Online Listings Volunteer Volunteer Roles in Manchester

 Role Description:

We are seeking volunteers anywhere in the UK to help out with Study Group sessions for young Refugees or young people seeking asylum. We have continued to keep study group online as it enables community members from across and outside of London to get help and support with homework.

The Study Group sessions are delivered weekly on Zoom, every Tuesday from 5.30-6.30 pm. 

Volunteer tasks and responsibilities:

The role of a Study Group volunteer can include:  

• Providing learners with homework support; preferably 1:1 in Zoom breakout rooms (may be extended to 1 volunteer to 2 young people in busy sessions). 

• Promoting other online learning. ie. Reading an extract of an e-book together/ playing games to learn English/ completing a quiz on a topic of interest. 
• Providing social and emotional support to young people. Many of the young people that attend will be quite isolated at this time and will therefore benefit from the social element of Study Group. 
• Supporting young people with a range of technical issues relating to their laptop/phone/ zoom. 
• Staying for debrief after each session to feedback on what you covered with the Young Person in your breakout room. This offers a space to learn and share resources/ ideas for future weeks with other volunteers. 

Benefits of volunteering with CARAS:

Study Group Volunteers will have the opportunity to:  

• Attend CARAS induction training which covers Safeguarding 
• The opportunity to further professional development through attending other free training opportunities CARAS distribute regularly 
• A safe and supportive space to improve your mentoring/teaching skills 

• Gain first-hand experience of some of the issues young Refugee and Asylum Seeking people face and contribute to making London a better place for them to be 
• Receive support and feedback on teaching from the Project Coordinator through supervision meetings  
• Obtain a work reference after three months of weekly (or six months of fortnightly) volunteering.  
• Be part of the wider CARAS team and join in other activities with volunteers.  

All training and Study Group sessions are delivered online, so you won’t need to travel to the CARAS office in London. No prior experience of online teaching is required, but you will need a laptop or desktop PC with a good microphone and internet connection. You will be required to share your screen on your laptop but all basic Zoom functions can be taught upon induction. 

About the organisation:

CARAS is a registered charity working with people in south London and beyond who have an asylum or refugee background. Our values are: 

• Kindness. CARAS will nurture all who are part of our community, helping everyone to develop their skills, talents and interests.   
• Justice. CARAS will strive for social justice following a rights-based approach in all of our work and challenging instances when rights are not upheld in wider society.   
• Empowerment. CARAS works alongside people, recognising and respecting their skills and strengths and striving together for better outcomes.   
• ‘With’ not ‘for’. CARAS will put the voices, opinions, experiences and needs of its beneficiaries at the heart of all that we do.   

Requirements: 

Essential 

• To be 18 years or older; 
• To be non-judgemental and able to engage with people from diverse cultural backgrounds; 
• To be reliable and punctual; 
• Excellent communication skills, especially with people with varying levels of English; 
• Currently resident in the UK; 
• Able to provide five years’ worth of addresses, and willing to undergo a DBS check; 
• Able to attend compulsory volunteer induction training (online) general and safeguarding prior to the start of role 
• To be able to attend at least 2 sessions every month 
• To have a quiet confidential space from which to participate and to provide your own device and microphone with access to zoom 

Desirable 

• Knowledge of community languages, such as (including Arabic, Tigrinya, Amharic, Pashto, Dari, Farsi, Kurdish, Somali and Spanish).