Coast Mental Health·Vancouver, British Columbia
The Peer Support Specialist shares lived experience to assist clients in community housing and programs by leading healthy lifestyle initiatives. They also facilitate tenant meetings and collaborate with the mental health team to support individual client goals and documentation.
Status: Temporary, Part-time
As soon as possible.
End Date: March 31st, 2028
$33.49 - $35.31
Location: Resource Centre, Vancouver, BC
9am to 1pm - Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays
Under the direction of the Peer Support Program Manager, the Peer Support Specialist (PSS) shares their lived experience of mental illness/substance use to assist our clients living throughout our Community Homes, Supportive Housing, Licensed Care and Drop-in Day Programs (Clubhouse & Resource Centre).
Both Peer Support Specialists will lead healthy lifestyle initiatives and programs throughout these sites and will be tailoring the programs and services based on the needs of population of each site.
This work will be done with the support of the Peer Support Manager and Program Director and will be informed by listening to the tenants and members of the different sites.
Both PSS's will selected based on suitability and will need to have lived experience with a lived history of mental illness and or substance use.
This lived experience will be a critical component guiding their perspective and ability to engage and build rapport with clients.
The PSS's will also be helping to facilitate monthly tenant and member meetings at each site and will be using the feedback from these meetings to help inform future programs, healthy lifestyle activities and outings as well as other areas for change based on feedback received.
About Coast Coast Mental Health (Coast) is one of the largest mental health non-profit societies in Canada and operates a large array of innovative housing and community-based rehabilitation services for people with a mental illness living in and around Vancouver. Coast operates in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia providing approximately 1000 people with supportive housing and 4000 clients living in the community with a wide variety of programs and services.
Coast fosters a client-driven, recovery-oriented environment that promotes restoring health, personal growth and a return to society for individuals with a mental illness through advocacy and providing direct programs and services. Coast is deeply invested in cultural safety, reconciliation, and anti-racism. Our employees receive training on cultural humility, trauma-informed practice, and inclusive leadership. We strive to reflect the communities we serve and value lived experience alongside professional qualifications.
***For any unionized positions, current/internal Coast employees must apply within seven (7) days of the posting date with their internal UKG account (using their Coast email address), in order to be considered as an internal applicant. Current/internal Coast employees who apply to a unionized position using an external account (or email), or after the seven (7) day deadline will be considered an external candidate. In this case, seniority will not be considered.***
Coast Mental Health is committed to creating a culture of diversity and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion or disability.
Candidates must have lived experience with mental illness or substance use and possess a Grade 12 diploma along with a certificate in mental health or social services. One year of recent related experience and the ability to obtain First Aid, CPR, and criminal record clearance are required.
Market context
In British Columbia, behavioral-health roles often reflect ongoing demand in acute care, community mental health, and integrated service settings. These positions are competitive because employers typically look for current BC nursing registration, recent experience with acute mental illness, and comfort working on multidisciplinary teams. Review the AI-summarized requirements and benefits on this platform to quickly compare fit against the original posting, then tailor your application to show relevant mental-health and team-based experience.