Become a mentor

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Can you listen, share your experiences, and offer encouragement? Someone needs a mentor like you!

As a Mentor:  

  • Over 12 to 24 weeks, you will support your mentee to help them to achieve their goals and get them where they want to be. This involves encouraging your mentee to consider future options and assist them in developing strategies to attain their goals.
  • Develop a trusting, supportive, and non-judgemental relationship, empowering mentees to identify goals they wish to achieve. 
  • Provide emotional, social, and practical support to your mentee.
  • Support your mentee to make social connections with their local community, services or groups.  

 

What’s In It For You?

  • By becoming a mentor with Unfold, you will be contributing to supporting those who often face exclusion. Although we are open to everyone, 85% of the families we support are single-parent households led by a woman,  93% of our service users are from minoritized communities, 60% of our referrals come from other supporting services, and, in the last 18 months, we have expanded and adapted our services to support Afghan evacuees and asylum seekers.
  • You will be trained to deliver excellent and effective mentoring, both initially and through continued supervision sessions, positively impacting both your mentee and yourself and building skills that are transferrable, such as empathic leadership, active listening, and coaching-style approaches.
  • Have fun and put a smile on someone’s face!
  • Have the opportunity to join in volunteer fun and enrichment days. 

 

Who Are We Looking For?

There is no one-size-fits-all: your individuality is what makes you unique!  We welcome volunteers from all backgrounds aged 18+ with life experience, who will be committed to help others on their journey to Unfold their full potential.

We asked our Youth Advisory Council what qualities they feel a mentor should have and we couldn’t agree more!

• Mindfulness – “as a mentor you need to be open-minded, you need to always be mindful about what your mentee is feeling so they don’t feel like they are forced, or the session is about you”

• Good listener – “asking good questions and being genuinely interested, so your mentee feels more welcome and cared for”

• Patient – “as a mentee, having a mentor can feel strict at first, and they might need some time before getting into the flow of sessions”

• Relatable – “understanding your mentees’ interests or experiences and being able to share your experiences with them”

Requirements and Commitments:  

All mentors will be required to complete a DBS check and provide 2 references, one of which should come from someone you know in a professional capacity.  

Commitment – 12-24 in-person sessions lasting around 1 hour, in person, on the phone, or online. 

Availability Required – Times and days will vary depending on what works for you and your mentee, as well as the programme you are supporting. 

  • Mentoring for Mothers: Weekdays during school hours – only for individuals who identify as women or non-binary.
  • Mentoring for Children and Young People: After school and weekends.

Mentors will meet local to where their mentee lives, with the majority of mentees being based in Westminster. However, we do also provide mentoring for those within the surrounding boroughs.