The trans-peer mentoring programme is designed to support individuals who would like holistic support around any issues that are important to you. These might include gender identity, sexual orientation, self-esteem, relationships (personal and with professionals) and well-being issues, and we offer a safe, non-judgmental, supportive, and empowering environment in which to explore these. Many trans identified individuals are not raised in families or community environments that reflect our sexual/gender identities and mentoring with someone from your own community can be key to supporting you and allowing you to talk and work issues through empathetically. You may be at the start of your journey, or some way into it. You may be entirely comfortable with your identity or not.
The journey can evoke many emotions which may be challenging, confusing, and even frightening, and be accompanied by feelings of isolation and loneliness. The mentoring relationship provides a safe place to explore these feelings.
The mentoring relationship will match you with a peer mentor you are happy with, and can follow a semi-structured programme which might include some of the following topics:
The above list is not exhaustive, and the service will be flexible to offer a range of add-on modules to suit the needs of each mentee.
Mentors offer a supportive ear for queries or issues, and as a catalyst for understanding the issue and its possible solutions. They can also sign-posting to other organizations where appropriate to meet other needs such as Housing, Sexual Health, dealing with Police and family life.
The role of Peer Trans Mentor will be to provide a supportive ear for queries or issues, and a catalyst for understanding the issues for individuals and explore possible solutions with them. As well as the obvious benefits to mentees, Mentors can benefit by gaining the opportunity to practice and develop skills that are beneficial in their own professional and personal development. This is accomplished through frank, informal, one-on-one conversations, wherein support and information are provided. Mentors serve as positive role models, utilising your experiences to help another person shed light on their issues and provide resource information.
Mentors will be paid upto £25 for every session they provide. Each session lasts around 60-90 minutes and each person will usually have at least 6 sessions with you.
Once accepted as a Spectra mentor, training for the Peer Mentoring programme consists of a one-day training session with a partner agency which allows you to gain some of the knowledge required to be a Mentor. A further Spectra based training session will also allow you to experience the programme by working through the modules. You will also attend ongoing supervision/training meetings once a month and are also able to consult with the Program Manager as-needed in between meetings.
Mentors are trans and non-binary individuals who have worked through your own trans coming out process and have had experience negotiating life as a trans or non-binary identifying individual. It is this personal experience and understanding that makes mentors particularly well suited to help others, along with your willingness to share honestly and openly, without judgement, your experience and skills.
We provide a 1-day Spectra Mentoring Course (CPD accredited). The 1-day Spectra Mentoring Course recognizes the expert by experience skills of individuals who identify as trans, gender non-confirming, and /or non-binary and prepares them to provide 1 to 1 support to peer individuals. The qualification is designed to indicate that successful candidates have the appropriate learning, knowledge, training and skills to act as mentors, including as peer mentors and enables progression to a mentoring role, whether paid or voluntary within Spectra or external.
Any trans or non-binary person who would like support is welcome to apply.
When you apply to the programme, you will be matched with a mentor by the programme coordinators. These matches are typically based on your identified needs as well as shared aspects of identity (e.g. gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, spirituality etc). Once you are paired with a mentor, an introductory meeting is scheduled between you both and one of the program coordinators. At this meeting programme rules are reviewed, contact information is exchanged, and the mentor/mentee pair will begin to decide the details of their ongoing contact.
It is expected that mentors and mentees have ongoing weekly contact with at least one hour-long face to face contact fortnightly.
If you think Peer Mentoring might be for you, either as a mentor or a mentee, please return the completed application form(s) to trans@spectra-london.org.uk.
Spectra will process and be in control of the data provided on these forms. The information which you provide in the form and any other information obtained or provided during further communication will be used for the purpose of assessing your suitability of enrolment, in emergency situations e.g. to protect life or in a medical situation, and in relation to legitimate interests of our business.
If you choose not to accept our offer, the information will be retained for a further 6 months in the event of a more suitable service opportunity arising, after which time it will be destroyed.
You have the right to data portability, request access to, rectification or erasure of your data collected as part of this process.
If your application is successful, the information will form part of your client file and we will be entitled to process it for all purposes in connection with your case.
So that we may use the information for the above purposes and on the above terms, we are required to obtain your explicit consent. Accordingly, please sign the consent section at the end of this form. You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time and the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner.
For more information, please refer to our private policy.
We have put some useful information here for our mentors for easy access. Please contact your manager if you experience any difficulty to access the page, or if you have any suggestion for us.
