In a recent celebration at the Recovery Café in Camden, our Camden Recovery and Islington Aftercare services and our partner organisation CGL welcomed 11 new Peer Mentors to the team.

These dedicated volunteers, all of whom have overcome alcohol or substance misuse issues, will now use their skills and experience to support others on their recovery journeys.

New Peer Mentor Katie said: “The best thing about training to be a Peer Mentor was the people leading the training. Throughout the process, I learned about myself, received great encouragement and learnt lots of different topics.

“Graduating has given me an enormous sense of achievement. I’m looking forward to being able to give back and to using my experience to help others.

“Becoming a Peer Mentor is also important for my own recovery. It reminds me where I came from and keeps me grounded.”

The new Peer Mentors will go on to do a variety of roles within our services, including running support groups and drop-in sessions in treatment services throughout Camden and Islington.

Rosie Fowler, Volunteer and Peer Mentor Co-ordinator for SHP’s Camden Recovery and Islington Aftercare services said: “We are delighted to welcome 11 outstanding individuals into The Camden Recovery Service and Islington Aftercare at SHP and at CGL in Camden and Islington.

“The new group of Peer Mentors have been absolutely incredible throughout the four week accredited training course. They have been a thoughtful, good humoured and committed group throughout the course and I am sure they will bring these fantastic qualities into their new roles as Peer Mentors across both organisations.

“During the training we covered some thought-provoking topics including, boundaries, conflict resolution and drug and alcohol awareness and each member of the group brought something interesting and insightful to the discussions.”