Becoming a mentor

Being a mentor for someone else can be just as beneficial as having a mentor yourself. If you feel you have the right experience and skills to help someone, mentoring could be ideal for you.

What is a mentor?

A mentor is a person who offers support and encouragement to someone else. They are often people who have been through a similar situation and can be the same age – this is called peer mentoring.

What types of mentoring are there?

As a mentor you could help someone in almost any situation. For example:

• Helping someone at school who is struggling in a subject, settling in to a new year or being bullied
• Helping someone who is going through a hard time, for example a difficult home life, being in care, losing a parent or a sibling
• Helping someone who had or has an illness like depression, ME or spina bifida
• Passing on your talent, for example teaching a someone else how to play the guitar or DJ, or coaching in acting or dancing
• Helping someone who is a refugee develop their social life, improve their English, start at a local college or find a local sports team to play for
• Helping a young single parent with a new baby

What skills do I need?

As a mentor you will need to be a good listener. You should also be able to look at things clearly and suggest solutions to problems. If you apply to mentor through an organisation or charity, or through your school, you will probably attend a short training course first.

What will I do as a mentor?

The main thing you will do is listen to the person you're mentoring without judging, and offer advice and guidance. You can do this over almost any type of activity, such as going for coffee, a walk or watching DVDs.

What do I get out of it?

Helping someone else can give you confidence and communication skills. Being a mentor is also good for your CV- employers will know you have essential skills such as listening and coming up with solutions to problems.

Leeds-based mentor Eve helped support Gemma, who has drug and alcohol issues, when she moved into her own flat. Eve says the experience helped her as well as Gemma.

"I have developed endless transferable skills, such as better people skills, knowledge of the criminal justice system, external agencies and even some decorating skills," Eve says. "I have learnt to be more understanding, patient and empathetic."

Joanne Wacha, a disabled young woman who peer mentored other young disabled people in Brent, says mentoring helped her with her disability as well as giving her skills.

"I've accepted my disability a lot more," she says. "I became disabled about five years ago and it took me a long time to accept it. Meeting other young disabled people has helped a lot. I've also learnt about my own strengths and weaknesses."

Will I get paid?

Almost all mentoring is voluntary, so you're unlikely to get paid. In most cases you will receive travel money and other expenses – it varies according to the organisation.

How do I become a mentor?

Try searching the do-it database – enter your postcode to see what's available in your area. You can also ask at your school, college or local volunteer centre. Organisations like The Brightside Trust offer online mentoring, while Time Bank can link you to a range of mentoring options.

By Laura Canning

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