Horizons Community Mentoring
What is the Horizons Service??
Named 'Horizons' by a Second Step tenant, this community mentoring service trains volunteers, particularly people who have been homeless in the past, to act as mentors for homeless people adjusting to independent living in long-term accommodation. Once matched with a volunteer mentor, mentees meet up with their mentor for up to three hours a week over a six-month period. Following a pilot run in 1999, the Horizons Project continues with funding from Bristol City Council and charitable donations.
What support would I receive?
As a mentee:
You will receive support based on your own individual needs. Your mentor will be able to help you get more involved in your community, try out new activities, attend meetings, and help you find out about all sorts of leisure and training opportunities. They can also help you plan for the future and be there to talk things through with.
As a mentor:
Volunteers have the opportunity to undertake an Open College Network qualification in Homeless Mentoring as part of their volunteering. There are also many opportunities for volunteer progression, training and skills development.
Do I need a referral to this service?
We take referrals from resettlement workers, hostel support workers, housing providers, advice agencies and other specialist support organisations. We also accept self-referrals.
Who can use this service?
If you want to be considered for mentor support through the Second Step Horizons project, you need to:
- require some level of support to live independently;
- be aged over 16;
- be a single person and have recently moved into housing following homelessness;
- be going through a resettlement process, moving into long-term independent accommodation; and
- be receiving ongoing support from a paid support worker.
Please note that we are sometimes limited in the support we can offer people with problematic drug or alcohol use. However, we will always look at people's individual needs and see how best we can provide help.
We are unable to work with:
- couples or single people planning to live with a partner when they have moved into their new home;
- pregnant women planning to live with their children after birth;
- some people with a history of violence;
- Schedule One offenders;
- people with very high support needs.
Will I need to pay?
No - this service is completely free. The Community Fund supports us to run this project in North Somerset, while in Bristol our funding comes from Bristol City Council, City of Bristol College and charitable funding.
For further information:
Email us at: horizons@second-step.co.uk
Call us on (0117) 909 6630 in Bristol,
Alternatively you can download a PDF version of our information booklet by clicking the link below.