Overview
ESCAPE Family Support was founded on the basis of mutual support, recognising the real difference this can make for families affected by substance abuse. We believe the opportunity to connect with others affected by similar challenges, to share experiences, support each other and learn together makes a vital difference.
We have a pool of volunteer befrienders and peer mentors who are trained to support individuals and work alongside our family support workers.
Our befrienders provide friendly social contact on a regular basis to individuals facing social isolation. This valuable support can be face to face or over the telephone. It could involve a cup of tea and a chat, accompanying people to appointments or activities or simply a regular check-in to see how things are progressing. The nature of the befriending will depend on the individual situation. Our support workers and volunteer co-ordinator will work closely with you to ensure that the befriending support offered continues to meet your needs.
Peer mentors build on and extend the support that is offered by our dedicated support workers. The purpose of the role is to help people make positive change in their lives and to build their confidence to access services, activities and social opportunities that they might otherwise struggle to benefit from.
Our peer mentors are people who have lived through similar challenges to those faced by our families and can use that experience to support others. They provide one to one support to clients and help facilitate some of our personal development groups.
A number of people who initially seek support from ESCAPE go on to become volunteer befrienders and peer mentors themselves. We provide free training which can lead onto ONCN Level 2 accredited qualifications in either Peer Mentoring or Supporting Families Affected by Addiction.