Understanding the values of peer support and the principles that underpin them

At the core of peer support is the value placed on the use of lived experience of mental health difficulties (including the experience of caring for someone with experience of mental health difficulties) and seeing this as a form of expertise.

This means that the areas of knowledge described in this section are rooted in a PSW’s experience and outlook, rather than from formal academic knowledge or training, and that they are applicable to all of the other sections.