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Some of the most important work in our communities happens quietly. A conversation that finally goes somewhere after years of stalemate. A room where two groups who’ve never really spoken start to listen. A new facilitator finding their feet, mentored by someone who’s walked the path before them.

That’s the work at the heart of NextGen4Peace — and we’re looking for skilled practitioners to help deliver it.

What is NextGen4Peace?

The NextGen4Peace project is a comprehensive peacebuilding initiative supported by PEACEPLUS, a programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), which aims to embed nonviolent, conflict resolution, mediation, and dialogue skills and processes across communities in the Programme area.”

The project is led by Glencree Centre for Peace & Reconciliation, in partnership with Mediation Northern Ireland, with substantial delivery over the next three years across Northern Ireland and the Border Counties. It’s a genuine cross-border effort, working north and south, and it’s built on a shared belief that peace is something communities grow themselves — with the right support alongside them.

We’re building a Practitioner Panel — and we’d like you on it

To deliver work of this scale and sensitivity, we’re forming a panel of freelance practitioners. Panel members co-work with fellow practitioners, project staff, and newly trained local mediators and facilitators. The work is varied and meaningful, and could include:

• Delivering training courses, both accredited and non-accredited
• Undertaking mediations within a community context
• Supporting sensitive dialogue processes where trust needs to be built carefully

If you’re an experienced mediator, facilitator or trainer, this is a chance to bring your skills to work that genuinely matters — and to help shape a stronger network of community peacebuilders across the region.

Who we’re looking for

We want a pool of practitioners who can work anywhere across the project area. Alongside that, we’re seeking six practitioners who will lead consistently in a particular sector or area — building the kind of long-term local relationships that this work depends on. Those specialist roles span geographical areas (North West, North East, Belfast, South East and South West) and a theme focused on working with adults connected to the school community.

Two things matter most to us, and they’re the essential criteria: a real commitment to the values-based approach that Glencree and Mediation Northern Ireland share, and the self-awareness to take a nondirective, community development approach — the kind that puts people in the driving seat of their own resolutions.

Beyond that, we welcome a range of qualifications and experience. If you hold a Mediation Practitioner qualification (OCN Level 3 or equivalent), Group & Systemic Mediation (OCN Level 4), a training, facilitation, mentoring or coaching qualification — or you have solid experience facilitating groups, delivering training, or mediating cross-community conflict in the project area — we’d love to hear from you.

And if you’re earlier in your journey but the values and the approach are unmistakably yours, don’t count yourself out. These are desirable criteria, and we’re interested in the whole picture of who you are and what you bring.

The practical detail

Mediations and facilitations are paid at £50 per hour as agreed per case, and training at £250 per day as commissioned. Fees are inclusive of travel and include an agreed proportional payment for non-contact hours — preparation, debrief, reports, admin and accreditation.

We should be straightforward with you: panel membership doesn’t guarantee offers of work. Members are selected for particular tasks based on the best match between what participants need and each practitioner’s profile. But for the right people, it’s an opportunity to be part of something significant over the next three years.

How to apply

If this speaks to you, we’d genuinely welcome your application. You can apply to be considered as a Trainer, Mediator, Facilitator or Coach/Mentor — and for one or more of the specialist roles if they fit.

Applications should be returned by noon on Friday 28th August 2026 to Niranjala@mediationni.org.

Peacebuilding is a team effort, and it always has been. If you’ve got the skills, the values and the heart for this work, we’d love to have you alongside us.

Last week, we attended the Social Value Conference hosted by Social Enterprise NI, where industry leaders shared insights on how social enterprises can grow, collaborate, and make a greater impact. Did you know that – according to research carried out by Social Enterprise UK – in the last financial year, social enterprises made £1.2 billion in profit and re-invested £1 billion to drive progress on their vital social and environmental missions.

Social enterprises are also major employers, creating jobs for around 2.3 million people, with 84% paying the real Living Wage. They are continuing to break down employment barriers around gender, race and class through workforce diversity; 22% of social enterprises operate in the most deprived areas of the UK, compared to 14% of wider businesses, while 58% have leadership teams that are at least half female and 43% have at least one leader from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic backgrounds.

This event reinforced the idea that businesses with a strong social purpose are not just doing good, they’re driving real economic change. The event reinforced one key message: profit with purpose matters.

Key Takeaways from the Conference

The Role of Social Enterprises in the Economy

Paul Grocott, Deputy Secretary for Economic Profit at the Department for Economy, highlighted how social enterprises play a crucial role in building a stronger economy, contributing millions annually to the UK and employing over 2 million people. Their ability to reinvest profits into meaningful causes makes them a unique and valuable part of the business landscape.

Scaling for Impact

Adele McIvor (Workspace) and James McConville (Accelerating Change Together) discussed how social enterprises can scale their operations while staying true to their mission.

The former is a profit for purpose social enterprise, founded in Draperstown, Mid Ulster in 1985, by 170 members from the local community. The organisation emerged as a direct response to local decline, deprivation, and rising unemployment.

The latter helps companies, individuals and communities design and realise impact architecture, resilient urbanism, future visions & strategies and impact at scale

Social Value Partnerships in Action

A panel featuring Stepping Stones NI, EE, Compass Advocacy Network, Orchardville, and The Foundation Strategy showcased successful collaborations between businesses and social enterprises. These partnerships demonstrate that businesses benefit when they integrate social value into their models.

Stepping Stones NI started as a small initiative and has grown into a multi-service organisation, providing employment and training opportunities for people with learning disabilities while expanding its commercial activities to ensure long-term sustainability.

Turning Contracts into Legacies

Heidi Fisher from Make An Impact CIC spoke about how public sector contracts aren’t just transactions—they’re opportunities to create lasting social change. This is an important reminder for organisations like Mediation NI to highlight the long-term impact of their services when approaching potential partners.

Social Enterprises Making a Difference

The conference also featured a Dragon’s Den-style competition where social enterprises pitched for funding. One standout pitch came from Wild Women of the Woods NI, a non-profit dedicated to supporting women’s well-being through nature-based retreats and activities. Their passionate presentation highlighted the transformative impact of outdoor therapy on mental health, sharing real-life testimonials from women whose lives had been changed by their programs. While PIPs Suicide Prevention Ireland ultimately won the funding, the enthusiasm for all the pitches showed the vital role these enterprises play in the community. The event highlighted the great work being done by Wee Chicks Childcare, Wild Women of the Woods NI, and Healing Hearts Through the Arts. Seeing these inspiring initiatives reinforced the importance of supporting organisations that deliver real social value.

Moving Forward

The Social Value Conference reinforced that businesses and social enterprises thrive when they work together. Mediation NI has a clear role to play in helping businesses meet their social value obligations. Now it’s about making that message louder and clearer.

Stay tuned for updates as we put these plans into action. In the meantime, sign up for our newsletter to stay informed, or reach out to explore how we can collaborate on creating lasting social value. If you’re interested in how Mediation NI can help your business create lasting social value, get in touch today.

Queen’s University Belfast is working in partnership with Mediation Northern Ireland on a first-of-its-kind immersive conflict resolution training programme. The training aims to tackle the issue of workplace conflict using simulation and immersive technologies, enabling participants to put their training to the test in interactive scenarios that closely replicate their workplace environment.The training will not only support employees in the workplace but has the potential to be significantly cost-saving for employers.

The three-day training programme will involve two days of conflict resolution training delivered by Mediation NI. On the third day participants will have the opportunity to test out their new skills in the KN Cheung SK Chin InterSim Centre at Queen’s, a state-of-the-art simulation centre.

The InterSim Centre, which has been operating since 2021, prepares the next generation of healthcare professionals for many of the complex realities of modern clinical practice, by encouraging the development of real-world skills, in a safe, guided environment.

Technologies such as replica hospital wards and healthcare suites, a highly immersive virtual environment room (the ‘CAVE’) with a variety of changeable locations, lifelike manikins and AV technologies are used to train Dentistry, Nursing, Midwifery, Medicine and Pharmacy students at Queen’s. Some of these facilities will now be used to help tackle the issue of workplace conflict, giving participants the option to trial their new learnings in a psychologically safe environment that looks and feels like their workplace.

Professor Gerry Gormley, Professor in Simulation in the Centre for Medical Education and Interim Director of the KN Cheung SK Chin InterSim Centre at Queen’s, one of the Programme Directors of the training programme, said:

“Simulation has a long tradition in Health Profession Education. Over this time, we have developed a strong evidence based in how best we can guide learning from experience in simulated environments. One such area is helping individuals develop the skills and behaviours to meet challenging conversations with confidence. More than what you say, but also managing the emotional and identity side of such conversations. We are delighted that we can share our expertise in the development of practitioners who mediate conflict in the workplace.”

Dr Paul Murphy, Senior Lecturer from the School of Arts, English and Languages at Queen’s is also one of the Programme Directors of the training programme. Paul, who specialises in simulation-based education and training, said:

“Since  InterSim Centre opened in 2021 techniques from the dramatic arts have been used to help our healthcare students hone their expertise in a simulation-based setting, giving them the opportunity to rehearse their skills, without risk, before they transfer them to clinical practice.

“We hope to transfer this way of learning to a new programme- allowing participants to test out their new conflict resolution skills in InterSim. This innovative and experiential new approach will utilise the latest technology to enhance and apply learning from the programme.”

Enda Young, Managing Director of Mediation Northern Ireland explains:

“It is estimated that workplace conflict is costing Northern Ireland employers £850 million a year. Conflict in the workplace can occur across a wide spectrum of behaviour, from a low-level difference of opinion to serious incidents of bullying or harassment. Not all conflict is necessarily negative, but even a minor disagreement between people can fester and escalate if it is not addressed and resolved at the earliest opportunity. We believe that having our teams, staff, managers and leaders better equipped to deal with conflict makes our organisations better places to work.

“We look forward to working in partnership with the KN Cheung SK Chin InterSim Centre at Queen’s on this innovative new programme aimed at tackling conflict in the workplace.”

The first 3-day immersive conflict resolution training programme will be presented on 26th & 27th March 2024 in Mediation House, Belfast, and 9th April 2024 at InterSim, Queen’s.

For further information or to book onto the course visit www.mediationni.org/training, email info@mediationni.org or call 02890 438614.