Senior Peer Worker - Mental Health

About Our Lived & Living Experience Workforce at Monash Health

Monash Health is one of the largest Lived and Living Experience Workforce employers in Victoria, encompassing both Consultants and Peer Workers. Our Peer Workforce, which includes both Consumer and Family/Carer Peer Workers, is integral to several of our inpatient units, community teams, emergency departments, and drug and alcohol services. We are dedicated to fostering a safe and supportive workplace, reinforced by strong professional leadership, reflective supervision, and opportunities for connection through co-reflection, employee forums, and ongoing professional development.

About the Clayton HOPE Team

The Clayton HOPE (Hospital Outreach Post-suicidal Engagement) program is a mental health initiative by Monash Health designed to provide intensive support for individuals after a suicidal crisis or self-harm event to reduce the risk of repeat attempts. 

This Victoria-wide program, which originated at Monash Health in Clayton, offers up to 12 weeks of support through a multidisciplinary team, including psychosocial support workers, mental health clinicians, and peer workers with lived experience. Services include developing personalised safety plans, psychological support to build coping skills, and connecting individuals and their families with ongoing community resources. 

• The model, developed by Monash Health’s adult mental health services at Clayton (Clayton HOPE), comprises five levels of care:
• Early engagement and empathetic support (within 24 hours of referral)
• Assessment of psychosocial needs and suicidal risk (within 72 hours of referral)
• Construction of a personal safety plan (within 7 days of referral)
• Implementation of the personal safety plan and risk management (weeks 2–12)
• Discharge and handover to ongoing supports (12 weeks from enrolment) 

What sets this model apart is that the client’s first contact is with a peer support worker—someone with lived experience of mental health challenges or suicidal ideation. This peer support worker has a deep understanding of the client’s difficulties and offers empathetic, informed care. 

The study reviews the Clayton HOPE program, which operates within Monash Health—Victoria’s largest public health service, serving one-quarter of Melbourne’s population. Prior to the program’s implementation, individuals presenting to the Emergency Psychiatry Service (EPS) or identified by the Crisis Assessment and Treatment Teams (CATT) were typically referred to traditional mental health services. 

Clayton HOPE employs an assertive outreach model designed to connect with clients who struggle to engage with conventional services and who require a more flexible approach to care. 

About the Role

As integral members of our multidisciplinary teams, Peer Workers bring their lived and living experience to support others through the Intentional Peer Support (IPS) model. This approach emphasizes authentic connection, respect for diverse perspectives, mutuality, and shared experiences to foster growth, collaboration, and hope for recovery. 

Consumer Peer Workers offer individual and group support, empowering individuals to engage actively in their treatment and recovery journey. Family/Carer Peer Workers assist carers and family members, providing guidance in their supportive roles and helping them contribute to the treatment and recovery planning for the person they are caring for. 

As a Senior Peer Worker at HOPE your role can include:

• Mentor and support level two peer workers.
• Support non-peer workers on the team through the consumer perspective.
• Contribute consumer perspective to psychosocial review and team meetings.
• Provide reflective supervision to level two peer workers outside your team.
• Build a caseload of consumers to support.
• See consumers one to one. 
• Support consumers in appointments.
• Work as a member of a multidisciplinary team.
• Support the consumer perspective in multidisciplinary team meetings.
• Design and co-facilitate consumer groups. 

About You

As a designated family/carer lived experience role, you will have a declared personal experience of directly caring for a family member living with mental illness, and experience of the mental health system. You have demonstrated professional experience as a level two lived experience family/carer peer worker for more than one year.

You possess a deep understanding of mental health challenges through your own lived experience as a family/carer and are passionate about supporting others. You have a genuine commitment to enhancing the lives of individuals caring for a family member with mental health difficulties. With a strong focus on inclusion, diversity, and person-centred care, you bring excellent communication and interpersonal skills to your work. Your enthusiasm, compassion, and ability to collaborate effectively within a multidisciplinary team set you apart. You are driven to pursue a meaningful and purposeful career, with a desire to grow as a lived experience health professional. 

What You Need 

As a senior peer worker you will demonstrate the following key skills, experience and knowledge (see attached Position Description for a complete list of requirements): 

• Declared personal experience of caring directly of a family member living with mental illness, including experience as a mental health service user. 

• Ability to use your own lived experience to inspire hope in belief and recovery. 

• Knowledge of peer work principles and the ability to support others from a mutual perspective. 

• Completion of Intentional Peer Support (IPS) training. 

• At least one year professional experience as a level two consumer peer worker. 
   
   

What the Lived & Living Experience Workforce at Monash Health offers: 

• Comprehensive orientation and induction program. 

• Up to 2 hours reflective supervision per month, plus group co-reflection spaces. 

• Support and mentoring from Peer Work Leads. 

• Higher Education Recognition Allowance. 

• Funded Lived & Living Experience professional development and training opportunities. 

• Regular Lived & Living Experience Workforce forums.

Monash Health employees enjoy a range of benefits including:   

• Salary packaging options that increase your take-home pay. 

• Comprehensive Health and Wellbeing program. 

• Free flu vaccinations. 

• Private health insurance at discounted rates. 

• Health imaging services. 

• + more

For a confidential discussion and to explore the opportunity further, please call Ann Gallagher on 0429 453 980.

Position Description can be found here

We recognise the value of equal employment opportunity. We are committed to patient safety, promoting fairness, equity and diversity in the workplace and to Child Safe Standards. At Monash Health we are relentless in our pursuit of excellence and work to our six guiding principles and our five ICare values. 

Respectfully, applications from recruitment agencies will not be accepted.

How to Apply 

Applications are accepted via the Monash Health online EHub system. For information including how to apply and probity check requirements, please click here for the ‘Application Guide’ 

Applications will be screened upon receipt and selection activity may commence prior to the closing date.  

Applications close January 29th, 2026.