Kaleidoscope Receives Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund Support for Early Psychosis Peer Support Training.

We are incredibly grateful to share that The Kaleidoscope Mental Health Support Society has received funding through the Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund to support an initiative for our partnership with the Early Psychosis Peer Recovery Network — a group that has been advocating for the meaningful integration of peer support within Early Psychosis Intervention (EPI) programs since 2019. 

Kaleidoscope has received $19,000 through the Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund to support the delivery of our Early Psychosis Peer Recovery Network training program. This funding will enable us to deliver a comprehensive peer support worker training program specifically designed for individuals with lived and living experience of psychosis who are interested in working in EPI settings.

This investment reflects growing recognition of the importance of lived experience leadership within early psychosis services.

Why This Matters

Psychosis can be isolating. Many people navigating early psychosis experience stigma, fear, and disruption to school, work, and relationships. 

Peer support offers something powerful and different:

• Shared understanding

• Relational connection

• Hope rooted in lived experience

• Support that complements clinical care

With this funding, Kaleidoscope will deliver a 78-hour structured peer support training program, including 38 hours of synchronous learning informed by curriculum from Support House’s Centre for Innovation in Peer Support — a leader in implementing and sustaining values-based peer support best practices in Canada.

Participants will then complete a 40-hour supported practicum placement with supervision and mentorship from experienced peer leaders, strengthening pathways into employment within early psychosis intervention teams.

This initiative reflects Kaleidoscope’s commitment to building systems where lived experience is not an afterthought — but a leadership force. 

We are deeply thankful to Bell Let’s Talk for investing in peer-led mental health innovation in British Columbia.

Want to support peer-led mental health programming in BC?

Donate here: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/donation-form/sustain-peer-support