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Are you looking for an opportunity to use and develop your communication skills and make a real difference to young children’s lives? Are you keen to learn more about working with families to access the support they need in their local community? Our Signposting & Guidance Volunteers support families in the medium term, over several conversations. Based at home, you’ll be a friendly voice helping families to access local services. All training is provided, ensuring you can confidently talk about money, housing, wellbeing and other areas of support. “At the time when I came to you I was really struggling. I had applied for Universal Credit and not received it yet. I was asking friends to loan me money because I had nothing. You guys were the difference between me not having anything and actually being able to feed my family.” We are currently looking for volunteers to support families based in north or southeast London, offering the support remotely over the phone. What will I do? • Speak to families on the 'phone or in person • Through conversation, understand their situation and any additional support needed • Build relationships and trust quickly • Talk through a range of issues including money, housing, and wellbeing • Help families to access extra support e.g., issuing foodbank vouchers • Speak with other organisations and professionals on behalf of families • Listen out for areas of additional concern and share with the team • Build local connections for services/activities which might be helpful • Use our in-house database to access and update information accurately • Respond with kindness and empathy in emotionally sensitive conversations • Act in a non-judgmental, inclusive, and loving way If you have great interpersonal skills, have strong written and spoken English, and feel comfortable presenting information, over the telephone, in a way that is easy to understand, this is a great opportunity to gain new skills and knowledge whilst contributing to positive change in your community. Online training for our next cohort of Signposting & Guidance volunteers will be approximately 25 hours spread across four weeks, starting on Tuesday 1st October. We are aiming for volunteers to be ready to start in the role immediately after training, in November 2024, and we ask for a commitment of 6 months after training.
• We ask for a DBS check (Little Village can arrange) • 4 hours (within working hours) weekly for a minimum 6 months • Confident level of written and spoken English • Compassionate communication and active listening skills • Resilience in challenging or upsetting situations • A quiet space, a ‘phone, and a laptop • Attention to detail (especially with data input) • Solid experience using databases or similar software
• 25 hours of specialist training, recognised by City & Guilds • Regular volunteer support sessions and one-to-one supervision • Written references on request • Unique insight into child poverty in the UK and not-for-profit sector
We ask that you are available to volunteer for 4 hours a week within these times: North London: Monday-Thursday 9am-3pm Southeast London: Tuesday-Wednesday 9am-4pm
