The Community Wellbeing Project (CWP) is a 12-month, fully-funded virtual training and guided practice program that prepares LGBTQIA+ individuals to offer structured, one-on-one emotional support to others in our community. It is built on a simple but powerful belief: people with lived experience are often best placed to support one another—not because they have all the answers, but because they understand what it means to navigate stigma, isolation, and systemic barriers in deeply personal ways.

For many queer and trans people, these realities shape everyday life and take a toll on mental health. And yet, access to affirming, empathetic support remains limited. CWP exists to change that by strengthening what our communities have already been doing for decades by showing up for each other. This program brings structure, skills, and sustained support to peer work, without taking away its core: connection, empathy, and shared experience.

Rooted in the values of peer support, the training centres lived experience as knowledge and encourages participants to engage their own subjectivity as a resource in responding to distress and supporting wellbeing. Over the course of the program, participants don’t just learn, they also practice. With ongoing supervision and guidance from experienced queer mental health practitioners, they develop the ability to hold space ethically and sustainably, offer meaningful emotional support, build stronger boundaries, and deepen their own self-awareness.

The program is implemented by Safe Access, in partnership with Gauri, Pooja, and Shruti, queer mental health practitioners and faculty at the Queer Affirmative Counselling Practice Certificate Course by the Mariwala Health Initiative (MHI). This program enhances and further extends the PSP module developed by MHI, expanding it through guided practice and a focus on long-term sustainability. The program is fully funded, with all training, supervision, and related costs covered by Safe Access.

At its core, the Community Wellbeing Project is not just about training individuals, it is about building a future where care is community-led, accessible, and affirming, and where no queer or trans person has to navigate their struggles alone. Below are the core competencies you will gain:

 

• Develop skills in peer support and community care
• Build a deeper understanding of emotional wellbeing
• Learn how to hold space ethically and sustainably
• Strengthen your own boundaries and self-awareness
• Become part of a network of queer and trans individuals doing care work

 

Participants will also receive:

• A certificate of completion
• Ongoing connection with the Safe Access network

 

What You’ll Do as a Peer Support Provider

Peer Support Providers offer one-on-one, empathetic support to LGBTQIA+ individuals navigating distress, isolation, identity struggles, or everyday challenges. Through active listening, validation, and shared understanding, they create a safe, non-judgmental space where people can be heard, understood, and supported.
Trained PSPs staff a dedicated helpline, where each interaction is an opportunity to meet someone in their moment of need—whether that means holding space, helping them process emotions, or supporting them to explore possible next steps.
Rooted in lived experience and structured training, peer support is not about fixing problems, but about ensuring that no one has to navigate them alone.