Criminal justice peer mentor volunteer volunteer roles
Welcome
Thank you for showing interest in Voyage (Voice of Youth & Genuine Empowerment) and the possibility of becoming a Trustee.
Voyage is a London-based social justice charity tackling racial inequality and structural disadvantage. We empower and enrich the lives of diverse young people and transform disadvantaged communities by raising aspiration and attainment. We work with socially disadvantaged and excluded young people, aiming to combat social exclusion, improve educational achievement and build resilient, confident leaders. Our mission is to empower and enrich the lives of young Black people and young people from the global majority, radically transforming educational and employment pathways. You will find more information on our website outlining our mission, programmes, partnerships and impact.
Voyage is led and governed by our committed, majority-diverse Board of Trustees, Youth Advisory Board, CEO and leadership team. Our organisation would not succeed without the dedication of our programme leaders and staff team. We have bold ambitions for Voyage, including completing our transition to Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) status and deepening our work across three pillars: Education, Access and Youth Voice. To support this next phase, we now need additional skills on our Board. We are specifically looking for people with one or more of the following:
·broad fundraising or income generation experience
·experience in the higher or further education sector
·education product development or commercial/business development experience
·governance and board development
We are open to other skills and experiences too. If you share our passion for social justice and supporting young people from Black and other global majority backgrounds to raise their expectations and fulfil their potential, we would welcome your application. We are especially interested in people currently underrepresented in charity governance.
Sincerely
Siobhan O’Garro (Board Chair)
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About us
Our mission - We ignite and inspire the next generation, building resilience to tackle the UK’s most pressing issues.
Our vision - Every young person can be a voice for change in their community and the world.
Our philosophy - Each One Teach One.
Our values - Empower – Transform – Sustain.
We provide accredited transformational leadership programmes for young people from the global majority. We aim to increase educational attainment, build community resilience and develop empowered young leaders who go on to reach their full potential and often return to Voyage to inspire the next generation.
Our work and plans
Voyage has recently come through a very challenging two year period that has significantly impacted our ability to attract investment and grow and rebuild staff capacity. At the same time, the national rolling back of ESG, DEI and wider CSR agendas has reduced investment in the very communities and young people our work exists to support. Despite this, Voyage remains resilient and is committed to overcoming these challenges. We have developed a business-led approach that places our young people at the centre of reversing this trend demonstrating the essential role that diversity, youth leadership and social justice play in future-focused industries.
We support young people through accredited education offers leading to employment and industry accesswork and opportunities to highlight the voice of our young people. This pathway of empowerment can be seen in our longest-standing strand, rooted in our BTEC level II accredited Safer cities course designed to support young people who are at risk of being marginalized due to challenging behaviour, damaging relationships and poor engagement with school.
A major element of our renewed strategy is our focus on sustainability and climate justice. Our mission helps us connect our diversity agenda to these sectors that are currently under-represented yet abundant with opportunity. Voyage is therefore aligning youth leadership, diversity and green-skills development through:
·our new Young Leaders Course - Sustainable Cities, supporting young people to understand climate resilience, urban change and green career pathways
·our Horizons Youth Programme for the Environment (HyPE), equipping at-risk young people with employability skills, training and entry points into environmental and retrofit careers
Further plans include:
·developing and rolling out a third BTEC accredited course linked to the under-represented but opportunity-rich digital sector - the Smart Cities;
·completing our transition to Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) status to give us more flexible and agile income-generation options;
·growing Youth Voice as both an income-generating and influence-building strand, enabling young people to shape policy, practice and public discourse; and
·position Voyage as a London leader in youth justice, climate equity and youth-led social innovation, with a developing national profile
Our constitution
Trustees provide oversight and scrutiny of Voyage’s management, operations and strategic direction, ensuring compliance with the Charity Commission and alignment with our mission, vision and values.
We are looking for additional skills in:
·governance and board development
·commercial or business development
·strategic fundraising and income generation
The Board
Trustees are appointed by the Nominations Committee with representation from the Youth Advisory Board. We are currently seeking at least two or more new Trustees to strengthen our Board and equip us for the opportunities and challenges ahead, including organisational growth, transformation to CIO status, programme development and national positioning. We are looking for people to act as advocates for Voyage, committed to our vision and mission. Prior trustee experience is not essential but can be very helpful.
We particularly welcome applications from:
·younger trustees
·disabled people
·people with lived experience of social and educational disadvantage
As a Trustee, you will support good governance, ensure the organisation is sustainable, effective and always delivering our charitable purposes.
Job Description
The Board meets 4–6 times a year for up to two hours, with an additional annual Away Day. Meetings are held both virtually and in person. We use an online portal to share papers and reports.
Trustees are expected to:
·prepare for and attend meetings
·contribute actively to discussions
·attend up to two events per year
The time commitment is approximately one day per month on average, occasionally higher at key points in the year.
Each Trustee will hold a specific remit or portfolio area aligned to their expertise and will keep the Board informed about developments and opportunities within that area.
Remuneration
Trustee roles are unremunerated; however, reasonable expenses will be reimbursed. If finances present a barrier to participation, please discuss this with us.
Engagement
Trustees are committed to governing in a way that is compassionate, transparent and grounded in the lived realities of the young people and staff who deliver Voyage Youth’s mission, while maintaining appropriate boundaries between governance and operational delivery. The staff team is dynamic, hardworking and welcoming. Our small size allows Trustees to have meaningful involvement at all levels of the organisation.Trustees may also be invited to:
·take part in working groups
·represent Voyage at events
·advise staff in areas of professional expertise
Responsibilities of Trustees
Trustees share collective responsibility to:
·ensure compliance with the governing document and charity law
·maintain financial control and sustainability
·set and review strategy and performance
·ensure accountability and transparency
·uphold Voyage’s reputation and values
·oversee risk management, safeguarding and key policies
·support and challenge the leadership team appropriately
·act only in the best interests of the charity
Person Specification
We are looking for people who will bring diverse experiences and insight to our Board. All Trustees must be able to demonstrate:
·a passion for social justice and improved outcomes for young Black people and the global majority
·collaborative working and team contribution
·understanding of strategy and leadership
·ability to connect Voyage to networks and opportunities
·commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion
·strategic thinking and constructive challenge
How to apply
Please apply by sending:
·your CV
·a cover letter (maximum 1.5 pages) outlining your interest and suitability
Send applications to: recruitment at Voyage Youth
If you would like an informal conversation before applying, contact us via the same email address. This will not influence the outcome of your application. We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. Please tell us if you require reasonable adjustments. Closing date for applications: Friday 27th February 2026 Interviews: Weeks commencing mid to late March 2026 (in person) For more information about us and our work, please visit our website.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Do you want to join an organisation committed to addressing low literacy and numeracy?
Volunteers are essential to Shannon Trust and bring their energy, ideas and skills to train mentors in prisons, support learners in the community and enhance our business support team.
We are looking for volunteers to provide training and support to our mentors in prison. There may be some additional preparation and/ or administrative tasks in between volunteering days at the prison.
Our prison volunteers nurture the growth of the Shannon Trust in their prison. They help unlock the power of reading by delivering training sessions for prison mentors and offering ongoing advice, guidance and support through mentor meetings.
Volunteer recruitment dates
The closing date for applications to attend our next round of training is 3 May 2026. In some circumstances, volunteer vacancies may close early. Successful applicants will be sent interview questions in advance with notice to prepare. We will respond to all applications. Successful applicants will be invited to an interview between 4 May and 15 May 2026. This is an opportunity for you to meet our regional team, to find out more about you and for us to share more information about the volunteering role.
Training:
You'll be given high quality training to prepare you for volunteering with Shannon Trust. This takes place over 4 training sessions and via our online training portal. We ask that volunteers aim to complete the training in one course as this means that you will be ready to start actively volunteering. The next training sessions for volunteering for people applying to be a prison based volunteer will take place as follows.
Please check that you can attend all of the training the dates prior to applying:
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27 May 2026, 10am – 1pm (via Zoom)
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3 June 2026, 10am – 1pm (via Zoom)
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10 June 2026, 10am – 1pm (via Zoom)
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1 July 2026, 10am-4pm (in person session, London)
You’ll also receive the opportunity to attend ongoing training sessions and peer support meetings during your time as a volunteer to build your skills and experience.
Why we want you
Shannon Trust’s vision is of a future where everyone can experience the positive impact of learning. As a prison volunteer your role will be at the heart of our organisation as you support our mentors in prisons. This will include delivering training to new mentors and supporting existing mentors to develop and deliver our Turning Pages and Count Me In programmes. You will be volunteering alongside Shannon Trust facilitators and / or frontline prison staff to empower mentors and ensure no one is left out of learning.
What you will be doing
- Delivering initial, and ongoing, training to mentors in prisons
- Supporting and encouraging the Shannon Trust facilitator and mentors to attract new learners and expand the reach of the Shannon Trust programme
- Arranging and leading mentor meetings to develop mentors’ skills, share good practice and to provide support to mentors to find solutions to concerns
- Supporting facilitators to engage prison staff and people in prison to set-up, maintain and develop the Shannon Trust reading and numeracy programmes across the whole prison, and contributing to progress planning for how to progress and achieve this
- Using your skills to build positive relationships with frontline prison staff, people in prison and other organisations
- Training and supporting mentors to collect and submit data and learner feedback
- Supporting with the planning of, and attendance at, celebration events
- Collecting and sharing good news stories and feedback
- Attending area meetings and sharing good practice with other volunteers
- Engaging with quarterly reviews to receive support and discuss progress
- Acting as an ambassador for Shannon Trust in all that you do, sharing the vision and values of the charity throughout your volunteering
The skills you need
- A commitment to providing non-judgemental support to people in prison
- Able to give a regular, reliable commitment for ideally two years and have flexibility to visit the prison at times required
- Strong communication skills and are able to use these to inspire others
- Able to deliver engaging training and identify training and support needs for mentors
- Able to manage own time and prioritise
- Able to keep up to date with Shannon Trust news and communications and share relevant information with the wider prison team
- Able to use IT
What's in it for you
- Developing and growing your understanding of the HMPPS structure and prison system
- Reasonable, out of pocket, volunteering expenses are
- You will receive induction training and ongoing training to support and develop you in your role
- All volunteers receive ongoing support and quarterly reviews to enable you to gain the most from your volunteering experience
- We recognise and are grateful for the added value that volunteers bring to our organisation
- We provide flexible volunteering opportunities, subject to the requirements of your role
Disclaimer
In some circumstances, volunteer vacancies may close early.
Thank you!
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
Fine Cell Work (FCW) is a UK-based rehabilitation charity and social enterprise. We are supported by an incredible team of prison volunteers who are the link between the charity and the stitchers we work with in prison. Our volunteers run fortnightly stitching groups in the prisons we work with to facilitate our stitchers’ production of high-quality needlework.
Our prison volunteers work in small teams to teach our stitchers’ embroidery and needlepoint, organise their group sessions, and liaise with the prison and FCW office.
What you will do as a prison volunteer:
- Teach people in prison how to stitch and support the completion of our premade kits in our cell groups, which consist of around 10-15 stitchers.
- Communicate with staff at our hub in Battersea to receive kits and supplies for your group and send back completed work for your stitchers to be paid.
- Encourage and help stitchers to complete our Open College Network certifications in creative needlework.
- Develop stitchers’ skills and confidence by encouraging them to take responsibility as peer mentors.
- Act as an ambassador for the charity and sharing our vision and values throughout your volunteering.
Who we are looking for:
- Skills in embroidery and/or needlepoint or a willingness to learn to stitch is essential for this role.
- Ideally some teaching experience or experience working with socially-excluded groups.
- Someone with a non-judgemental attitude and commitment to rehabilitation.
- Someone who is an excellent team worker.
- Someone who is good at observing personal boundaries.
Commitment: our stitching groups run for 2 hours every fortnight, so with travel time and some admin work after groups we ask prison volunteers to set aside a morning or afternoon every 2 weeks.
You must be over 18 for this role with the ability to travel to the prison. Travel expenses will be reimbursed by the charity.
Please take some time to read the role description to find out more details about the role and what we offer to our prison volunteers.
At Fine Cell Work, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where all belong. We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented amongst FCW’s prison volunteers. This includes applicants from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, people with disabilities, LGBTQIA+, and male identifying applicants.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Applications close at 9.a.m. Monday 23rd February 2026
Location: Home-based but with regular travel, including to periodic board meetings in London or other locations within the UK
This is an opportunity to chair a charity transforming lives by helping more people experience the positive impact of learning. You can help shape the future of this remarkable charity and lead the Board of Shannon Trust to broaden, deepen and mature what we deliver.
Who we are
Picture this: a person in prison who struggles with literacy and numeracy reads their first sentence, they write their first letter home to their children or completes their first numeracy task. They begin to imagine a future beyond the prison walls.
This is what happens when someone learns with Shannon Trust, and it happens thousands of times each year across prisons in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Currently, 65% of people in prison can’t read, or struggle to. Even more struggle with numeracy.
These are not just statistics; they represent people who have been locked out of opportunity, who struggle with daily tasks, such as helping their children with homework or filling out a job application. At Shannon Trust, we believe everyone deserves the chance to learn, and that literacy and numeracy skills help build the foundations upon which people can rebuild their lives.
Where we are now
Shannon Trust has experienced remarkable growth over recent years. We have gone from a team of twelve people to one hundred staff today, supported by a volunteer base that brings us close to 250 people working to change lives through learning. The core of what we do is one-to-one peer mentoring in prisons. In 2025 alone, more than 11,000 learners used our reading and numeracy programmes, with 2,000 new volunteer peer-mentors trained to support them. We work in around one hundred prisons across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, delivering our Turning Pages reading programme and Count Me In numeracy programme. We are increasing our reach into the community, too. This growth is the result of sustained focus, strong relationships with funders who believe in our work, and the proven impact of our peer-led learning model.
What we are looking for
We are looking for a Chair who is strongly motivated by our cause, with a genuine empathy for the people we serve and a commitment to the person-centred language and inclusive thinking which are woven into everything we do. You will bring an engaged and engaging leadership style, have resilience and a personal gravitas.
You will be someone who is comfortable with complexity as we shape our organisation for the next chapter of our development. You will understand the importance of process, culture, and effective operations as the means of delivering a successful strategy and sustaining an organisation.
You will be someone who can help us be better advocates whether that is supporting our Chief Executive to build relationships with policymakers, helping us think through how we position ourselves in the education and criminal justice landscape, or using your own networks to create opportunities for Shannon Trust to influence and inform. We need a Chair who sees advocacy as part of the role.
Most importantly, our new Chair must be a strong partner for our CEO, a mentor, challenger and support.
Please click 'Redirect to recruiter’ to be redirected to the Peridot Partners website, where you can find full details of the candidate profile and register your interest to apply.
Applications for this role close at 9.a.m. Monday 23rd February 2026
Recruitment Agency
21 - 50
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