Mentoring Plus provides volunteer-led mentoring services and activities for 7 to 21 year olds in Bath & NE Somerset who are facing significant challenges (up to age 25 with a SEND diagnosis).
We’re pleased to announce that we are opening for applications to refer young people in B&NES aged 11-25 (year 7 and above) for volunteer mentoring. You’ll have a full week to submit this information from 9am on Tuesday 7th May to 12pm on Tuesday 14th May. Applications are by email only.
To maximise fairness and access for everyone, your application to refer will just include basic contact details and confirmation that the young person seeking mentoring meets all of our criteria.
It will then be included in a blind ballot. The first applicants drawn at random will be contacted to seek more information and qualifying candidates will be invited to make a full referral.
We limit schools to a maximum of 3 applications each, and other organisations to 2 applications each, to help ensure fairness. The first applications received will be added to the ballot, so we ask referrers to communicate within their organisations to decide internally who they wish to refer.
If you are thinking about referring a young person please read our service overview and referral checklist to ensure volunteer mentoring is an appropriate service for them.
What to do next:
Between 9am on Tuesday 7th May and 12pm on Tuesday 14th May, send an email to refer@mentoringplus.net
Your email HAS to:
- Include your name and full contact details including a daytime phone number
- Include the name of your organisation e.g. school if you represent one. If you are a family member or self-referring please tell us this.
- Include the initials (NOT full name), date of birth and gender of the young person seeking mentoring
- Confirm that you have completed the referral checklist and they meet criteria (there is no need to attach it).
- If the young person is 21-25 they must have a confirmed diagnosis of SEND from a clinical professional.
- We reserve the right to reject applications to refer which do not include the above information.
Further questions about referring? Please check out our FAQS or call for more support: 01225 429694
Referring
When considering referring a young person in future, please read our service overview and consider our referral checklist to ensure this is the appropriate service for them.
Mentees aged 7-11 are referred directly by the Behaviour & Attendance Panels which represent primary schools in Bath and Norton Radstock. If you’d like a 7-11 year old to be considered for volunteer mentoring in future, please speak to the child’s school headteacher.
Who we can support
We specifically support young people identified as facing more than one risk factor from those detailed below:
- Displaying signs of anti–social behaviour
- Either disengaged, excluded or at risk of exclusion from education
- Or not in employment or training (NEET)
- In or leaving care
- Experiencing significant challenges out of school – including factors such as a lack of role models, family breakdown, bereavement, isolation and historic domestic violence.
Other Services
How does mentoring work?
Once we have capacity to match your referral from our waiting list, we offer the following to a young person for up to a year:
- A named practitioner assigned to support them
- Introductory sessions with their practitioner to develop a Personal Plan
- A volunteer mentor working with them each week to develop confidence, have new experiences and access new opportunities
- An activities budget to spend with their mentor
- A community project to contribute and make a difference locally
- Exit planning with links to services and transitional support on leaving our service
- Engagement in Team Around the Child processes as needed, ensuring the voice of the mentee is shared with other professionals throughout this year