Education, Employment and Training Mentor

4YP UK Ltd; Shefford; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

4YP UK Ltd is recruiting a Youth Mentor to provide person-centred mentorship and practical support around education, employment and training for young people aged 15–18 not in education, employment or training. You will work face to face in schools or community settings, as well as digitally where needed.

Responsibilities include managing caseloads, assessing needs, co-producing progression plans, delivering CV/job-search activities and offering impartial careers guidance, with safeguarding and

Qualifications

• Experience of NEET prevention and post-16 transition support.
• Experience supporting young people who are vulnerable or facing barriers to education or work.
• Ability to build trusted, boundaried relationships with a young-person-centred approach.
• Experience delivering groupwork, employability workshops or community outreach.

Responsibilities

• Manage a flexible caseload of young people with purposeful contact and tailored support.
• Complete initial and ongoing assessments of strengths, goals, and barriers.
• Co-produce progression plans with clear goals and review dates.
• Deliver practical employability support: CVs, job-search, applications, interview prep, finances.
• Provide impartial careers information and guidance on post-16 options and referrals.

Skills

Mentoring

Caseload management

Assessment

Coaching

Relationship building

Communication skills

Education

Level 4+ careers information/advice/yg/mentoring

Equivalent demonstrable experience

Tools

Secure case recording

Job description

The Mentor will provide person-centred mentorship and practical support around education, employment and training to young people aged 15–18 who are not in education, employment or training, or at risk of this. The postholder will help young people understand their options, overcome barriers, build confidence and progress towards sustainable education, employment, training, volunteering or self-employment outcomes.

Support may be delivered face to face in schools or educational settings, in the community (eg community buildings, youth centres, library’s, community cafes) or digitally/remotely, according to each young person’s needs. The role combines one-to-one support, small-group activity, partnership working and accurate outcome monitoring.

Core responsibilities

• Manage a flexible caseload of young people, maintaining purposeful contact and adapting the intensity and format of support to individual need.
• Complete an initial and ongoing assessment of each young person’s strengths, goals, circumstances and barriers to participation.
• Co-produce clear, realistic progression plans with young people, recording goals, agreed actions, review dates and achieved outcomes.
• Deliver practical employability support, including CVs, applications, job-search skills, interview preparation, personal finance and workplace readiness.
• Provide impartial careers information, advice and guidance on post-16 education, college, training, apprenticeships, employment, volunteering and self-employment, making referrals to our team of qualified Careers Advisers as appropriate.
• Use a relational, strengths-based approach to build confidence, motivation, resilience, communication and independent career-management skills.
• Support young people through transitions, enrolment and applications, and help them sustain positive destinations once secured.
• Identify needs beyond the remit of the role and make timely, supported referrals to relevant services, including mental health, housing, health, SEND, safeguarding and justice partners.
• Plan and facilitate small-group workshops, vocational tasters or engagement activities where these meet identified need.
• Liaise with schools, colleges, the local authority, training providers, employers and community organisations to agree referral pathways and create opportunities.
• Maintain accurate, timely and confidential case records, consent information, attendance data, action plans and evidence of outcomes.
• Collect participant and mentor feedback and contribute to pre- and post-support measures, case studies and termly or quarterly reports.
• Monitor progress against agreed outputs and outcomes, including engagement, sessions delivered, skills and confidence gains, applications, interviews, enrolments and sustained positive destinations.
• Keep up to date with local education, training, apprenticeship and labour-market opportunities and share relevant information with young people and partners.
• Contribute to service development, quality assurance, team meetings, supervision, training and reflective practice.
• Capacity to support our Youth Clubs: supporting the Lead Youth Worker to deliver activities that inspire and engage young people, building positive relationships with our young people inspiring confidence and personal development.

Safeguarding and professional responsibilities

• Safeguard and promote the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults, following 4YP UK procedures and reporting concerns promptly to the designated safeguarding lead.
• Maintain professional boundaries and use safe working practices in community, digital and one-to-one settings.
• Work in accordance with data protection, confidentiality, health and safety, equality, diversity and inclusion requirements.
• Recognise that confidentiality may need to be breached where there is a safeguarding or serious welfare concern, and explain this clearly to participants.
• Undertake required safeguarding training and participate in regular case supervision.
• Approachable, confident, autonomous worker, comfortable working independently in the community.
• Experience of supporting young people who are vulnerable, disengaged or facing barriers to education, employment or training.
• Ability to build trusted, boundaried relationships while maintaining a young-person-centred and non-judgemental approach.
• Strong listening, questioning, coaching, and action-planning skills.
• Current understanding of post-16 pathways, apprenticeships, employment support and local referral options, with the ability to research unfamiliar opportunities.
• Knowledge of Bedfordshire’s education, training, employment and community-support landscape.
• Experience of partnership working and communicating effectively with young people, families and professionals.
• Ability to manage a diary and caseload, prioritise risk and need, work independently across locations and meet recording and reporting deadlines.
• Good digital and written communication skills, including secure case recording and concise outcome reporting.
• Commitment to safeguarding, inclusion, anti-discriminatory practice and the meaningful involvement of young people in decisions affecting them.
• Willingness and ability to travel across Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire.
• Relevant qualification in careers information, advice and guidance, career development, youth work, coaching or mentoring at Level 4 or above, or equivalent demonstrable experience.
• Experience of NEET prevention, post-16 transition support or work with young people with SEND, mental health needs or other complex circumstances.
• Experience delivering groupwork, employability workshops or community-based outreach.
• Training in safeguarding, trauma-informed practice, mental health first aid, motivational interviewing or related approaches.

Measures of Success

• Young people engage consistently and have clear, reviewed progression plans.
• Participants report improved confidence, motivation, goal clarity and employability skills.
• Young people take practical steps towards, enter or remain in education, employment, training, volunteering or self-employment.
• Records, safeguarding actions and reports are accurate, timely and compliant.
• Referral partners and volunteers receive responsive communication and understand their role in the support plan.
• Learning from feedback and outcome data is used to improve delivery.

Appointment conditions

This post involves direct work with young people and will be recruited in line with safer recruitment principles. Appointment will be subject to satisfactory references, proof of identity and right to work, verification of relevant qualifications, and an Enhanced DBS with barred-list check. The postholder must disclose and manage any conflicts of interest and comply with all 4YP UK policies.

Duties may reasonably evolve with participant need, funding requirements and service development, following discussion and appropriate support.