Peer Support Specialist

Peer Support Specialist

Salary: $32.62 - $37.49 per hour

New hires may earn a salary ranging from the minimum to the midpoint of the pay scale, with education and experience taken into consideration.

Location: Kirkland, WA (In-Person)

Find out about this role and our mission to create positive change:

The first and foremost responsibility of the Peer Support Specialist is providing direct support to residents. This includes serving as a community support liaison by attending appointments, providing benefit linkages, connecting residents to recovery resources, and facilitating access to harm reduction tools in alignment with Plymouth's values and practices. The Clinical Director provides administrative supervision and is the point person for organization-wide initiatives, while the Residential Services Manager offers onsite guidance and oversees coordination within the team.

Plymouth Housing is a nonprofit organization that develops and operates permanent supportive housing for single adults who have experienced chronic homelessness. With apartment buildings throughout King County, Plymouth is helping the most vulnerable members of our community leave homelessness behind forever. At Plymouth, we're not simply trying to get people off the streets. We provide supportive services like case management and health care so that our residents can thrive long-term. As part of our strategic vision, we are building internal behavioral health services and transforming our systems to address rapid growth and the changing needs of residents.

What you can expect to be doing in this role at Plymouth Housing:

• Provide one-on-one and group peer support to residents, including facilitating peer groups and resident-focused activities within the scope of credentials and the peer role.
• Meet with residents to understand their self-defined goals and support them in working toward their own vision of recovery, wellbeing, and housing stability.
• Serve as a community support liaison by attending appointments with residents as appropriate and helping connect them to benefits, recovery resources, and harm reduction services.
• Engage residents using a trauma-informed, person-centered, recovery-oriented approach that honors autonomy, dignity, and lived experience.
• Build positive, professional, and trusting relationships with residents that are grounded in shared experience, respect, and clear professional boundaries.
• Collaborate closely with the Resident Wellbeing Manager, clinical managers, case managers, and resource navigators to coordinate care and support integrated services.
• Develop and maintain relationships with community-based organizations and external providers to help residents access mental health, medical, substance use, and social services.
• Assist residents in navigating complex service systems, including benefits, behavioral health care, and other community resources, offering practical guidance and encouragement.
• Participate in care team meetings, case conferences, and coordination activities to share peer-informed perspectives and support holistic care planning.
• Collect and manage data such as surveys, assessments, and other service metrics as directed, ensuring accurate and timely documentation in appropriate systems.
• Maintain strict confidentiality and data security in line with Plymouth policies, HIPAA, and other applicable regulations.
• Attend required trainings, meetings, and supervision sessions; engage in ongoing learning related to peer support, substance use, mental health, trauma-informed care, and harm reduction.
• Seek and integrate feedback from supervisors, colleagues, and residents to continuously improve peer support services and practice.

Some knowledge, skills, and attributes we need from you:

• Ability to work effectively and respectfully with people from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences to support safe, welcoming, and inclusive housing communities.
• Strong problem-solving, organizational, and time-management skills, with the ability to handle multiple tasks and priorities.
• Clear and effective verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to build and sustain trust-based relationships and communicate effectively with individuals and community groups from diverse cultures in a professional, respectful, and engaging manner.
• Commitment to cultural proficiency in providing services to residents and working collaboratively with Plymouth staff.
• Comfort using technology, including Microsoft Office and customized databases, electronic health or service records, and other tools for documentation and online research.
• Strong attention to detail and experience collecting data and/or using data to inform decisions and improve services.
• Ability to give and receive feedback in a constructive, growth-oriented way.
• Ability to drive or confidently navigate public transportation to multiple work sites as needed.
• Willingness to work some evenings, nights, or weekends to meet resident and program needs.
• Ability to maintain clear professional boundaries while supporting residents in working toward self-defined recovery and improved wellbeing.
• Ability to address multiple complex issues simultaneously, multitask without losing accuracy, and sustain attention in a busy, sometimes unpredictable environment.
• Capacity to exercise independent judgment within the scope of the role while collaborating closely with the broader care team.

Qualifications:

• High school graduation or equivalent and two years of experience in a related program specialty, or an equivalent combination of education, experience, and lived experience.
• Peer Certification must be initiated within 18 months of hire, in alignment with applicable state and organizational standards.
• Experience in social services, supportive housing, community advocacy, mental/behavioral health services, or related fields; relevant education and lived experience may be substituted.
• Administrative and/or program experience focused on homelessness, behavioral health, or social services systems is preferred.

Benefits:

We offer a comprehensive benefits package for Full-Time employees, including Medical, Dental, Vision, PTO, and 403(b) options. Additionally, employees have access to supplementary benefits such as the Employee Assistance Program, a subsidized ORCA pass, and more. This is a full-time position with benefits. Join us and be a catalyst for positive change!

Plymouth Housing is an equal opportunity employer. We recruit, hire, train and promote employees based on merit and business needs, and without regard for race, color, citizenship status, national origin, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, age, weight, religion, creed, physical or mental disability, marital status, veteran status, military status, political affiliation, or any other factor protected by law.