for students accessing
Mental Health Mentoring support
Student: ______
Contents
1. Introduction
2. What is mentoring?
3. What will my Mentor expect from me?
4. What can I expect from my Mentor?
5. What if I don’t want to take up the mentoring?
6. How do I cancel a booked session?
7. What if I am not happy with my support?
7. Is it confidential?
8. What if I need additional mentoring?
9. Declaration of support agreement
Mentoring Agreement contents page
1. Introduction
· This is an agreement of the terms and conditions that apply to the student-mentor working relationships coordinated by Student Support at The University of Warwick.
· Students are entitled to this support under the Equality Act (2010) legislation which places responsibility on education providers to give disabled students equal opportunity to succeed on their chosen learning path.
· This agreement details the responsibilities of both the student and mentor and therefore should be read and signed by both parties before any mentoring takes place.
· This document also provides advice, information and guidelines for the student on accessing specific individual support.
· The Mentor must ensure that the student has read and fully understood this information and signed to agree the terms and conditions.
· The terms and conditions in this agreement are subject to change as the service develops and you will be notified in writing by Student Support should this be necessary.
· If you have any concerns or queries about this support agreement please contact the Mental Health & Wellbeing team on 02476 575570 () or Disability Advisers on 02476 150641 ().
2. What is Mental Health Mentoring?
You have been offered the opportunity to receive specialist support in the form of one-to-one mentoring.
Whilst students themselves ultimately have responsibility for their own learning, the University aims to provide an environment that facilitates students in reaching their full potential, and working with a mentor can be part of this process.
If you use this specialist support regularly, your allocated Mentor will:
· Provide individually tailored support and work closely with you to help you identify and address the ways in which your mental health issue or disability may be impacting on your studies and vice versa.
· Promote strategies for independent learning, general wellbeing, social interaction, communication and flexibility, with the aim of enabling you to participate more fully on your chosen course.
Initial mentoring sessions will usually be spent with the Mentor and student:
· Getting to know and feel comfortable with each other;
· Discussing the learning contract;
· Identifying and exploring any specific difficulties;
· Talking through any immediate concerns and exploring possible solutions to problems.
In the longer term the kinds of interventions a Mentor may focus on:
· Improving time management and planning skills
· Identifying and implementing individualised strategies to manage and maintain mental health
· Developing healthy thinking styles that build confidence
· Managing a healthy balance between work, social and leisure activities
· Discuss strategies for building social confidence and interpersonal skills with friends and tutors.
The approach focuses on identifying and building on skills and resources to maximise the individual's potential on their chosen course.
Mentoring sessions are focussed on active problem solving, goal setting and reviewing, and as such students need to enter the process being willing to try things out. They may need, for example, to keep a diary, or practice time management techniques or learn stress management techniques. Despite some similarities Mentoring sessions are not:
· Counselling; the primary focus of mentoring is not on treatment or therapeutic change.
· Study skills tuition. The can Support you in time management but are not qualified tutors. You may be entitled to receive study skills support in addition to mental health mentoring through your DSA. To access this please discuss with your Mental Health Coordinator or Disability Adviser
In addition they are not an alternative to:
· Statutory Health Care.
· Independent advocacy.
An example of a study / coping strategy:
· Some students find revising for exams difficult due to low mood and associated poor concentration and motivation. They might benefit from developing some time management techniques, devising a weekly activity schedule and setting small achievable goals with their Mentor which can be regularly reviewed. The Mentor could also help the student to address any other relevant factors (e.g. lifestyle) which may be influencing their mood and concentration.
· Once mentoring sessions have commenced, the Mentor will arrange ongoing mentoring sessions with you. However, should you not attend and not provide notice of cancellation within 24 hours before the appointment time, then your regular appointment time could be offered to another student.
· As soon as you have agreed a session with your Mentor you should make a note of the time, date and location so that you do not forget, e.g. in your diary or mobile phone calendar.
· After each meeting your Mentor will complete a Mentoring Record Sheet which you will be required to sign before the end of the session. This is to provide evidence for DSA (if appropriate) that you have been accessing mentoring support and for the University to make a claim for this.
Remember to bring to your sessions:
ü Timetable details, assignment briefs, exam revision or other work that you require support with in terms of goal setting, prioritising, organisation, etc;
ü a folder so that you can store any additional papers, writing paper, a pen and, if appropriate, your Dictaphone or recording device to aid with notetaking;
3. What will my Mentor expect from me?
You are expected to treat your Mentor with courtesy and adhere to Warwick’s dignity policy.
Mentees are expected to:
· Contact your Mentor to cancel as soon as possible (at least 24 hours in advance) if you are unable to attend a pre-arranged session.
· Maintain regular contact with your Mentor or Mental Health Coordinator throughout your course to keep them updated on your progress. This way any difficulties you might be experiencing can be tackled as soon as they arise, thus reducing the risk of getting into a crisis situation at times of course assessment.
× You should not: ask your Mentor to support you with work that falls outside the remit of their work. For example, if you require assistance with writing your CV then you must seek support from the Student Careers and Skills Team (based in the Learning Grid, University House).
ü You should always: try to complete any tasks that you and your Mentor agree for you to work on in your own time as this is how you will develop the skills necessary to manage your mental health in relation to your studies more effectively and independently.
ü You should always: attend sessions punctually. Your Mentor will try to accommodate you and respond with flexibility if you are running late due to reasons beyond your control, but is unlikely to be able to considerably extend the pre-booked appointment slot due to other commitments they may have. Persistent problems with punctuality and late cancellations may result in support being suspended.
4. What can I expect from my Mentor?
The Mentor that has been allocated to work with you is responsible for providing you with the one-one support recommended in your DSA assessment report.
Your Mentor also has a responsibility to:
Ø Give adequate notice where possible (e.g. At least 24-hours) if they need to cancel an appointment and attend punctually;
Ø Communicate regularly with you throughout your course;
Ø Maintain a professional working relationship with you;
Ø Refer you back to your Mental Health Coordinator or Disability Advisor as soon as possible if for any reason your Mentor is unable to provide you with the support you require. If you need any support with reasonable adjustments or mitigating circumstances, this will need to be provided by your Mental Health Coordinator.
Ø To ensure that the standards for the Quality Assessment Framework for DSA is maintained. This includes:
· All mentoring must be provided within a confidential room
· Mentoring will be provided face to face or via skype with pre agreement from DSA.
· Mentoring will not be provided via telephone.
Your Mentor should also ensure the following paper work is completed with you:
1. Support Agreement – your Mentor must take you through this document step by step within the first few weeks of mentoring sessions (ideally at the first session) so that you understand what is expected of you both.
2. Record of Mentoring Sessions – to be completed and signed to agree that a mentoring session has taken place. We are then able to seek reimbursement for your support from your funding body (DSA).
3. Progress Review – to be completed roughly once a term by you both, or as often as it seems appropriate.
It is also important to be aware that, if you do not attend regular mentoring sessions, your funding body may decide to reduce or remove your support under the assumption that you no longer require it. Three missed sessions may result in Student Support suspending your support whilst the Mental Health Coordinators and / or Disability Advisors try to find out whether there are any barriers you are facing which are preventing you from accessing your support regularly.
There is also no guarantee that a Mentor will be available to see you at short notice in the absence of regular appointments.
So it is your responsibility to prioritise your mentoring support in a way that will allow you sufficient time to progress with your course and tackle any difficulties that you are experiencing along the way.
If you do have any concerns about this aspect of your support please ensure that you contact a Mental Health Coordinator for advice and guidance.
5. What if I don’t want to take up the mentoring?
We do advise that you think very carefully about this decision and consider the following factors:
· If at any point during your course, you are not happy with your results and wish to appeal against an exam board decision we may be required to comment on your attendance for mentoring. If you have not taken up the offer of support this may affect your chances of a successful appeal.
· If you want support from a Mentor who does not work with The University of Warwick, you will be required to arrange this directly with your funding body. Please note that we will not be able to monitor outside support for quality purposes.
6. How do I cancel a booked session?
v If you need to cancel a mentoring session for any reason you must contact your Mentor directly via email and the Mental Health Administrator on as soon as possible.
v If you give less than 24-hours notice of cancellation or do not attend your session your DSA funding will still be used to cover the costs of the lost session. This ensures that the University does not incur lost earnings as they would not normally be able to arrange to see another student at such short notice.
Important:
If you cancel or fail to attend your mentoring sessions three times in a row then it might be necessary for Student Services to suspend your support whilst the Mental Health or Disability Advisers try to find out whether everything in going okay for you and whether you are facing any barriers which are preventing you from accessing your support regularly.
It is also important to be aware that, if you do not attend regular mentoring sessions, your funding body may decide to reduce or remove your support under the assumption that you no longer require it.
We want to know that you have the best possible support and that you are benefiting from the support service that you are entitled to.
We do understand that there are many reasons why you might not be able to attend mentoring, some of which may be beyond your control.
It is therefore very important that you do contact your Mentor, Mental Health Coordinator or Disability Adviser if you are having difficulties with attending mentoring because together we might be able to find a solution.
We will endeavour to provide all booked sessions of mentoring however if there is a need to cancel i.e. staff sickness you will be informed via email. If this cancellation is unavoidably within 24 hours we will also ring to confirm.
7. What if I am not happy with my support?
If at any time you are not happy with any aspect of the support you are receiving from your Mentor then it is important that you let us know as soon as possible so that we help you to try and resolve the issue. You should speak to your Mentor or Mental Health Coordinator in the first instance. Should your concerns not be resolved at this stage, you should contact the Head of Student Support or the university complaints procedure.