Suicide Prevention - Peer Support Volunteering

Roses in the Ocean, Australia’s national lived experience of suicide organisation, is growing its Peer CARE Companion in Community face to face program across Canberra, Queanbeyan and nearby areas.

We are looking for local volunteers with a lived experience of suicide who may feel ready to support others in a safe, supported and non-clinical way.

You do not need come with a counsellor, therapist, clinician or crisis worker background.

This is a peer support role. It is about connection, listening, companionship and helping someone feel less alone.

A lived experience of suicide may include:

• having experienced thoughts of suicide
• surviving a suicide attempt
• supporting a loved one through suicidal crisis
• being bereaved by suicide

Peer CARE Companions meet people where they are at, locally and in community. Support may include meeting someone for coffee, going for a walk, having a chat, listening deeply, or gently helping someone connect with other services and community supports.

This is not crisis work. Volunteers are not expected to manage emergencies, provide clinical support or hold crisis responsibility.

Peer CARE Companions meet people where they are at — locally and in community.

That might look like meeting someone for coffee, going for a walk, having a genuine chat, listening deeply, or gently helping someone find their way to other supports.

Simple things, done consistently, can matter more than most people realise.

Peer CARE Companions are people who are:

• comfortable talking about suicide
• able to listen deeply and sit with another person’s experience without needing to fix it
• compassionate, steady and non-judgemental
• willing to work within clear role boundaries and safety processes
• interested in lived-experience-led suicide prevention in the ACT

How we support you:

Before you meet anyone in the community, you will complete a structured onboarding program:

• TouchPoints suicide prevention workshop — approx. 4.5 hours
• self-paced online learning modules — approx. 4 to 6 hours
• Peer CARE Companion facilitated workshop — approx. 6.5 hours
• service induction and practice calls — approx. 3 hours
• Ongoing debriefing, group co-reflection and development opportunities are part of the role. Your wellbeing as a volunteer matters

The core Peer CARE Companion role is 1:1 peer connection. As the ACT program grows, there may also be other ways to support the program if you choose, including community stalls, group activities, walks, coffee catch-ups, events, awareness raising and lived experience input.

Roses in the Ocean welcomes volunteers from diverse social, cultural, ability, age, gender and lived experience backgrounds. If this role speaks to you, we would love to hear from you.

To register your interest, please apply below. We will then send you information about creating your Volunteer Profile in Volaby and booking a Readiness Call with a Roses in the Ocean team member. The Readiness Call is a relaxed conversation to explore whether this is the right fit and right timing for you.