Hand in Hand Peer Travel Buddy
We are a volunteer peer buddy scheme offering travel support to Islington residents with mental health issues, supporting them to access activities and appointments across the borough.
The project is a collaboration between Islington Mind and North London NHS Foundation Trust.
Owing to a high number of people waiting, we have temporarily paused taking new referrals for weekly support.
We are still accepting referrals for one-off journey requests.
If you are an Islington resident with mental health challenges who needs support with:
- Accessing appointments
- Attending activities and events, including at Islington Mind’s day centres
- Building confidence in leaving your home
- Shopping
- Just going for a walk in your local green spaces or local area
We can match you with a peer travel buddy, who has their own lived experience of mental health issues, to accompany you and offer support on your journey. Peer buddies can also assist you with making phone calls and signpost you to other sources of support.
We offer both one-off appointments and recurring support sessions (once a week for three months).
Service users must be Islington residents or registered with an Islington GP and must have some difficulties with their mental health. Volunteers work Monday to Friday between 9:30am and 5:00pm only; we cannot provide support outside working hours.
We encourage clients and referrers to access further information below before referring:
Download further information for clients
Download further information for referrers
If you cannot access the referral form or have any questions about the Hand in Hand service, please email HandinHand@islingtonmind.org.uk.
You can also contact:
Tim on 07518 798 905 Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays
and Satoko on 07526 692 507 Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
What happens after referral
Once we have received your referral, we will reach out to you or your client using the contact details provided. If you have not used Hand in Hand or any other Islington Mind services before, we will conduct a short assessment to get to know you better, and to find out more about your physical and mental health.
We ask that service users provide at least one week’s notice before any appointments where possible.
We understand this is not always possible and will respond to short-notice referrals; however, we cannot guarantee support for referrals made at short notice.
Together Project
We are actively recruiting people with experience of alcohol/drug addiction and mental health issues as volunteers. If you would like to volunteer, please contact us!
We also accept referrals from Islington residents with alcohol/drug addiction and mental health issues to use the peer travel buddy service. We accept professional referrals and encourage self-referrals via the button above.
Volunteering with Hand in Hand
Hand in Hand recruits, trains and supports volunteers with lived experience of mental health issues. To volunteer with us, personal experience of mental health difficulties is essential.
To read more about the Peer Buddy’s role, download FAQs for Peer Buddies
For more information, download our flyer.
We ask that volunteers commit to offering at least one day a week.
To register your interest, please click here.
