Job title: Lived Experience Support Worker
Reporting to: Head of Programmes and Services
Salary: €39,540 per annum (with 2% WRC increase from October 1st)
Contract type: 35 hours per week. 16 months fixed term contract from September 1st 2026, until December 31st, 2027.
Location: Hybrid with at least two days per week in the Maynooth Head Office and travel to other locations as required.
Purpose of role:
The Lived Experience Support Worker will coordinate and support Shine’s Lived Experience Programmes, including the Ambassador Programme and Voice Platform, by supporting safe, meaningful participation and ensuring high-quality delivery, evaluation and engagement across the organisation and with other key partners.
Key Responsibilities
- Coordinate the day-to-day delivery of Shine’s Lived Experience Programmes, ensuring programme activity is well planned, delivered to agreed standards and monitored against relevant KPIs.
- Manage lived experience talk bookings, from initial request through preparation, delivery oversight, volunteer follow-up and feedback collection.
- Provide practical support to members of the Ambassador Programme and Voice Platform, including preparation, boundaries, debriefing and appropriate aftercare.
- Identify, recruit, induct and train new programme participants, ensuring they are supported to engage safely, confidently and in line with Shine’s standards.
- Collaborate with the Communications team to ensure Shine’s Lived Experience work is represented accurately and visibly across appropriate channels, including social media and the website.
- Organise Lived Experience participation in co-production workshops and related activities, both internally and externally, ensuring roles, expectations and supports are clear.
- Ensure the Lived Experience programme complies with Shine’s safeguarding, governance, risk and data-protection requirements.
- Maintain accurate records, evaluate talks and workshops, and produce clear reports on programme activity, outcomes and impact for leadership, funders and other stakeholders.
- Support Lived Experience focused events and activities for the annual Green Ribbon Campaign
- Carry out other duties as required to support Shine’s stigma reduction and lived-experience work.
Person Specification
Essential:
- Minimum of two years’ experience in the charity, community or mental health sector, including working with people with lived experience of mental illness.
- Demonstrates a strong understanding of the value of lived experience in increasing awareness, reducing stigma and improving mental health understanding.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with experience of presenting to groups
- IT Proficiency: Advanced skills in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Office365, Teams).
- Experience supporting volunteers
- Experience maintaining accurate records and applying appropriate boundaries, confidentiality and safeguarding practices.
- Full driver’s licence and use of your own vehicle at all times
Desirable:
- Personal lived experience of mental illness
- Highly organised, with strong time management skills to balance multiple tasks and meet deadlines.
- Attention to detail, with the ability to produce accurate, high-quality work across all programme components.
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build and maintain positive relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
- Strong commitment to confidentiality, professional boundaries, data protection and safeguarding standards.
APPLICATION PROCESS
Application is by CV and cover letter to recruit@shine.ie.
Applicants will be assessed against the criteria as described above, and cover letters and/or CVs should address these points.
Shine is an equal-opportunity employer, committed to promoting and maintaining a diverse and inclusive work environment.
For informal enquiries please contact recruit@shine.ie
Application Deadline: 10th August 2026 at 5pm
Conditions of Appointment:
All offers of appointment are subject to satisfactory references, eligibility to work in Ireland, and completion of required in-house and statutory training.
This role involves regular engagement with people with lived experience of mental illness and may involve contact with adults at risk. The postholder must comply with all safeguarding requirements, including Garda Vetting.
We welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds who are passionate about mental health advocacy, meaningful lived-experience participation and reducing stigma.
