, poverty, sexual orientation, and gender identity 

• Superior interpersonal and communication skills 

• Professional, responsible, and sensitive to confidential issues 

• Highly organized with ability to maintain accurate records 

• Ability to prioritize competing demands, and remain calm in a fast-paced environment 

• Motivated and resourceful 

• Independent worker with ability to work within a team 

• Ability to apply policies, procedures, and regulations 

• Computer proficiency 

• Current criminal records check (or willingness to obtain) 

Desired 

• Fluent in other languages an asset 

• Experience providing peer support 

• Experience working within the not-for-profit sector, community based organizations, and/or social services 

• Experience in customer service 

• Experience supporting your child as a newcomer to Canada 

• Experience with/lived experience of oppression, racism, homophobia, transphobia and/or ableism and/or personal connection to queer or trans communities of color, including newcomer and disability communities  

Compensation: 23/hr. based on skills and experience. This position is also eligible for our Employee Assistance Program benefit. 

Required: Your cover letter must include a brief account of your experience supporting your child through their journey.  Applications without clear indication you meet this qualification will not be considered. 

Application Process: 

Please send your resume and cover letter to: 

Lana Hann, Operations Manager at: [email protected] 

The application process will remain open until the position is filled.