Overnight Mental Health Helpline Worker

Rethink Mental Illness; Dudley, Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Walsall; Hybrid; GBP 14,000 - 17,000; Part time

Job summary

Rethink Mental Illness is seeking an Overnight Mental Health Recovery Helpline Worker to provide remote, telephone-based support during night hours. You will listen, guide and reassure callers across the Black Country, helping them identify needs and access appropriate services.

This 22-hour-per-week role involves weekend rotations, bank holiday work and a 365-day service, with a strong emphasis on recovery-focused, person-centred support and collaboration with colleagues and partner agencies.

Qualifications

• Experience supporting people affected by mental ill health or experience within health, social care or support setting (paid or voluntary).
• Excellent communication, listening and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to assess needs, identify risks and develop effective support plans.

Responsibilities

• Provide telephone-based mental health support and text support to callers.
• Complete assessments and identify immediate support needs.
• Develop and review support and safety plans with callers.
• Signpost and refer individuals to community and statutory services.

Education

QCF Diploma/NVQ Level 3 in Care

Job description

Location: Homebased
Contract: Permanent 22 hours
Salary: £15,428.23
DBS Check: Enhanced with Adults and Children

Every night, people across the Black Country reach out for support during some of their most difficult moments. As an Overnight Mental Health Recovery Helpline Worker, you'll be there to listen, guide, reassure and help people find hope when they need it most.

At Rethink Mental Illness, we believe that everyone severely affected by mental illness deserves understanding, expertise and the opportunity to live a better quality of life. You'll be part of a compassionate and skilled team providing vital out-of-hours support to people experiencing urgent mental health concerns.

About the role

This post is a Overnight Mental Health Helpline Worker, working 22 hours

Working from home, you'll provide telephone-based mental health support to callers of all ages across Dudley, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Walsall. Every conversation is different. You could be helping someone manage overwhelming anxiety, supporting a person experiencing suicidal thoughts, de-escalating a crisis, or helping someone access longer-term support in their community.

You'll use a recovery-focused approach, helping people identify their strengths, manage risks, build resilience and take positive steps towards improved wellbeing.

Working pattern

The helpline has a weekend rota in place, requiring staff to work one full weekend (Saturday & Sunday) every 4 weeks

The helpline runs 365 days a year, the post holder is required to work bank holidays. Annual Leave is not permitted over the Christmas and New Year period; at this time, we operate a rota where staff are permitted to work three 4-hour shifts alongside their usual hours.

The overnight rota includes:

• 3am - 8am (three shifts per week)
• 1am - 8am (one shift per week)
• One full weekend every four weeks
• Bank holiday working required
• The service operates 365 days a year

What you'll be doing

• Providing compassionate, person-centred support via telephone and text.
• Completing assessments and identifying immediate support needs.
• Developing and reviewing support and safety plans.
• Supporting callers to manage risks and build coping strategies.
• Signposting and referring individuals to appropriate community and statutory services.
• Working closely with colleagues, volunteers and partner agencies.
• Maintaining accurate records and case notes.
• Contributing to a safe, high-quality and continuously improving service.

What we're looking for

We're looking for someone who is calm, resilient and passionate about supporting people experiencing mental health challenges.

Essential criteria

• Experience supporting people affected by mental ill health, or experience within a health, social care or support setting (paid or voluntary).
• Ability to assess needs, identify risks and develop effective support plans.
• Strong understanding of mental health and recovery-focused support.
• QCF Diploma/NVQ Level 3 in Care, Certificate in Community Mental Healthcare (or equivalent), or willingness to work towards a relevant qualification.
• Excellent communication, listening and problem-solving skills.
• A commitment to our values and CARES behaviours.

What it's like to work here

This is a rewarding role where you'll have a genuine impact on people's lives. The work can involve discussions relating to suicide, self-harm, abuse and other distressing situations. To support our colleagues, we provide regular supervision, debrief opportunities and access to wellbeing support.

Why join Rethink Mental Illness?

At Rethink Mental Illness, we're driven by our values of Passion, Commitment, Openness, Hope, Expertise, Understanding and Equity. We're committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive and where every colleague contributes to improving mental health support across the UK.