Peer Support Worker - Kaimahi ā-Hoa Tiaki Tangata

• Full Time
• Application Closes 03 Dec 2025
• Auckland - Auckland
• Community and Social Service Specialist

Peer Support Worker

Hours of work 0830 - 1700 over seven days

The role 

The Peer Support Worker uses lived experience and training to connect with and build trust with whānau, helping them feel safe and supported to engage with our services. The role supports whānau at different stages of change through education, encouragement, and practical support, using approaches guided by each person’s needs and aspirations.

We value team development and our people's career growth; we will mentor you on your unique journey to do meaningful work in a supportive environment. This role is a great starting point where you can learn on the job and work towards a longer-term career at Te Tāpui Atawhai - Auckland Mission.

Duties

• Develop supportive relationships with whānau using the peer support service, grounded in shared experiences of addiction, mental distress, and/or trauma.
• Facilitate and support group activities where street whānau can learn, grow, and reconnect through creative practices, wānanga, self-help, personal development, and cultural reconnection.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of individual care plans and group activities.
• Demonstrate through actions commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the Mission’s values of Manaakitanga, Atawhai, Rangapū and Mana Tika, Mana Ōrite.
• Demonstrate Cultural Safety principles when engaging with Māori: (Reflective Practice; Minimise Power Imbalance; Awareness of Colonisation; Appropriate Communication).

Skills

• NZQA Peer Support Level 4 qualification and lived experience of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use and recovery.
• Extensive experience in the peer support space, with understanding of how peer support aligns with tikanga-informed care, including awareness of culture, power, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
• Able to work well with others across different teams and services to provide respectful, culturally safe support for whānau.
• Able to maintain accurate records in digital systems (e.g., Recordbase.
• Full clean New Zealand driver’s licence or working towards getting one.

Skills, experience and knowledge may also be obtained from a number of different experiences. For example, from paid work, voluntary work, work undertaken within your Church, Marae, or from specific iwi/whānau responsibilities. 

Benefits

• 5 x ‘Mission leave’ days, additional to annual and sick leave.
• Access to EAP & external supervision.
• Access to kapahaka, and weekly waiata.
• Ongoing training and development.
• 15% discount at Auckland City Mission Op Shops.
• Access to low cost, farm fresh produce on a weekly basis.
• Close to public transport.
• Discounted parking at SkyCity.
• Career progression opportunities.

About the organisation

Te Tāpui Atawhai - Auckland City Mission supports Aucklanders in greatest need. Our services have evolved as the city’s social needs have changed, and we respond to these needs with care and compassion while advocating for a reality where there are: enough suitable homes, enough money for nutritious food, and easily accessible health care for all. Since our doors opened more than 100 years ago, this has been our ‘why’. Today, we operate across 9 sites in Tāmaki Makaurau. We offer support for however long and in whatever way is needed – for some people, that’s simply accessing one of our many services, for others, it’s a complex journey with our full support. 

Over the past 12 months, the Mission has provided 200 people with permanent homes, conducted over 20,000 consultations at the Calder Health Centre in HomeGround, cared for 462 people in our residential social detox facility in HomeGround, distributed almost 50,000 food parcels to families and individuals, and served over 80,000 warm meals in our community dining room, Haeata. 

Last year we were proud to win the Nga Āhuatanga o Te Tiriti Tohu (Award), and the Supreme Award at the 2023 Diversity Awards. These awards recognise our mahi to create a workplace which empowers Māori, and where Māori solutions can be developed and offered to the people who we support. If you are interested in this role, please apply with your resume and a cover letter outlining your interest in the role and  Te Tāpui Atawhai - Auckland City Mission.