Experts by Experience
The Refugee Resettlement Service at St Helens Borough Council is recruiting Experts by Experience who have lived experience as refugees, asylum seekers or other migrants in St Helens. The service values the experiences of our residents and wants to enable participation among new and emerging communities in the Borough.
Experts by Experience act as the voices of refugees, asylum seekers and other international migrants in the Borough. You will contribute to the continuing development and improvement of services to make sure that people are accessing the services that they want and need.
The Experts by Experience will be part of a Panel that will, among other things:
- Engage with service users, assess their needs and aspirations and report these to service providers.
- Contribute to the planning, delivery, monitoring and evaluation of public and other services, including the Refugee Resettlement Service, other services St Helens Borough Council, and the public sector more widely.
- Help services become more responsive and inclusive of those needs and aspirations.
- Participate in activities and events where they can influence decision makers and other staff in public and other services, including staff and multi-agency meetings, consultations, training and awareness-raising sessions, and research panels.
- Develop leadership and knowledge within refugee, asylum-seeker, and migrant communities in St Helens, contributing to their full integration in St Helens.
As an Expert by Experience, you will be offered a programme of training activities focused on developing leadership and related skills, improving understanding of public services in the UK, and increasing networking and social capital. Other benefits from becoming an Expert by Experience in the Refugee Resettlement Service include:
- Better awareness of rights, entitlements, and responsibilities.
- Having a say in the way that services are planned and delivered.
- Connecting with people from different backgrounds in the local community.
- Improved confidence and English language skills.
- Learning how to represent and advocate for your community.
- A sense of pride and empowerment.
- Opportunities to develop your existing professional skills and interests.
Experts by Experience will be paid £20 an hour, or £75 for half day and £140 for full day activities. Please note that the work required from Experts by Experience will be occasional, and the Refugee Resettlement Service cannot guarantee any level of earnings from this role.
You are invited to apply if you meet the following person specification criteria:
- Lived experience as a refugee, asylum seeker, or other international migrant in St Helens.
- You must be 18 years old or over and a resident of St Helens or have lived in the Borough for at least one year.
- An understanding of the issues faced by people who are refugees, asylum seekers or other migrants.
- Good communication and interpersonal skills.
- Confidence to take part in meetings both online and in person and contribute their opinions and feedback.
- Ability to work with others, take part in constructive discussion, and respect other viewpoints.
- Willingness to share your knowledge and experience and to give open and honest feedback.
- Ability to read information to prepare for meetings.
- Reliability and good time keeping.
- Good IT skills, including the ability to communicate by e-mail and participate in online meetings.
- Willingness and ability to travel independently to in person meetings.
- Commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.
- Good level of English proficiency (speaking, listening, reading, and writing), evidenced by qualification (ESOL Entry 3 or above) and/or interview.
We encourage applications from people from diverse backgrounds, including gender, nationality, immigration status, sexual orientation, disability, cultural background, religion, and so on.
Please contact Michael Melia, Refugee Resettlement Project Officer at St Helens Borough Council, for more information and an application pack - michaelmelia@sthelens.gov.uk.
If you would like to discuss this role informally, please contact Saulo Cwerner (07841 535140; saulocwerner@sthelens.gov.uk) or Michael Melia (07923 241346 michaelmelia@sthelens.gov.uk).
The deadline for applications is Friday 17th January 2025 at 5:00pm. Late applications may not be considered at this time. Candidates who meet the criteria for the role will be invited for an interview, which will take place in January and February 2025.
Please see the application form along with the role advertisement and service specification:
EbE Role Advertisement v4 (PDF, 177 KB)
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