How certification works.
Six clear steps. No hoops for the sake of hoops — every step exists to protect the people you will sit with, and to protect you.
The pathway
From your story to a register a church can check.
- 1
Register your interestOpen now
Tell us who you are and a little of your story. While the programme is in development this is all you need to do — you’ll hear first when the founding intake opens.
- 2
Apply
A short application: your lived experience (your own recovery or a family member’s), and the name of a church or ministry leader who knows you and will give a reference.
- 3
Train
Eight online modules at your own pace, each with a live small-group call. You stay in your own church and community throughout.
- 4
Practise under supervision
Three supervised peer conversations with honest feedback, so your first real conversation is not your first conversation.
- 5
Be certified and registered
You receive your certificate and a reference number on the public register. The fee is $249.99, with hardship places and church sponsorship available.
- 6
Renew each year
A short reflection, a refreshed church reference and the safeguarding declaration keep your registration current.
The register
Verifiable by anyone. Anonymous to everyone.
Each certified supporter is issued a reference number. A church, rehab centre or family member types that number into the verify page and sees one thing: that it is current, and the level it covers. No name, no photo, no story. Your recovery stays yours; your trustworthiness becomes checkable.
If a registration lapses or is withdrawn, the number simply stops verifying. That is how the register protects the people being supported without ever exposing the supporter.
What certification is — and isn’t
It says you have been trained, supervised and vouched for as a peer supporter working under church oversight. It is not a counselling, medical or clinical qualification and does not replace treatment or crisis services. Every supporter is trained to know the difference and to refer on.
Founding intake
Your recovery can become your service.
The programme is still being built and tested with partner churches. Register now and you'll hear first when the founding intake opens — the certification fee will be $249.99, with hardship places available.
Not ready to enrol yet?
Every course has a free introduction. Click Learn more on any course and we'll email it to you — no account, no card.