Programme Development Specialist Volunteer Roles in Belfast

NEW VOLUNTEER TEAM NEEDED! A DYNAMIC AND DEVELOPING MENTAL HEALTH CHARITY URGENTLY SEEKING VOLUNTEERS. HELP FORGE THE BEST MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELLING SERVICE

Evolve Counselling is … changing. Over the next year we have an ambitious programme to meet a large and growing demand for professionally-delivered talking therapies. We have plenty of volunteering opportunities for you. Bring your skills and experience to help us, and in return be part of an empowering community - where you can thrive in a rewarding project. Build your CV! Try something new! Put your spare time to use! Revive your career skills! Do life-enriching work helping others! All roles are flexible hours, working remotely with full IT support.

Exciting and absorbing NEW volunteer job roles

Admin Assistant . Secretarial tasks supporting the Trustee Board: Scheduling meetings, preparing agendas and board papers, taking minutes, keeping records, monitoring compliance  with legal and contractual rules, etc. Admin support for CEO: Arrange external meetings, attend planning sessions and produce notes and minutes, schedule key business events, and keep diaries up to date. General office administration: Keeping records, directing calls and messages, maintaining files and building the business ‘memory’. We are looking for a highly efficient organiser, someone used to routine and fine detail, with good IT skills.

Finance Controller or Finance Assistant. Finance tasks supporting our growing charity, working with our external Book Keeper, outsourced payroll service, and the Board Treasurer. Tasks include producing monthly reports and stats for the Board, for funders and fundraising bids. Monthly financial reporting including monitoring of income and expenditure, variance analysis and cashflow forecasting, monthly management accounts, and annual financial statements - charity income and expenditure, balance sheet, P&L. Supporting annual budget setting, and assisting when data is required for grant submissions. You will ideally be, or have been, a chartered, AAT, or qualified-by-experience accountant, have Third Sector knowledge, and have an interest and passion  for charitable enterprises.

Communications and Media Coordinator or Assistant. We are looking for help to communicate much much better with counselling clients, funders, our own “Counselling Community” of therapists, and the wider voluntary sector across our large area. You’ll be writing news stories, success ‘profiles’, publicising regular and special events, and driving social media and the web  - building the brand for Evolve. This job will be great  for a pro-active social media “story teller”, looking to build their own profile by ‘owning’ this new area of Evolve’s work. You’ll need to be creative, organised, and literate, with a very self-motivated  approach. A background in PR, marketing, social media or news will be great for this role.
 

Marketing and Fundraising Specialist or Assistant. Help us to grow our client numbers, improve the service, generate a development fund for new innovations, and get our name in front of sponsors, donors, and other charity project funders. In this demanding but hugely rewarding new role you will be in at the beginning - creating campaigns, researching and writing bids, and working with our communications and media volunteer to build and promote compelling fundable projects.

About Evolve Counselling. Evolve Counselling is a long-established charitable social enterprise, providing low cost, affordable or funded mental health counselling to adults in Cambridgeshire and surrounding counties. Our counselling community is made up of 50 – 60 qualified self-employed practitioners, working part-time. We deliver talking therapies to adults – online and in person. Our service delivers around 500 counselling sessions per month to a broad range of individuals, many of whom would not otherwise be able to access counselling support. Evolve also provides supervision, reflective practice, critical incident support and mental health awareness and related training to organisations and businesses large and small.

We are ambitious and we need Trustees who are too. We want you to help us drive change and see an end to homelessness in Milton Keynes.

Now in our 3rd year, the Milton Keynes Homelessness Partnership (MKHP) is seeking new trustees with specialist skills to take us to the next stage of our journey.

We are a network of organisations who connect to prevent and end homelessness in Milton Keynes. We encourage, facilitate, and incubate innovative ideas, promote open exchange of good practice, promote collaboration, are insight led and have a solution-based approach.

Our philosophy starts with a person-centred approach, from medical wellbeing through to better and truly affordable homes. Homelessness is many things. It’s sofa surfing. It’s living in temporary or emergency housing. It’s living in your car. You don’t have to be on the streets to feel unprotected or unwelcome.

We work to elevate the voices of people with lived experience and embed a truly co-production approach to services in Milton Keynes. We encourage diversity of thought and practice and want our Trustee Board to represent Milton Keynes and all its unique facets.

Our Trustee Board is a group of industry leaders who come together 4- 6 times per year and who lend their expertise to the sub-Committees. We have a small expert staff team who need a board who can inform, guide, and support the charity’s development and sustainability as we probe and seek solutions to some challenging and complex issues.

We are seeking up to 6 Trustees, to strengthen the current expertise aswell as bring in new skills to support succession planning as some trustees step down. We are keen to attract trustees with at least two of the following specialist areas of expertise: ✓ Business Development and Income Generation ✓ Corporate and business sector ✓ Financial Management (eg. Accountant or Snr. Financial Director) ✓ Health ✓ Homelessness in its widest sense ✓ Marketing, Communications and Public Relations ✓ Planning, Housing and Property ✓ Public Affairs and Policy ✓ Research and Insight

British Exploring Society is a world class youth development charity with a unique heritage, founded on the belief that challenging experiences can transform lives, empowering and equipping young people with the courage, skills, resilience and determination to make the most of their future.

We prepare and take young people on expeditions to remote locations where they face challenges, gain skills and learn about themselves - as well as acquiring knowledge relevant to their lives and to the fragile environments that they explore.

The results are transformative – not just in terms of practical skills and resilience, but in a new-found confidence and self-belief which they carry forward to their future life.

More than this, through their adventure together, our young people forge friendships for life and become part of a unique supportive and continuing community of explorers with shared experiences, values and perspectives on the world.

We are committed to building an executive and volunteer team that together represent a diverse variety of backgrounds, skills, and perspectives on the world. The more inclusive we are, the better we think we’ll be at delivering our charitable aims.

We are an equal opportunities employer and do not discriminate on the grounds of gender identity, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability, or age.

If you are interested in applying and require any accessibility adjustments to the interview process, please do let us know when you apply. Thank you.

Upcoming opportunities for Base Camp Managers

The Base Camp Manager has responsibility for many of the logistical aspects of the expedition, including equipment, food, and managing the environmental impact at base camp. They will need to be ready to turn their hand to a range of tasks, acting as the ‘fixer’ for the expedition and supporting the expedition team with all aspects of expedition life.

Working in partnership with the Senior Leadership Team, they will be responsible for safety and wellbeing of all participants on expedition. They will take lead responsibility for the planning, procurement and issuance of both food and equipment across all stages of the programme. 

Expeditions are between 2 and 6 weeks long and take place during academic holiday periods. We are currently recruiting volunteer Leaders for all our expeditions for Summer 2024.

We are also recruiting for Adventure Leaders, Social Leaders, Knowledge Leaders and Medical Leaders. Additionally, we are keen to hear from those with relevant or transferable senior leadership experience to fulfil our  Chief and Deputy Chief Leader roles. Please visit our website for more details.

Benefits of being a volunteer Leader with us:

Community - Our Volunteer Leader community come from a variety of backgrounds, ages and professions bring a diverse range of skills and experiences. Not only will you become a Member of British Exploring Society after leading with us but will leave with strong bonds and shared memories.

Courage - Set in wild, remote and sometimes harsh environments that young people aren’t used to. Working in this environment and supporting young people requires Leaders to show courage and be adaptable and dynamic, allowing for a unique and new experience - 100% of Leaders said they had acquired new skills.

Challenge – Our expeditions can be challenging. To prepare Leaders we provide high quality training and personal development. This offers Leaders the opportunity to develop & stretch their skills, such as youth work, technical, leadership and facilitation - 74% of Leaders said that volunteering with us had furthered their career.

Self-belief - From beginning to the end, you will be supported whilst developing their confidence. - 90% of our Leaders said they were more confident after expedition.

We are looking for applicants who are:

• Able and passionate about leading, inspiring, and teaching young people.
• Comfortable spending extended periods in remote and sometimes harsh environments.
• Able to commit to all pre- expedition training events. Dates are still being confirmed for the 2024 season though they will be similar to the 2023 pre-expedition training events. Please keep checking the link attached for the 2024 dates.
• Available for expedition for 2 to 6 weeks from mid July

As a charity, all Leader positions are undertaken on a voluntary basis and Leaders join for the intrinsic value of adventure, education, and personal development of young people. You do not have to fundraise to lead on our expeditions.

Prior to expedition all volunteer Leaders will receive training and support. We ask that first time Leaders cover the cost of their flights as part of the group booking booked by British Exploring Society, who will then reclaim the cost from Leaders. Flight costs will be covered for all returning Leaders. Leaders will need to provide their own personal kit as well as vaccinations and visas (if applicable). Leaders may claim expenses for UK training events. All other expedition costs are covered, including insurance, specialist equipment, expedition food and accommodation.

Leader Recruitment Pack

For more information about what volunteering with us looks like, please refer to our Leader Recruitment Pack that can be found on our website.

CoDa Dance Company are looking for Trustees!

WHO WE ARE:
CoDa Dance Company tells real life differently. CoDa is an award-winning, socially driven, female- & disability-led dance company with a 10-year track record of creating site-specific, Extended Reality and stage productions. We specialise in dance
and neurology, delivering exceptional participatory projects in hospitals and communities.

We give people joyful and meaningful experiences that inspire creativity and curiosity.

Our inclusion in ACE’s prestigious National Portfolio (2023-26) marks a significant milestone in our journey as a dance company, and we are thrilled to be recognised for our dedication to artistic excellence and innovation which align with ACE’s Let’s Create strategy. It is validation for our ambitious vision for pioneering digital dance works that challenge perceptions of disability.

Why? We know that 1 in 6 people will experience a neurological condition in their lifetime. The figure is higher once we consider the loved ones, children, partners or carers of someone with a neurological condition. This is not a marginal issue, but one that touches the lives of many people, both directly and indirectly.

Our Lived Experience Consultants have told us that seeing their experiences represented in the cultural landscape is a validating experience, helping to challenge common perception of dance being beyond their capacity. Disrupting these misconceptions through technology aided dance is our way of addressing this need.

CURRENT WORK

'Don’t Look Down' 

Working with a group of LECs (Lived Experience Consultants who have Acquired Brain Injury) we researched their stories and experiences & worked with them to develop the creation of an interactive installation that uses dance and creative technologies to raise awareness of, and shines a light on living with neurological disabilities.

Dance for Neurology
Therapeutic dance sessions for hospitals and communities, underpinned by our pioneering inclusive methodology, get everyone moving and dancing, including those with profound disabilities.

OUR BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Our Board is responsible for agreeing the strategic direction of the charity, setting the budgetary framework and deciding upon major undertakings. Responsibility for the day-to-day operation of CoDa is delegated to Nikki Watson, our Artistic Director and
Elise Phillips, our Executive Producer. They report to the Trustees on a regular basis. This ensures that our Trustees have all the information they need to monitor progress and agree strategic or budgetary adjustments which may become necessary.
 

CoDa also maintains a number of Trustee-led special purpose subgroups that undertake specific tasks which contribute to the charity’s governance and operation such as Lived Experience (of disability and/or caring roles), Ambition & Quality,
Environmental Responsibility, Equality Diversity and Inclusion, Human Resources, Finance and Dynamism.
Each trustee will champion an area of activity & one of our guiding Investment

Principles by regular contact with appropriate staff members, in order to report back to the board at quarterly meetings.

WHAT’S INVOLVED IN BEING A TRUSTEE
Time commitment
● up to 6 hours a month (incl.Board attendance and subgroup meetings)
● six meetings per year (4 x board meetings, 1 x Annual General Meeting (AGM)
and 1 x Company Away Day) at a day and time agreed in advance (within
normal office hours or evenings)
● Board meetings are 1.5 hours
● Company Away Day takes place across a full day
● Papers are distributed electronically one week in advance of meetings
Location

Mostly remotely with meetings held virtually, with occasional face-to-face meetings at the charity’s base in Thurrock or central London. Ideally, we’d like you to be able to visit our services which are mostly in the South East, in or around London and Essex, to get to know our staff and the people we support.

Term of office

• Trustees are appointed for a minimum of 3 years and can continue for a further two periods of 3 years (maximum term 9 years).
• The role is voluntary
• Trustees are volunteers and their role is unpaid; however, we reimburse reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. This does not form any type of employment contract and should not be interpreted as such.

OUR SUPPORT FOR YOU

We recognise that if you are new to trusteeship you may need some support in your new role. Alongside informal ad hoc support from existing Board members we are able to offer free training and skills development through our partners and the
National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO).

Learning and development opportunities may include:

● Safeguarding
● Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (as part of our ongoing commitment to EDI)
● Governance
● Trustee Induction / Refresher
Training is often available as e-learning which can be accessed from home.

Expenses: CoDa will reimburse you for reasonable and agreed out of pocket expenses such as
travel to help you carry out your role effectively.

Insurance: We provide insurance cover for Trustees when they are doing approved and
authorised voluntary work for CoDa.

THE BRIEF

We are looking for people with an interest in CoDa and our mission, who are able to provide the company with commitment, time and support through an exciting period of growth in CoDa’s artistic research, audience development activity and business
development.

Person Specification:
Experience & Skills - Desired but not essential

● experience working on or with a Board or committee group
● lived-experience of neurological disabilities
● strategic and critical thinking
● team working
● creative thinking skills
● experience and/or working knowledge of one or more specialist areas: Lived Experience / Human Resources / Finance / Equality Diversity and Inclusion 

Required Behaviours & Attitudes
As a Trustee you will need:
● a commitment to the vision, mission and values of CoDa
● enthusiasm and curiosity
● willingness to engage and meet the minimum time requirement
● desire to question status quo
● integrity
● an understanding of the experiences, needs and challenges faced by the people we work with (or at least a willingness to learn more)
● to comply to our Code of Conduct and CoDa’s policies

EDI Statement
CoDa is committed to Equal Opportunities for all roles. We welcome applications from all persons regardless of their gender, disability, race, culture, religion/belief, sexual orientation, age, socio-economic background, class, mental health, or caring
duties. As a disability-led organisation, we encourage disabled applicants to apply. If you are unsure about applying, please talk with us about any concerns you might have.

SPECIALIST TRUSTEE VACANCIES
We are interested in hearing from people with a background in:

1. Lived experience
The people we support are at the heart of all we do, helping us to drive CoDa’s ethos and mission. If you have lived experience of neurological disabilities be that personal, familial, through work or a caring role, we’d warmly welcome your application.

2. Equality Diversity and Inclusion

Following EDI and Anti-Racism training from Inc Arts the board and senior staff developed a 3 year actionable plan through their sector-leading Unlock Programme. The Board’s (EDI) subgroup regularly reviews the activity plan and provides support,
advice and assurance for Trustees to ensure that we have a strategic approach to building a greater equitable and diverse culture within CoDa. The steering group:

● Identifies the EDI challenges, providing advice and making recommendations
● Drives forward change on agreed priorities to ensure fairness and integrity are embedded in all that we do.
● Holds Trustees and Senior Staff to account, ensuring the Board, subgroups and company move beyond meeting their statutory responsibilities to reach goals that enable us to achieve the charity’s mission.

We particularly welcome applicants who’ve experience of EDI strategy and are passionate about helping to drive forward our commitment to this work.

3. Finance
While Trustees have ultimate responsibility for the organisation, including finance, organisational strategy and staff, we are looking for a Finance trustee to help the other trustees carry out their financial responsibilities by:

● advising the Board on how to carry out its financial responsibilities including the maintenance of appropriate policies for reserves and investments
● liaising with professional advisers
● overseeing the preparation and scrutiny of the annual accounts
● having particular regard for risk management including the maintenance of appropriate financial controls

We welcome applicants who have knowledge of charity finance and accountancy to provide support to the company. Ideally we are looking for someone with a recognised accounting and finance qualification with the ability to scrutinise and
probe financial statements, reports and balance sheet information.

4. Human Resources

CoDa are looking to strengthen their Trustee Board by appointing a Trustee with HR expertise. CoDa is in a significant period of growth with a dedicated team and as we continue to develop and grow we would benefit from the oversight and guidance that an HR professional could give. We are ideally looking for an individual who can:

● ensure that CoDa is legally compliant with current Employment legislation
● advise on good practice in staffing and HR matters
● review policies and procedures relating to HR
● assess risks and measure the impact of HR interventions in the light of changing legal requirements and best practice.
● ensure that HR activities and interventions are linked to the charitable objectives and complement CoDa’s culture.

We welcome applicants with experience in HR management and employment law.

HOW TO APPLY

If you’re interested in joining the Board of Trustees please email us with:

● a short statement highlighting why you are interested including any specialist areas of experience.
● a CV or short document outlining past experience and transferable skills including from voluntary, employed, self-employed, internship, apprenticeship and caring / familial environments.

You can alternatively submit the statement by sharing a link to a video or audio file

Deadline for applications: 23:59 1st December 2023

Interviews: Take place on a rolling basis at a time and day convenient for all persons.

Interviews will be held remotely using video conferencing. There will be a set of interview questions, which we will email to each applicant invited to interview.

Will you share your counselling or psychotherapy skills as a counsellor or therapist to join an online counselling service for patients and families affected by a chronic pain condition (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome)?

We're looking for 2 qualified counsellors, psychotherapists or psychologists ideally with some experience of working with chronic pain patients, who may want to volunteer their skills supporting our adult service users and help us to continue developing a psychological support service. 

As a Volunteer Counsellor/Therapist you’ll be providing remote counselling/therapy support services to adults aged 18 and over many of whom are isolated and in need of mental health services. You’ll be providing one-to-one counselling/therapy sessions online or by phone. With your recognised counselling qualifications and experience you will be an asset to our small charity and to our services users.  

Depending on your qualifications, skills and experience, our volunteer counsellors / therapists provide person centred counselling (general talking counselling) or specialist services such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), ACT and EMDR for CRPS patients, or their families & close relatives.

People will be referred both by health or legal professionals as well as having patients themselves referring to the service.

In this role you’ll be able to develop your counselling and therapy skills, organisation, communication and team working skills. If you have experience in younger children please do get in touch as we're also looking for child & young people therapists.

Most importantly you’ll be providing essential services that help make sure no one has to face CRPS alone. Be the hope for CRPS.

What the role involves

This role may vary depending on needs, but is likely to include:

• Undertake a client assessments, followed by person-centred counselling (via Zoom or phone) to our clients, offering up to 20 sessions for each client plus 4 assessments

• Providing one-to-one counselling sessions to clients aged 18 & over (we will consider therapists who can only support primary or secondary school age)

• Update our database with the client’s basic information and session attendance

• Maintain succinct, relevant session notes and store these securely

• Attending and participating in meetings

• Attend CPD training to ensure your knowledge stays current

• Participating in volunteer meetings
• Maintaining client confidentiality, upholding data protection and equal opportunities principle

• Attend monthly Supervision and peer support sessions to ensure safe working practices

We can support you to develop the skills you need for this role, including a full induction. You will have a chance to discuss your role and any additional needs with us. We can offer you a supervisor as well as expenses for annual insurance, an external supervisor and membership to a recognised organisation.

What you need for this role

Essential

• Be a member (including student membership) of one of the recognised organisations (see below)
• Level 4 Diploma level qualifications as a minimum (or be studying towards one), Degree or Masters in Counselling, Counselling/Clinical Psychology, Psychotherapy, Art Therapy 
• Minimum of 100 hours supervised
• Proof of professional indemnity insurance annually - we may consider paying this as an expense but commitment to the charity is required
• A valid DBS certificate (enhanced version), which is less than three years old and renewed every three years (the charity can provide where necessary)
• Able to keep people’s personal data safe

• Willing and able to provide counselling via Zoom from a private location with a stable WiFi connection

• Able to support a minimum of 3 clients a week, being three hours of your time for counselling sessions plus time for administration. We ideally hope you to offer the charity a minimum commitment of six months.

Desirable

• Knowledge of chronic pain or Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
• Previous experience as a chronic pain or CRPS counsellor or psychologist 
• Committed to our values
• Willing to develop skills and experience
• Enjoy working as part of a team
• Effective administration skills, planning and organisation skills
• Approachable, presentable, enthusiastic

We also welcome training counsellors and counselling/clinical psychologists who are looking for placements.

Once we’ve assessed your application, you may be invited for interview. If you are successful, we will arrange for you to have an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service DBS or Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) check.

Recognised Organisations You Must Be A Member of:

• British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP)
• British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapists (BABCP)
• Complimentary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC)
• General Hypnotherapy Register (GHR)
• British Society for Clinical Hypnotherapists (BSCH)
• National Council for Hypnotherapists (NCH)
• United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
• The National Hypnotherapy Society (HS)
• National Counselling Society (NCS)
• Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC)
• The Association for Professional Hypnosis and Psychotherapy (APHP)
• National Register of Hypnotherapists & Psychotherapists (NRHP)

Making a difference

What impact will the opportunity have?

You will join the charity during a critical and challenging period where referrals are on the rise and your expert knowledge and experience will be invaluable to our success. You will have a key role in not only developing a counselling service for our clients but also ensure we provide counselling services and mental health support to our CRPS patients & their families who are in need of our support and inclusion on a regular basis. With your help we will expand our support and mental health services to ensure our service users receive mental health support that they may not have been offered.

What's in it for you as the volunteer? 

You would be a part of our small, friendly, forward-thinking charity team, focused on reaching people affected by this rare, painful and debilitating chronic pain condition and to provide them with psychological support whether they are patients, their partner, relatives, friends or carers. As this service is rapidly expanding, you would have a key role in developing our counselling and psychotherapy programme and to complement our support services that we offer. This is a fantastic opportunity for you to make a real difference in our clients' life which is already isolated and painful, who may not have received any psychological support.

Are you committed to childhood flourishing with an interest in creating stragegies for this to happen?

Godly Play offers spiritually sensitive approaches to learning and living together in a fragile world. We take childhood spirituality seriously, providing training to transform thinking and practice for the whole of life.

A Christian movement, Godly Play seeks to make space for questions about the meaning and purpose of life, through play, wondering, story, exploration and community.

Our small board of trustees supports a group of fifteen part-time trainers offering courses to people working with children in churches of many traditions, in schools and in community settings. 

We would like to diversify our board's ethnicity, age and gender. It would be great to have someone with grant-seeking experience and/or communications know how, but we would love to talk to anyone who is interested.

Would you like to join us? Our website offers lots more information. 

Independent Visitors - Shropshire

Voluntary – a few hours per month

Information to candidates

We are seeking candidates who are committed to our objectives for children and young people and equally committed to the organisation and the development of our services. We recognise we are a predominantly white workforce and are genuinely committed to encouraging candidates from diverse communities in order to improve the services to the children and young people we help.

Our Core Purpose

Coram Voice exists to enable and equip children and young people* to hold the system to account, to challenge and support it to do its job properly and to uphold the rights of children and young people to actively participate in shaping their own lives.

Our vision

Coram Voice strives for a society which recognises and willingly accepts its responsibilities to children and young people, where the inequalities and discrimination they currently face have been eradicated. Where those children and young people are fully engaged in all decisions that are made about their lives. Where the views, needs and feelings that they express are at the core of those decisions.

Our Values

• We are child driven, always asking what children would want us to do. By engaging them at all levels of our work, their views and experiences are central to shaping all our plans. We are tenacious and passionate champions of children’s rights and we will not be distracted in our determination to do the right thing for children and young people.

• Second only to our dedication to children is our dedication to each other. Our work is defined and inspired by meaningful, supportive, mutually empowering relationships with and between children and young people, colleagues and partners. These relationships are powerful because they are authentic and human, where every contribution is equally valued and respected.

• We create a friendly and supportive working environment where work can and should be fun. We recognise that happy people perform at their best, and that people performing at their best are happier in their work. We celebrate our successes together and are open about our concerns and mistakes, supporting each other to grow and learn from them. We work flexibly, supporting each other in times of high workload or when life gets difficult.

• We accept personal responsibility for our work and we are accountable for delivering results against those responsibilities. Managers empower their people to take ownership of and make decisions on their areas of responsibility, ensuring that workload is manageable, that people are treated fairly, that they are supported and challenged to succeed. Everyone at Coram Voice is committed to modelling and championing these values, and managers have a particular responsibility for bringing them to life.

*We work with and for a range of children and young people who are potentially vulnerable to harm or exclusion from society, and who have a particular reliance on the state or its agencies for their rights and wellbeing, including children and young people who are looked after by the state, in need or who have severe and complex mental health problems, care leavers and young offenders. This is not an exclusive list.

Our work

Coram Voice is a national independent children’s charity which was established in 1975 and has grown to become one of the leading agencies for children and young people in the UK. Around 60 employed staff, 100 freelance workers and 200 volunteers deliver services to children and agencies through our London headquarters and regional offices. Together they provide Coram Voice with a high degree of specialist expertise in the fields of advocacy, children’s rights, mental health, complaints, secure accommodation and experience of working with children in care, in custody, in need and those who have recently left care.

We provide:

• Advocacy services direct to children and young people in care, in need, in custody and to care leavers and children and young people with severe and complex mental health problems. Advocates around the country support children and young people to get their voice heard in decisions about their lives. This may be through the telephone helpline or through an advocate working directly with a child, for instance, to support them at a review meeting or to help them make a complaint about their care. Coram Voice provides visiting advocacy services to most of the secure units nationally, to Secure Training Centres, Juvenile Young Offender Institutions, psychiatric hospitals, residential special schools and children’s homes.
• A National Helpline to provide access for children and young people to advocacy and advice, with access to legal advice and links with other national helplines such as ChildLine.
• Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) to advocate for young people as qualifying patients under the Mental Health Act, in order to fully support them to get their views heard in matters relating to their mental health.
• Independent visitors services providing volunteer befrienders to children and young people in care.
• Independent services: Coram Voice is a major national provider of independent person services for complaints by children and for reviewing whether children should be locked up in secure units on welfare grounds.
• Policy and campaigning to create a better system for all children and young people looked after by the state, for their care to be more child-centred and to give young people a greater say in decisions about their lives.
  • Participation services to ensure children and young people have a voice in the development and delivery of services and campaigns, and through the process, provide the opportunity to develop relevant skills which will be of benefit to them in their future lives.
  • Training, development and information for young people, advocates and child care workers, offering courses in advocacy, children’s rights and child-centred practice across a range of areas including the new National Advocacy Qualification.

About the Independent Visitor Service

What is an Independent Visitor?

An Independent Visitor (also known as an IV) is a responsible adult volunteer who befriends and supports a child or young person looked after by a local authority and has little or no contact with his/her parents. The children or young people may need additional support particularly as they are likely to be living in children’s homes, foster homes or independently.

What does an IV do?

An IV will be expected to visit the child/young person they are matched with regularly to demonstrate commitment to them. This could include visiting them at their home, trips out for example to football, sharing the young person’s interests or hobbies or specific activity. During term time most visits will be in the evening or at weekends. An IV can encourage a child/young person to participate in the meetings held to review his/her care plan and therefore be part of the decision making process about his/her life. The IV may also be asked by the child/ young person to speak at the meeting on his/her behalf in order to make his/her wishes, views and feelings known.

General considerations

· Please note that people employed by a local authority cannot work for Coram Voice in the same authority unless the LA gives agreement and the employee does not work in Children’s Services.

· All posts are subjected to an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service check and successful candidates will not be able to work unsupervised with children or young people until the completion of this process.

· All Coram Voice workers are required to comply with Coram Voice Codes of Practice and Code of Ethics

General consideration for applications:

• DBS checks All volunteers are subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring check.
• Training All successful candidates are required to complete our compulsory training programme which includes induction training and E learning courses on Safeguarding and Diversity, GDPR etc
  • Conflict of interest The independence of the service is important to Coram Voice. Prospective applicants need to raise any other potential conflicts of interest when initially contacting Coram Voice about this post.

The recruitment process:

• Shortlisting will be undertaken by the IV Coordinators.
• You will have a face to face or virtual home visit.
• The interview process comprises of a panel interview. Successful candidates will have a further one to one interview in accordance within Warner recommendations.
• Returning your application: We cannot accept general CVs.
• Applications must be fully completed.

Please return your application to: Human Resources via Blue Octopus.

If you have the necessary experience, attitudes and skills and a commitment to protecting the rights of young people we would like to hear from you.

Coram Voice is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. We actively encourage applicants from Asian, African, Caribbean and other minority ethnic backgrounds to join our teams. Whilst we have a diverse team we recognise we are a predominantly white workforce and are genuinely committed to encouraging candidates from diverse communities in order to improve the services to the children and families we help.

We are committed to the safeguarding of children and where appropriate will require the successful applicant to undertake a check from the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Registered Charity No. 312278

We are excited to share this great opportunity to join our Board of Directors.It is a very important time for Cornerstone, as we  set a course for the future, with our  strategy ‘Future proofing Cornerstone’. 

As a member of our Board, you will be instrumental in guiding the strategic future of the charity and ensuring exemplary governance and fiscal control. The main Board meets four times a year and board  members will be expected to be a member of one of the sub committees. You will also act as a local ambassador for Cornerstone. 

We are particularly keen to hear from those with skills, knowledge and experience in one or more of the following areas who feel they can make a positive contribution to our charitable activities: - 

• Management experience in social care quality standards, compliance, commissioning and / or procurement 
• Senior management experience in the social work / social care sector preferably with strategic planning skills 
• Accountancy/financial experience preferably at management level 
• Personal experience of providing care and support of a relative or carer of a person who has experience of care 

 
About Us 
 
Cornerstone is one of Scotland’s largest charities and is a leading provider of social care services to more than 1,200 adults, children and young people with disabilities and other support needs.  We employ over 1,900 people across Scotland and are fully committed to delivering high quality care and support. 

In addition, we also operate our Cornerstone Self-Directed Support service.  Across this service, we have over 200 Personal Assistants on our books and approximately 1000 active clients. 

We’re committed to building a workforce that represents the true diversity of Scotland, where every single one of our colleagues feel enabled to deliver their best.  We’re proud to be an equal opportunities employer who selects the best person for the job.  We value the diversity of our workforce and work hard to create an inclusive environment where each individual can bring their unique skills, experiences and ideas to the table to help us grow, bring create innovative solutions and develop of our people.  We are keen to receive applications for board position that reflect the diversity of the organisation. 

Click on our advert attachment to view for our Cornerstone Trustee Board information pack.

We welcome applications from anywhere in Scotland. 

There is no re-numeration attached to the role but expenses will be reimbursed. 

If you’re up for the challenge and think you have what it takes, apply today with your CV and cover letter.We're waiting to hear from you.Your cover letter should be uploaded to the 'Supporting Documents' section within our online application.

Will you share your counselling or psychotherapy skills as a child & young person's (CYP) counsellor or therapist to join an online counselling service for young patients with a pain condition (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome)? We’re supporting patients, relatives, partners and carers affected by a debilitating condition; Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS).

We're looking for qualified or student paediatric/child & young person counsellors, psychotherapists or psychologists ideally with some experience of working with chronic pain patients, who may want to volunteer their skills supporting our young service users and help develop a psychological support service. 

As a Volunteer Child/Young Person's Counsellor you’ll be providing remote online/telephone counselling/therapy support services to young people aged 5 to 18 who are vulnerable, many of whom are isolated and in need of mental health services. You’ll be providing one-to-one counselling sessions online or by phone. With your recognised counselling qualifications and experience you will be an asset to our small charity and to our young services users. We will also consider therapists who are in need of a placement.

Depending on your qualifications, skills and experience, volunteer child counsellors / therapists provide person centred counselling (general talking counselling) or specialist services such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), ACT and EMDR for young CRPS patients.

We are needing to expand this service to support our young clients as it has rapidly received a high number of referrals. People can be referred both by health or legal professionals as well as having parents/guardians referring them to the service.

In this role you’ll be able to develop your paediatric counselling skills, organisation, communication and team working skills. If you have experience in younger children please do get in touch.

Most importantly you’ll be providing essential services that help make sure no one has to face CRPS alone. Be the hope for CRPS.

What the role involves

This role may vary depending on needs, but is likely to include:

• Undertake a child client assessments, followed by person-centred counselling (via Zoom or phone) to our clients, offering up to 20 one hour (or 45 mins ate dependant) sessions for each client plus 4 assessments

• Providing one-to-one counselling sessions to young patients aged 5-18 (we will consider therapists who can only support primary or secondary school age)

• Update our database with the client’s basic information and session attendance

• Maintain succinct, relevant session notes and store these securely

• Attending and participating in meetings
• Project monitoring, creating, reporting and outcomes evaluation procedures

• Attend CPD training to ensure your knowledge stays current

• Participating in regular meetings with the Chair
• Maintaining client confidentiality, upholding data protection and equal opportunities principle

• Attend monthly Supervision to ensure safe working practices

We can support you to develop the skills you need for this role, including an induction. You will have a chance to discuss your role and any additional needs with us. We can offer you a supervisor.

What you need for this role

Essential

• Be a member (including student membership) of one of the recognised organisations (see below)
• Level 4 Diploma level qualifications as a minimum (or be studying towards one), Degree or Masters in Paediatric Counselling, Counselling/Clinical Psychology, Psychotherapy, Play Therapy or Art Therapy 
• Minimum of 100 hours supervised
• Proof of professional indemnity insurance annually - we may consider paying this as an expense but commitment to the charity is required
• A valid DBS certificate (enhanced version), which is less than three years old and renewed every three years (the charity can provide where necessary)
• Able to keep people’s personal data safe

• Willing and able to provide counselling via Zoom from a private location with a stable WiFi connection

• Able to support a minimum of 2 child or young clients a week, being two hours of your time for counselling sessions plus time for administration. We ideally hope you to offer the charity a commitment of six months.

Desirable

• Personal or professional Knowledge or experience of chronic pain or Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
• Previous experience as a chronic pain or CRPS paediatric counsellor or psychologist 
• Committed to our values
• Willing to develop skills and experience
• Enjoy working as part of a team
• Effective administration skills, planning and organisation skills
• Approachable, presentable, enthusiastic

We also welcome trained (or those seeking placements) paediatric counsellors, child therapists and counselling/clinical psychologists who are willing to give their time to support our valuable work.

Once we’ve assessed your application, you may be invited for interview. If you are successful, we will arrange for you to have an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service DBS or Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) check.

Recognised Organisations

• British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP)
• British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapists (BABCP)
• Complimentary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC)
• General Hypnotherapy Register (GHR)
• British Society for Clinical Hypnotherapists (BSCH)
• National Council for Hypnotherapists (NCH)
• United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
• The National Hypnotherapy Society (HS)
• National Counselling Society (NCS)
• Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC)
• The Association for Professional Hypnosis and Psychotherapy (APHP)
• National Register of Hypnotherapists & Psychotherapists (NRHP)

Making a difference

What impact will the opportunity have?

You will join the charity during a critical and challenging period as the service is rapidly expanding and your expert knowledge and experience will be invaluable to our success. You will have a key role in not only developing a counselling service for younger clients but also ensure we provide counselling services and mental health support to our young child CRPS patients who are in need of our support and inclusion on a regular basis. With your help we will expand our support and mental health services to ensure our service users receive mental health support that they may not have been offered.

What's in it for you as the volunteer? 

You would be a part of our small, friendly, forward-thinking charity team, focused on reaching people affected by this rare, painful and debilitating chronic pain condition and to provide them with psychological support whether they are patients, their partner, relatives, friends or carers. As this service is continually developing, you would have a key role in developing a young person counselling programme and to complement our support services that we offer. This is a fantastic opportunity for you to make a real difference in a child's life which is already isolated and painful, who may not have received any psychological support.

Could your knowledge, skills and experience make a positive difference to Age UK York? We are an independent charity with the mission of:‘Making a positive difference by putting older people, and the people around them, at the heart of all we do; working with partner organisations, to improve the quality of later life and provide effective, timely support for those who need it the most.’

Age UK York (AUKY) is one of the largest independent charities in York and every year reaches thousands of older people and their carers, and has a high level of recognition across the City’s statutory authorities, voluntary sector and the public.  Our services – some developed and delivered in productive partnerships – include Day Clubs, Help in the Home, Befriending, Carer Respite, Home from Hospital, Keep Your Pet and Information and Advice.

In challenging times for all charities, AUKY has continued to adapt and evolve to offer a range of relevant services and support for older people and extend our reach to try to meet need as effectively as possible, whilst increasing our active involvement with partners towards the collective effort here in York. To build and grow the charity to meet increasing need, we are seeking to expand our trustee board - complementing the skills of our present Trustees and broadening our Board’s diversity – with the addition of up to three new trustees.

We welcome applications from all age groups and backgrounds, and we are particularly looking for skills from amongst the following:  fundraising and income generation; accountancy and financial management; building stakeholder relationships and co-production; legal and HR expertise. Board and/or senior level management experience would be helpful, although not essential.

We currently hold eight noard meetings per annum.  Preparation and attendance at these, plus involvement in other committees, task groups and projects, are likely to require a time commitment of 12-15 days per annum in total.  

This is a volunteer role, offering the opportunity to contribute actively to the lives of older people in our communities, and gain leadership and board experience with a collaborative team of committed trustees.