Trainee Substance Misuse Recovery Worker
Location: Cheshire
Salary: £23,200 per annum
Vacancy Type: Permanent
Closing Date: 19th June 2026
This is an exciting opportunity to begin your career in substance misuse recovery within a structured traineeship at HMP Stoke Heath, Market Drayton.
This full-time role (35 hours per week) offers the chance to develop hands-on experience while working towards a recognised qualification (subject to criteria), supported throughout by experienced practitioners.
You’ll be embedded within a supportive team, shadowing a member of staff and receiving tailored guidance, supervision, and regular reviews to help you build confidence and competence in the role. A key part of the traineeship also includes undertaking compulsory therapy alongside your professional development.
This is a balance of practical learning and study, designed to equip you with the skills and knowledge needed to progress into a qualified recovery worker role.
What you’ll be doing:
* Managing and planning a caseload with support and supervision
* Carrying out initial, risk, and comprehensive assessments to guide treatment and interventions
* Delivering 1:1 sessions and supporting group work/programme facilitation
* Co-facilitating structured recovery programmes
* Working collaboratively with multi-disciplinary teams and community partners
* Supporting recovery planning and throughcare for service users
* Assisting clients to access clinical and recovery-focused interventions
* Recording and maintaining accurate data for audit, reporting, and research purposes
* Taking on additional reasonable duties as required by your line manager
What we’re looking for:
A motivated and resilient individual who is keen to learn and develop within a challenging but highly rewarding environment. You don’t need previous experience in substance misuse work, just a commitment to supporting others and a willingness to develop your skills.
What you’ll get:
A structured traineeship with full training, supervision, and mentoring, plus the opportunity to gain a recognised qualification while building real-world experience in recovery work.
If you’re ready to develop a meaningful career supporting recovery and rehabilitation, we’d love to hear from you.
All prison-based roles are subject to enhanced DBS checks and HMPPS security vetting. These checks can take up to 5 months to complete. Any offer of employment will be conditional upon the successful completion of both checks.
Please note if you have lived overseas within the last 5 years then checks may take longer.
About Us
We are The Forward Trust, the social enterprise with charitable status that empowers people to break the often interlinked cycles of crime and addiction to move forward with their lives. For more than 25 years we have been working with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past. We believe that anyone is capable of lasting change. Our services have supported thousands of people to make positive changes and build productive lives with a job, family, friends and a sense of community.
We are committed to our cause and the work we carry out as a charity. Equally the wellbeing and the employees who work for us are also important. Joining us an employee, we will offer you the following benefits -
* Flexible working
* Training and development opportunities
* BHSF Cashback Scheme (optional)
* Season Ticket Loan Scheme
* Cycle to work scheme
* Crisis Loan Scheme
* Electric Car Scheme
* 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata'd for part time employees)
* Access to Blue Light Card
* 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays
* Contributory Pension Scheme – Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years’ service and up to 9% thereafter
* Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary)
* Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)
Please note that we may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
To Apply
If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for Forward Trust, please click apply to be redirected to our website to complete your application